Advice on Landing a World Bank Group Fellowship is notoriously difficult! Think thousands of PhD candidates and graduates competing for a handful of spots that could launch your development career. Nonetheless, the program remains one of the best opportunities to gain hands-on experience working in global development challenges.
Applications for the 2026 cohort are open, and I, Georgette Dwomoh-Appiah, caught up with Fikayo Akeredolu, a former #WBGFellow, about her experience working at the World Bank. We discussed what it’s really like working within the organization, the fellowship application process and the secrets to a standout submission.
If you’re eyeing this opportunity or just curious about what it takes to break into high-level development work, this conversation pulls back the curtains for you. Enjoy, and when you finally do apply, I wish you nothing but the best!
World Bank Africa Fellowship Program – Applications due by August 25, 2025
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GEORGETTE: What is a typical day in your life as a WBG fellow? How do your days typically go?
FIKAYO: It's very interesting. I feel like it's one of those. It might sound cliche, but no two days are the same. Because on some days there's a very specific team project that you're working on. On other days, you might be able to take on specific projects that are dear to your heart or you might be able to just even do some personal work.
For me personally, I was in the Climate Change Finance Mobilization Unit, so a lot of what we're doing is supporting the World Bank's SCALE program. I was working with the Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes (ISFL) team as well, which focuses on forestry. And a lot of that is trying to make sure that we're aligned with our donors, we're aligned with our partner countries and we're making sure that we're delivering on all our carbon commitments.
I also got to attend all the events, for example, during the Spring Meetings. I think I'll just emphasize, no two days are the same. And I was very lucky. I worked in a team that was very flexible in terms of allowing me to pursue things that I was interested in and passionate about.
GEORGETTE: That sounds exciting and I'm curious to know how your PhD aligns with the work that you are doing. Was it completely the same or did you have to step a bit out of your comfort zone just execute your day-to-day tasks even though you enjoyed it?
FIKAYO: My PhD is actually very, very different from the team I was in. I really had to step out of my comfort zone, step out of everything that I know, and really come to a place of learning again, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I figured it'd be a good opportunity to learn something new. I thought to myself, “you're working on a PhD for three, four, five years”, so it was nice to do something new outside of my work.
My PhD specifically focuses on energy access and energy transition in Sub-Saharan Africa, but the team I was working with is focused more on carbon. To be more specific, I was working with the ISFL team and ISFL simply stands for Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes, and it's working with countries to reduce emissions from the land sector, mainly through smarter land use planning.
Again, the work I was doing was different from my PhD, but it was very exciting because where else am I going to learn what the World Bank and its partner countries and donors are actually doing to cut down carbon emissions? The best place to learn something like that is literally the World Bank. It was amazing!
I think how I'll put it is, the fellowship was an opportunity to go beyond the scope of my expertise. Now I consider myself an expert not just in energy transition, but also in carbon and reducing emissions as well. I consider myself now as sort of a two-pronged expert and this fellowship really helped me achieve that.
GEORGETTE: I love that: a two-pronged expert. I'm all about building expertise, so that makes me really happy and brings me to my next question. What pushed you to apply for this fellowship program? And what was the process like for you?
FIKAYO: To be honest, I think this is one of the easiest applications I've done. I don't know if that's something I should say out loud, but it was: log into a website, fill out your cv, fill out your references, fill out your essay, select the teams you're interested in.
I've been following the World Bank for a very long time. I read all the reports, I do everything. Half of my references are World Bank sources. I'm aware of all the vacancies. Everything on the World Bank careers website, I feel like I know it. So immediately the application was open I filled out my application form, finding my references. And again, I'm passionate about climate change. That's really where I see myself sitting. So, I had to do the research on what team or what units or department I wanted to join at the Bank. It was just trying to make sure that I wrote an essay that made me stand out, and I had to make sure that I crafted my CV in a way that made me stand out as well to the team/department/unit that I wanted to be in. I would say it was easy. It wasn't a difficult application process at all.
GEORGETTE: That's very helpful. My final question is, what advice do you have for PhD candidates and PhD graduates out there who are looking to apply to this program, and in particular the women, because we're looking to have a lot more female applicants. So what advice would you have to anyone considering applying for the fellowship program?
FIKAYO: That’s the most important question to ask. This year, myself and the other fellows on the program calculated that the program has a less than 1% acceptance rate. So, for our year, 3,000, I think 3,039 people applied and only 26 were accepted. That's literally less than 0.1%. But I think you shouldn't let that...a one in a million chance is still a chance, right?
I think maybe for women specifically, you might be afraid, or you might think, "oh, the chances of me getting it are so low", so you might not apply. And that is not the attitude to have. Don't let a low acceptance rate stand in your way, if that makes sense. Still put your mind to it. Still put your back into it. Really stick with it and believe that you'll get it.
Because when I was applying, I was so sure I would not get it. I had calculated all the acceptance rates from all the other years, and I realized this is such a competitive program and I genuinely did not think I would get it. But I was like, you know what? I'm just going to do my best and hope that somebody sees my application and recognizes that I truly want this and I'm truly the best for it. And I got it in the end.
So honestly, my advice to everyone is, just really pay attention to the application. You have to write an essay. Don't just write a generic essay that is like, "oh, I care about the World Bank's work." No. What team/department do you want to work with? What is the essay you can write that will stand out to that department? Don't just write something generic. Look at your CV. What parts of your CV will help you in the specific departments you want to work with?
It's not a difficult application process but you do have to pay attention. You have to show that you are somebody who is serious and has done the research. I think that would be my advice, especially to the women. I also agree with you that we need more women on this program. I can't emphasize enough…This is such an amazing program for anybody doing a PhD and you should definitely try your best to get in. For my fellow girls, I would say really put your back into it. If there's a way, maybe, you can reach out to other people who've done the fellowship to see what help they might be able to offer, do that as well. The application is your first chance to be impressive. So sit with it, pay attention to it, and really believe in yourself. I realize that sounds cliche, but you really have to believe in yourself.
The way I frame it is, you really have to have audacity. If you're not going to believe in yourself, who's going to believe in you?
When I was applying, what I did was write my essay, put my CV together, and then I went on LinkedIn, and I found some of the previous fellows. I asked a few of them if they could help me read my essay and read my CV to tell me what they think. And I took all that feedback and I put it in. Thank God I was successful. So, again, don't be afraid to do something like that. Ask for help. I think us as women sometimes were like, oh, let me not disturb this person. Disturb everybody. Get the help you need.
GEORGETTE: I love that! Thank you so much, Fikayo, for your time, and I wish you all the best.
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