Frontier technologies are reshaping international affairs.
NFS prepares the next generation to lead.
The Next Frontier Seminar (NFS) is a unique, inter-university fellowship program that identifies exceptional undergraduate and graduate students and equips them with the skills, mentorship, and real-world exposure needed to tackle the most pressing policy challenges of the twenty-first century.
Housed at the Berkeley Risk and Security Lab at the University of California, Berkeley, NFS brings together small, high-performing cohorts from leading universities for a year-long program of rigorous research, expert mentorship, and direct policy engagement. Fellows undertake substantive research projects, brief senior officials, publish their work, and build durable professional networks across institutions and disciplines - contributing extraordinary talent to government, industry, and academia while forging lasting connections across national and institutional boundaries.
Our Program
The NFS organizes interdisciplinary teams of university students under mentors at partner institutions. We provide training for mentors and operate a rigorous research methods and fundamental content module for fellows,, who then work together to produce novel, high-quality original research with access to resources from NFS. Students receive feedback from field-leading experts in a hands-on workshop midway through the academic year and present their findings at the end of the year to audiences in government, industry, and academia.
Our Team
NFS is fundamentally a network of experts, mentors, and students. The central node is our founding membership, which manages day-to-day operations, connects stakeholder groups, and provides strategic oversight and direction. Our leadership is supported by governance and advisory boards which reflect outstanding leadership in the realms of technology and security.
Our Fellows
The development of our fellows is our first priority. NFS Fellows have presented work to expert audiences in academia, private industry, and government and gone on to publish their findings in a variety of venues. As part of our mission to build authentic connections, we maintain a vibrant community of fellowship alumni.
“At the heart of our mission lies a commitment to not just envision a better future, but to actively forge it through education and empowerment.”
