Our Programmes
We want everyone, regardless of experience, to be able to engage with EA ideas, so we’re offering a variety of programmes this term.
If you are new to Effective Altruism, please consider applying to the Arete Fellowship for a comprehensive introduction . This is selective only on the basis of how you interact with the materials in the application form, rather than your knowledge, experience or academic subject.
The others are selective on the basis of how you’ve previously engaged with Effective Altruism, such as which books you’ve read, (as well as how you reason).
If you’re unsure we encourage you to apply to multiple, which should be made relatively easy through the single application form.
Timeline:
Introductory talk (and free dinner) on Monday 28th April, 6pm (first day back!). RSVP here.
Applications due midnight, Wednesday 30th April (mid- 1st week)
Decisions will be sent out by Friday 2nd May (end of 1st week)
Accepted applicants will be invited to a pre-programme social on the 5th May (2nd week)
Groups will start in 2nd week, and meet weekly until 5th week or 8th week (depending on the group’s preference)
The times that the groups meet up is dictated by the availability of participants (and the potential slots are on the application form).
Arete fellowship [Intro]
This seminar group introduces you to the core ideas in Effective Altruism, so you can think about how you can have a positive impact on the world.
Arete (usually pronounced AIR-uh-TAY) is a Greek word loosely meaning excellence or virtue, or living up to one’s potential. It is frequently associated with effectiveness and achieving results.
This program is designed to help you to form your own views on important questions that matter to you and help you have a high impact through your career and donations.
“The perfect first step for people who want to discover their role in making the world a better place. ”
career accelerator programme
This is a semi-structured in-person co-working group where fellows get the accountability, space and structure to work on their career plans, one-on-one discussions to signpost them to resources and the freedom to explore their careers in a way that suits them.
Each session is primarily participants working independently on their careers, doing activities such as making career plans, going through job application processes or upskilling through independent programmes.
To provide some direction, participants will have individual support to construct a plan for what they'll spend their time doing. They will also discuss their progress with the rest of the group in the end, so they can learn from each other's findings.
If you have any doubts or questions, please email Alex, or book a call with him here.
“It was very helpful to have a dedicated time set out each week to think systematically about your career; I ended up applying to a lot more things than I would have if I didn’t attend the programme. ”
“The combination of focused goal-setting prior to the programme with the group accountability to meet those goals in each session really worked for me as a way to get through some of the more off-putting parts of career decision making. Keeping the programme highly personalised (with the pre-programme chat to set goals) would be good”
in-depth fellowship (IDEA)
This is a cause neutral discussion group designed to help you gain a more thorough understanding of a variety of cause areas and to help you think through how to prioritise between them.
It begins with 2 weeks of setting intentions and thinking about our own values and how we arrive at them, followed by 4 weeks where your fellowship group decides together which topics to cover. Read the options here!
doing good meta: a moral uncertainty discussion group
“I want to help as many sentient animals as possible, but it's very unclear to me whether (and how) invertebrates are sentient - where should I donate and what should I eat?” and “I’m uncertain about whether earning to give in certain industries is morally permissible, but my favourite charities urgently need funding - how should I proceed?” People often apply their preferred ethical theory, justified through esoteric thought experiments and abstract principles, to questions like these. Unfortunately, ethics is hard, people are often overconfident, and we want to make good decisions even if we're uncertain about specific ethical claims. In this group, we try to work out what this all means for thorny issues faced by those who want to help as many people as possible, and how we can still make progress without "solving ethics".
Prior engagement / agreement with EA isn't necessary for this group, although you might find the discussion less useful if you find these four principles unappealing or fundamentally incompatible with your values.
Please feel free to reach out to james.lester@balliol.ox.ac.uk with any questions :))
Animal welfare discussion group
This will be a less structured reading group where we read and discuss/ podcast we find interesting, with a view to improving our understanding of the animal welfare landscape. Here I have some suggested readings/ videos/ podcasts, but would be excited to incorporate your ideas too!
“This fellowship helped to answer almost all of my big questions about animal welfare and its impact, and gave me very useful insights into career opportunities in this space.”
Global poverty discussion group
A deeper dive into topics of global poverty such as growth development, randomista development, and our obligations towards the global poor, taken from One for the World/EA Cambridge.
“The fellowship is a great opportunity to develop your understanding on a global issue through discussion with similarly passionate people.”
online existential risk discussion group
This is our only exclusively online programme, aimed at making discussions accessible, personal and up-to date. Coleman Snell, an AI governance and strategy researcher, will have discussions with individual group members to determine their interests and tailor the readings to them.
The members of the Michaelmas term cohort were keen to continue through the Christmas break and into Hilary term, so apply to join them here!
“ It is fun and you can learn a lot about potential existential risks and how we can cope, and it is also an intellectual exercise. You get to know a lot of interesting people here as well!”
Applications close midnight, Wednesday 30th April (mid- 1st week)