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Palantir Technologies has achieved a significant market capitalization of over $200 billion. The firm boasts a wide array of defense contracts, focusing on the creation of “AI-powered solutions” aimed at safeguarding military personnel in combat zones, enhancing product quality, streamlining hospital operations, and ensuring aid reaches refugees safely.
For those aspiring to join the company, particularly in the dozens of software engineering positions listed on its website, a prestigious university degree might not be as crucial as one might think.
This week, Palantir introduced a new initiative called the “Meritocracy Fellowship,” tailored for high school students and recent graduates who are interested in “attaining the Palantir Degree” without incurring student debt or facing ideological biases. The fellowship aims to reward candidates based purely on merit and academic achievement.
In a statement on LinkedIn, Palantir expressed concerns about the prevailing admissions practices in universities, describing the “chaos” prevalent on campuses and critiquing the flawed criteria utilized for student admissions. The four-month fellowship, slated to commence in Fall 2025, will provide participants with a monthly stipend of $5,400.
The job listing indicates that the position is based in New York City, and while Palantir encourages its employees to work from company offices, reports suggest that its CEO frequently operates from a barn in New Hampshire. The job posting articulates concerns over “opaque admissions standards” at various American universities, claiming that these practices hinder meritocracy and excellence, leading to deserving candidates being overlooked for education based on superficial criteria. The absence of meritocracy, it argues, has contributed to an environment of extremism and disorder on campuses.
Fellows selected for this opportunity will collaborate with a team to tackle “technical challenges that enhance Palantir products and improve customer outcomes.” The total number of positions available via the fellowship has not been disclosed.
As a part of its outreach, Palantir is deploying its fellowship announcement at select colleges. pic.twitter.com/tz62o1A5ql— Palantir (@PalantirTech) April 14, 2025
To qualify for the fellowship, applicants must be high school graduates at the start of the internship, holding an SAT score of at least 1460 or an ACT score of a minimum of 33. Prospective fellows must not be enrolled in any university during the fellowship period. The job post notes that familiarity with programming languages or statistical software (like Python, R, Matlab, SQL) will be advantageous.
This initiative is not an isolated case; it follows similar unconventional recruiting strategies seen in other AI and defense sectors. For instance, last month, the defense startup Andruil, which has secured billions in government contracts, launched an advertising campaign in tech-rich cities discouraging people from applying there.
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