Fellowship recipients may attend any accredited university in the United States with a master's degree program offering courses or training that emphasize the origins, principles, and development of the Constitution of the United States and its comparison with the constitutions and history of other forms of government.

(a) Fellows may pursue a master's degree in history or political science (including government or politics), the degree of Master of Arts in Teaching in history or political science (including government or politics), or a related master's degree in education that permits a concentration in American history, American government, social studies, or political science. Graduate degrees under which study is excluded from fellowship support are indicated in § 2400.63.

(b) A master's degree pursued under a James Madison Fellowship may entail either one or two years or their equivalent of study, according to the requirements of the university at which a Fellow is enrolled.

The Foundation must approve each Fellow's Plan of Study. To be approved, the plan must:

(a) On a part-time or full-time basis lead to a master's degree in history or political science, the degree of Master of Arts in Teaching in history or political science, or a related master's degree in education that permits a concentration in American history, American government, social studies, or political science;

(b) Include courses, graduate seminars, or opportunities for independent study in topics directly related to the framing and history of the Constitution of the United States;

(c) Be pursued at a university that assures a willingness to accept up to 6 semester hours of accredited transfer credits from another graduate institution for a Fellow's satisfactory completion of the Foundation's Summer Institute on the Constitution. For the Foundation's purposes, these 6 semester hours may be included in the required minimum of 12 semester hours or their equivalent of study of the United States Constitution; and

(d) Be pursued at a university that encourages the Fellow to enhance his or her capacities as a teacher of American history, American government, social studies, or political science and to continue his or her career as a secondary school teacher. The Foundation reserves the right to refuse to approve a Fellow's Plan of Study at a university that will not accept on transfer the 6 credits for the Institute.

(a) To be acceptable to the Foundation, those courses related to the Constitution referred to in § 2400.43(b) must amount to at least 12 semester or 18 quarter hours or their credit hour equivalent of study of topics directly related to the United States Constitution. More than 12 semester hours or their credit hour equivalent of such study is strongly encouraged.

(b) The courses that fulfill the required minimum of 12 semester hours or their credit hour equivalent of study of the United States Constitution must cover one or more of the following subject areas:

(1) The history of colonial America leading up to the framing of the Constitution;

(2) The Constitution itself, its framing, the history and principles upon which it is based, its ratification, the Federalist Papers, Anti-Federalist writings, and the Bill of Rights;

(3) The historical development of political theory, constitutional law, and civil liberties as related to the Constitution;

(4) Interpretations of the Constitution by the Supreme Court and other branches of the federal government;

(5) Debates about the Constitution in other forums and about the effects of constitutional norms and decisions upon American society and culture; and

(6) Any other subject clearly related to the framing, history, and principles of the Constitution.

(c) If a master's degree program in which a Fellow is enrolled requires a master's thesis in place of a course or courses, the Fellow will have the option of writing the thesis based on the degree requirements. The preparation of a master's thesis should not add additional required credits to the minimum number of credits required for the master's degree. If a Fellow must write a thesis, the topic of the thesis must relate to subjects concerning the framing, principles, or history of the United States Constitution. If the Fellow can choose between two degree tracks, a thesis track or a non-thesis track, the Foundation in general, requires the non-thesis track.

(a) Fellows may commence study under their fellowships as early as the summer following the announcement of their award. Fellows are normally expected to commence study under their fellowships in the fall term of the academic year following the date on which their award is announced. However, as indicated in § 2400.61, they may seek to postpone the commencement of fellowship study for up to one year under extenuating circumstances.

(b) In determining the two- and five-year fellowship periods of Junior and Senior Fellows respectively, the Foundation will consider the commencement of the fellowship period to be the date on which each Fellow commences study under a fellowship.

Applicants for Junior Fellowships who seek or hold baccalaureate degrees in education are strongly encouraged to pursue master's degrees in history or political science. Those applicants who hold undergraduate degrees in history, political science, government, or any other subjects may take some teaching methods and related courses, although the Foundation will not pay for them unless they are required for the degree for which the Fellow is matriculated. The Foundation will review each proposed Plan of Study for an appropriate balance of subject matter and other courses based on the Fellow's goals, background, and degree requirements.

The Foundation may award Senior Fellowships to applicants who are seeking their second master's degrees providing that the applicants' first master's degree was obtained at least three years prior to the year in which the applicants would normally commence study under a fellowship. In evaluating applications from individuals intending to pursue a second master's degree, the Fellow Selection Committee will favor those applicants who are planning to become American history, American government, social studies, or political science teachers after having taught another subject and applicants whose initial master's degree was in a subject different from that sought under the second master's degree.

Each year, the Foundation normally offers during July a four-week graduate-level Institute on the principles, framing, ratification, and implementation of the United States Constitution at an accredited university in the Washington, DC, area. The Institute is an integral part of each fellowship.

Each fellow is required as part of his or her fellowship to attend the Institute (if it is offered), normally during the summer following the Fellow's commencement of graduate study under a fellowship.

The principal element of the Institute is a graduate history course, “Foundations of American Constitutionalism.” Other components of the Institute include study visits to sites associated with the lives and careers of members of the founding generation.

At the Foundation's discretion, Fellows may be paid an allowance to help offset income foregone by their required attendance. The Foundation also funds the costs of the Institute and Fellows' round-trip transportation to and from the Institute site. The costs of tuition, required fees, books, room, and board entailed by the Institute will be paid for by the Foundation directly but may be offset against fellowship award limits if the credits earned for the Institute are included within the Fellows' degree requirements.

The Institute is accredited for six graduate semester credits by the university at which it is held. It is expected that the universities at which Fellows are pursuing their graduate study will, upon Fellows' satisfactory completion of the Institute, accept these credits or their credit-hour equivalent upon transfer from the university at which the Institute is held in fulfillment of the minimum number of credits required for Fellows' graduate degrees. Satisfactory completion of the Institute will fulfill 6 of the Foundation's 12 semester credits required in graduate study of the history and development of the Constitution. Fellows, with the Foundation's assistance, are strongly encouraged to make good faith efforts to have their universities incorporate the Institute into their Plan of Study and accept the 6 Institute credits toward the minimum number of credits required for their master's degrees.