The White House Fellows program is a non-partisan central fellowship established via executive order by President Lyndon B. Johnson in October 1964. The fellowship is one of USA's most prestigious programs for leadership and public service, offering exceptional US Citizens first-hand experience working at the highest levels of the central government. The fellowship was founded based upon a suggestion from John W. Gardner, then the president of Carnegie Corporation and later the sixth secretary of health, education, and welfare.

White House Fellows spend a year working as a full-time, paid fellow to senior White House staff, cabinet secretaries, and other top-ranking government officials. Fellows also participate in an education program consisting of roundtable discussions with leaders from the private and public sectors. In some years, Fellows may also have the opportunity to study U.S. policy in action domestically, and potentially internationally. The selection process is very competitive and fellowships are awarded on a strictly non-partisan basis. Each year after the application period closes, the staff of the President's Commission on White House Fellowships (PCWHF) processes the applications and former fellows screen the applications to identify approximately one hundred of the most promising candidates. These selected individuals are then interviewed by several regional panels, which are composed of prominent local citizens. Based on the results of these interviews, the regional panelists and the director of the PCWHF select approximately thirty candidates to proceed as national finalists. Of the applications received, the PCWHF will interview those finalists and recommend between 11 and 19 individuals to the president for a one-year appointment as fellows. Selected civilians serve as Schedule A presidential appointees,^[1] while military members will be assigned to duty at the PCWHF at 712 Jackson Place, Washington, D.C.^[2]

Once fellows complete their year of service, they join hundreds of other fellows as alumni of the program. The White House Fellows Foundation and Association is the organization that represents the White House Fellows alumni efforts, leadership events and fundraising activities.

White House Fellows come from a variety of backgrounds.

• The ten universities most frequently attended by White House Fellows are, in order: Harvard, Stanford, West Point, Oxford, MIT, Columbia, the Air Force Academy, the Naval Academy, Berkeley, and Yale.
• The average age of a Fellow is mid-30s.
• A total of 251 women have been selected as White House Fellows since the program’s creation in 1964. They represent 28% of the 879 people who have served as White House Fellows. The percentage of women has increased over time, as shown by the statistics below:
  • 1960s: 7 of 86 – 8% women
  • 1970s: 36 of 158 – 23% women
  • 1980s: 33 of 135 – 24% women
  • 1990s: 52 of 159 – 33% women
  • 2000s: 38 of 131 – 29% women
  • 2010s: 54 of 145 – 37% women
  • 2020s: 31 of 63 – 49% women

• A broad range of career backgrounds are represented. Fellows' professions include physicians, lawyers, teachers, military officers, scientists, non-profit leaders, engineers, CEOs, entrepreneurs, academics, and many more.

• Earned bachelor's degree: 100%
• Attended an Ivy League university: 18%
• Attended a military academy: 19%
• Graduated Phi Beta Kappa: 12%
• Rhodes scholar: 2%

• Earned a graduate degree of any kind: 96%
• Earned a graduate degree from an Ivy League university: 41%

The Presidents Commission on White House Fellowships (PCWHF) consists of the program office (the Director, staff, and White House Fellows) and the Commission (the commissioners and their Chairperson). The White House Fellows program is a subunit of the White House Office^{[9][10][11][12]} and is located on the 18 acres of the White House grounds.^[13][14] The Director of the PCWHF is appointed by the President, serves as the Designated Federal Officer for the Commission, and is supported by a team of staff members.^[15] The Director is responsible for administering all aspects of the program.^[16] The Commission meets twice a year and reports to the President of the United States through the Executive Office of the President.^[15][17] The Commission's responsibility is to recommend candidates to the President for selection as White House Fellows. The commissioners help recruit a diverse group of applicants, screen the applicants, and makes recommendations to the President.^[18]

Chairs of the Commission overseeing the White House Fellows Program include:

Commissioners overseeing the White House Fellows Program include:

Former Commissioners overseeing the White House Fellows Program include:

• Rose Vela^[19]
• Elizabeth Pinkerton^[20]
• Jennifer Kaplan^[21]
• Cindy Moelis^[9]
• Janet Eissenstat^[22]
• Jocelyn White^[23]
• Jacqueline Blumenthal^[24]
• James C. Roberts^[25]

• White House Fellows website
• White House Fellows Foundation and Association website
• President's Commission on White House Fellowships archives: Barack Obama | George W. Bush | Bill Clinton