Fellows throughout the years have included Francis Beer, Erika Bourguignon, Ofer Feldman, Azar Gat, Margaret Hermann, David P. Houghton, Kimberly Marten, Robert J. McMahon, Margaret Mills, John Mueller, Mary Ellen O'Connell, Allan Silverman, Alexander Stephan.
The Mershon Center houses scholars from a variety of fields, including doctoral students, visiting fellows, and permanent faculty affiliates.
In 1982, then-director Charles F. Hermann initiated a book award in honor of the first director of the center, Edgar S. Furniss Jr.
The award is presented annually to a scholar whose "...first book makes an exceptional contribution to the study of national and international security.
"[2] Notable recipients have included: Harry G. Summers Jr. (1982), John Mearsheimer (1983), Barry Posen (1984), Bruce G. Blair (1986), Andrew Krepinevich (1987), Stephen Walt (1988), Aaron Friedberg (1989), Stephen Peter Rosen (1992), Michael E. Brown (1993), James Goldgeier (1995), Lars-Erik Cederman (1998), Robert D. English (2000), Matthew Connelly (2002), Benjamin Valentino (2004), Michael C. Horowitz (2010), and Keren Yarhi-Milo (2014).