Eligibility Quiz

Thank you for your interest in the 2027 Bush Fellowship Program. Please answer the following six questions to see if you are eligible to apply. The questions are required fields and are indicated with a red asterisk. If you are eligible, you will be directed to the application.

If you have already started a 2027 Bush Fellowship application, click "Resume a previously saved form" above.

Are you a resident who currently lives in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota or one of the 23 Native nations within the same geography?

YesNo

Have you lived in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota or one of the 23 Native nations within the same geography for one continuous year immediately before applying?

YesNo

Will your primary residence remain in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota or one of the 23 Native nations within the same geography throughout the application process and your Fellowship?

YesNo

Will you be at least 24 years old on October 6, 2026, the closing date for the Fellowship application?

YesNo

Have you previously received a Bush Fellowship, Bush Artist Fellowship, Bush Leadership Fellowship, Bush Medical Fellowship or Enduring Vision Award?

YesNo

Are you a family member of an individual who is on the Bush Foundation staff or Board of Directors? A family member includes any spouse, domestic partner, parent, grandparent, great grandparent, child, grandchild, great grandchild, and spouses or domestic partners of children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

YesNo

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Welcome to the 2027 Bush Fellowship Application

We want to make this application process as simple as possible for you to navigate - please let us know how we can support you along the way. Contact us at 651-379-2249 or staff@bushfoundation.org with questions.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon (12pm) Central. The online application will automatically close at this time and we cannot accept applications after the deadline.

Saving your application: You can save your application to revisit and finish at any time. We recommend saving early and often! To save your changes, click the "Save my progress and resume later" checkbox at the top of the page. A save notification will be sent to your email—make sure to check your junk or spam folder. This form will not auto-save. Make sure you save prior to closing your browser.

Required fields: Required fields are indicated with a red asterisk. You must fill in all required fields in order to submit the application.

Navigation: Avoid using your browser's back button, as you may lose unsaved changes. Instead, use the page number links in the upper right or the Previous Page and Next Page buttons at the bottom.

Submitting your application: All applications are final upon submission. If multiple applications are submitted, only the first one will be accepted.

Character counts: Some fields have a character count limit, which includes spaces. Copying and pasting text from another program, such as Microsoft Word, can bring over embedded formatting which results in different character counts. If you copy and paste from Word or another application, you might need to edit your responses in the online form to keep within the character count. If you see a negative number, for example "-22 characters left," you have gone over the character count limit by 22 characters and need to reduce those characters by 22. Only the characters that fit within the limit will be successfully submitted.

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central. Applicant Registration

This information is used to create a new application. Even if you have completed an application for the Bush Fellowship in the past, you will need to complete this section.

Salutation

First Name

Middle Name

Last Name

Optional: Please let us know how to pronounce your name. For example, spell it phonetically or provide an example, like “rhymes with ….”

If you would like, please share your gender pronouns.

Please share your gender identity.

What is your date of birth?

Please enter as MM/DD/YYYY

Email Type

Email

Use the email address where you want to receive confirmation of submission and correspondence for your application.

Re-enter Email

Re-enter your email to confirm accuracy.

Phone Type

Phone

Ex: 123-456-7890

Home Street

Home City

Home State

Home Zip Code

Full Name

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central.

Applicant Information

The following information helps us to understand who is applying to the program and is not used for the purpose of selection.

Which racial/ethnic groups do you identify with?

Select all that apply

If you selected Black/African American or Asian/Asian American, please select the following options, if applicable.

Press Ctrl to select multiple options.

If you are currently enrolled in a tribe(s), please select the tribe(s) from the list below.

If you are enrolled in multiple tribes, press Ctrl and click each selection

Select the option that best describes your current area of work.

If referred by a Bush Fellow, Bush Foundation staff or a member in our community, please list their name and email address below. We ask for this information so we can thank people who refer applicants and make sure they have up-to-date information about the program.

255 character limit

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central.

We recommend reviewing the application questions and selection criteria as a whole to see how they connect to one another.
https://www.bushfoundation.org/bush-fellowship-application-questions-criteria/

Your Impact as a Leader

1. Tell us about who you are and your track record in creating change.

We want to understand your journey to leadership, your work and experiences that have helped shape who you are as a leader today. We want to understand the change you've helped to create through your leadership over time, including how you have brought people together to work on solutions to problems in your community and how you have used obstacles as an opportunity for growth.

Submit this response as a 2-minute video through our recording tool or in writing. You cannot choose both.

I would like to record a video or audio response to this question. I would like to write a response to this question.

Please provide your written response to the prompt here.

Maximum 1,500 characters, approximately 300 words

If you answered "Yes" to submitting a video or audio response, you will record your response using this tool. You will not be able to upload a video or audio response created elsewhere. You must complete your audio or video response for your application to be considered complete. IMPORTANT NOTE: Click this link or copy and paste the link into your browser. https://vocalvideo.com/c/bush-foundation-bush-foundation-fellowship-2027-8va871vh

Please fill in the name and email you used when submitting your video response.

2. Tell us about your vision for the large-scale equitable change you want to help make happen - and why that change is needed in your community.

We want to understand your vision for transformational change - your big ideas and how you apply what you know and learn while you remain open to new ways of seeing problems and solutions.

Maximum 2,500 characters, approximately 500 words

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central.

Your Vision

3. Thinking of the vision you described in question 2, what will it take to make that vision happen? Who needs to be involved, what support is needed, and what part will you play in making it a reality?

We want to understand the approach you think is needed to implement your vision. Knowing that transformation doesn't happen alone, we want to know what role you will play in creating the change.

Maximum 2,000 characters, approximately 400 words

4. Tell us why you are the right person to lead this effort at this time? How are you connected to those currently working on this effort and those most impacted by this work?

We want to understand your connection with your community and how your experiences and perspectives will help bring about the change you envision.

Maximum 1,500 characters, approximately 300 words

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central.

Your Leadership Goals

5. Tell us about the ways you want to develop your leadership. Please share your overall leadership goals to help you become a more effective leader in order to accomplish your vision.

We want to understand the key areas in which you hope to grow as a leader over the next several years. These may include how you lead people, build partnerships, navigate complexity, influence systems, deepen your expertise or sustain yourself and your work.

Maximum 2,000 characters, approximately 400 words

Your Plan

6. Building on the leadership growth you describe above, tell us about your leadership plan. What are the specific skills, experiences and connections you will pursue during your Fellowship?

Describe the specific skills, experiences, relationships, networks, knowledge or opportunities you hope to gain through the Fellowship. Explain why these are important, how you plan to pursue them, and how they would strengthen your leadership and advance your vision. Focus on opportunities that would be difficult to access without the Fellowship.

Maximum 2,500 characters, approximately 500 words

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central.

References

Please provide the names of two references and one alternate and how they're connected to you. If you are selected as a semifinalist the references you provide will be asked to participate in a 30-minute phone call with a Bush Foundation representative to discuss your leadership.

Both references should be people who can speak to your leadership ability and/or potential. The two references should include:

One person who has led you (for example, a work or volunteer supervisor, mentor, Board chair)
One person whom you have led

At least one reference should be a person who lives in the region. Please do not include immediate family members.

It is more important that you choose people who know you well and can speak to your leadership skills and/or potential rather than a well-known person in the community who does not know you as well.

A Bush Foundation representative will only contact references for applicants selected as semifinalists.

Reference 1

Reference Name #1:

Reference #1 Email:

Please share only one email address

Reference #1 Phone Number:

Reference #1 Connection to you:

Reference 2

Reference Name #2:

Reference #2 Email:

Please share only one email address

Reference #2 Phone Number:

Reference #2 Connection to you:

Please provide an alternative reference in the event that we cannot reach your first two references.

Alternate Reference #3

Reference Name #3:

Reference #3 Email:

Please share only one email address

Reference #3 Phone Number:

Reference #3 Connection to you:

Legal History

Having a criminal history does not automatically disqualify you from receiving a Fellowship.

List any federal, state or municipal law violation convictions. Exclude traffic violations or any violations which occurred prior to your 18th birthday. If none exist, enter N/A.

List any legal judgments, bankruptcy proceedings, lawsuits or legal claims pending or docketed against you. Exclude claims for less than $100. If none exist, enter N/A.

Resume

Resumes are required. To upload your resume, click the "Choose File" button. Then select your file. Please do not upload more than one file.

Resumes are typically two to three pages long. Please submit your resume using one of the following types of files: .doc, .docx, .pdf.

Please include your name in the file name and in the document itself. We will not review or consider any attachments other than your resume.

Click the box below to complete the CAPTCHA and then click "Review" to review your application responses.

On the following page, click "Confirm" to submit your application. Once you submit your application we'll consider it final; we won't accept future edits or additional applications for the 2027 Bush Fellowship Program.

You must click "Confirm" on the following page to submit your application.

Eligibility Quiz

Welcome to the 2027 Bush Fellowship Application

RemindersPro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central. Applicant Registration

Reminders

Reminders

Your Impact as a Leader

Reminders

Your Vision

Reminders

Your Leadership Goals

Your Plan

Reminders

Resume

Reminders

Pro-tip: If you would like to save and resume your application at any point, make sure it includes 12 Characters, 1 Uppercase letter, 1 Lowercase letter, 1 Number, and 1 Special Character.

Deadline: Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at noon Central. Applicant Registration