jGirls+ Magazine Application Process 

Eligibility

Learn more about jGirls+ Magazine.

jGirls+ is committed to including and representing a diverse range of voices, experiences, and identities in terms of Jewish identification, race, ethnicity, gender expression and identity, sexual orientation, ability, and socioeconomic status/class. If you’re unsure whether jGirls+ staff positions are open to your specific Jewish and/or gender identity, we encourage you to apply anyway – rest assured, this is a safe space. 

You are eligible to apply for this program if: 

  • You self-identify as a Jewish girl, young woman, or genderqueer person. We welcome both cis and trans applicants. 
  • You will be a sophomore, junior, or senior in the 2025-26 academic year. 
  • You are fluent in written and spoken English. 
  • You are committed to developing your voice and leadership skills. 
  • You live in a time zone that corresponds to a continental U.S. time zone (Eastern, Central, Mountain, or Pacific). This is necessary for participation in our online meetings at the times described below. 
  • You are available during the meeting times described below. 

Length of Term

The position lasts one year, starting in late August 2025 and continuing through the end of the U.S. academic year. If you have fulfilled your responsibilities and are still eligible, you can remain on the staff for the following year. If you will be graduating from high school, your staff term will end, and you will be invited to join our network of alums. 

While you can only serve as either a staff editor or a staff photographer, you may apply to be considered for both roles. If applying for both, you can indicate which is of greater interest to you on the application form. Regardless of which position(s) you are interested in, you will need to complete the entire application to be considered. 

Monthly Time Commitment & Compensation

Editorial Board
Meetings & Workshops

You must be available on Sundays from 7–9 pm ET to participate in Zoom meetings with the entire editorial board.

These are held twice a month and include:

  • Editorial meetings: training in editorial skills, current affairs discussions, departmental updates, and organizational decision-making.
  • Educational seminars: workshops with expert educators on a variety of topics related to editing, leadership, and identity.

Through this training, editors build leadership, decision-making, and communications skills, and explore identity at the intersection of their Jewish and gender identities. Past seminars have focused on talking across difference, fostering civil dialogue, race and racism, disability inclusion, LGBTQ+ inclusion, gender in Jewish text, and more.

You are required to attend these meetings. We understand that you may have to miss meetings occasionally. However, please note that if you have another regular commitment that conflicts with this time, you will not be eligible for an editorial position.

Additional Time Commitments

All new editors sit in two departments, including Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Visual Arts & Music, and Timely Content. There are 4-6 editors in each department. Department meetings are teen-only spaces where you read, discuss, analyze, edit, and select teen-created content for publication in jGirls+ Magazine, and get to know fellow editors.

Each department meets for 1 hour, 1 evening a week, so you must be available for evening meetings twice a week (Mon-Thurs) between 6-9 pm ET throughout the academic year. Specific times for these meetings will be assigned based on the schedules of editors and their departmental preferences; therefore, you must have some amount of scheduling flexibility.

As part of your departmental responsibilities, you will also complete independent work outside of meeting times, such as reviewing magazine submissions, composing responses to teen contributors, or preparing selected pieces for publication on our site.You can expect to spend3–4 hours per week on meeting time and independent work. This is in addition to the twice monthly two-hour all-editor meetings described above.

Compensation

In addition to valuable experience and training, editorial board members will receive a stipend of $250 upon the completion of the program year.

Please note that because editorial board members are staff, any pieces you have published in our magazine while on the board are part of your responsibilities and covered by your stipend.

Staff Photographer
Meetings & Workshops

You must be available on two Sundays a month from 4–5:30 pm ET to participate in Zoom meetings with the entire photography staff.  

These meetings are held twice a month and include:

  • Photography staff meetingshour-long department meetings to discuss photo management, collaborate on departmental projects, get to know fellow photographers, and make decisions related to the aesthetic of the magazine.
  • Educational seminars: training on the art of photography and curation from professional photographers and visual artists.

Photographers apply the tools and skills they learn at these workshops by helping to shape the visual tone and aesthetic of jGirls+ Magazine. Past topics have included visual composition, street photography, self-portraiture, and more. You are required to attend these meetings. We understand that you may have to miss meetings occasionally. However, please note that if you have another regular commitment that conflicts with this time, you will not be eligible for a staff photographer position.

Additional Time Commitments

All photographers are assigned to an editorial department (Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Timely Content). Department meetings are teen-only spaces where the editors read, discuss, analyze, edit, and select teen-created content for publication in jGirls+ Magazine. Photographers attend approximately one meeting per month to get to know fellow staff members and discuss photo pairings for written work edited by the department.

Each editorial department meets for 1 hour, 1 evening a week between 6-9 pm ET. You will be assigned to a department based on your weeknight availability and preferences.

In addition to attending meetings, photographers are responsible for taking, uploading, and editing 6–10 images per month, as well as pairing photos with written work to appear on our site. You will ensure that your photos are accurately filed and logged to maintain a manageable photo database.

You can expect to spend 1–2 hours a week on meeting time and independent work.

Compensation

In addition to valuable experience and training, staff photographers will receive a stipend of $125 for the completion of the program year.

Please note that because photographers are staff, any photos you publish while on the board are part of your responsibilities and are covered by your stipend. You will be compensated separately for published written work.

Apply Now

  1. Download the Application Preview PDF, which will help you prepare your answers and materials.
  2. Fill out the Teen Trips & Fellowships Application and upload all materials through the application form.
  3. Finalists will be invited for a Zoom interview. All applicants will be advised of their status by the end of June.

Thank you for your interest. We look forward to hearing from you!

Questions? Contact us.