Verso Fellowship (US)

The Verso Fellowship program is a year-long work placement, designed to be open to candidates from a diverse range of backgrounds, that will provide a comprehensive introduction to book publishing. The Verso Fellowship program is intended to help the publishing industry to become more diverse and more reflective of our readership, attracting people with life experiences different from the majority who currently work in the industry. We are looking for candidates who have recently completed a degree and/or have worked for at least two years in any sector, and want to explore a career in publishing.

The full-time Verso Fellowship will be based in Verso’s Brooklyn office, using flexible remote working and learning as needed, and is open to applications from anywhere in the US. The 2021 Fellowship program will run from January to December, and will be paid $37,500 per year (based on the MIT Living Wage for Brooklyn) with full benefits: twenty-five days of paid vacation, health, dental and vision insurance, and commuter benefits. There will sometimes be available paid overtime, on a voluntary basis.

The Verso Fellowship will be structured around a weekly training program with every department for the first three months: editorial and production, marketing and publicity, rights and contracts, financial and operations. There will also be daily and weekly tasks supporting the work of each department in Verso, as needed and agreed with colleagues. Candidates will learn the entire publishing workflow, and become familiar with all of the relevant software. During the second quarter, candidates will work with senior colleagues to develop suitable longer-term projects with individual departments, which should be completed before the end of the program. Throughout the year, candidates will participate in regular meetups and networking events with colleagues at other publishing houses. Verso will work with every candidate to build skills, knowledge and contacts, discuss career options and opportunities, and give feedback on job applications.

Applications will close on Oct 15, remote interviews with the shortlist will take place in October, and placements will be confirmed by Nov 16.

Please send a cover letter and resume to verso@versobooks.com.