Harvard-Amgen Scholars Program

Applicants must

• Be U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents. International students are ineligible.
• Be undergraduate students enrolled in accredited four-year colleges or universities in the United States, Puerto Rico or other U.S. territories. This is non-negotiable.
• Be sophomores (with four quarters or three semesters of college experience), juniors or non-graduating seniors (who are returning in the fall to continue undergraduate studies) at the time of application
• Have a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or above (on a 4.0 scale)
• Have an interest in pursuing a Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D. in biotechnology or related biomedical sciences fields

All students who meet the above criteria may apply. No prior research experience is required. Students may apply to multiple Amgen Scholars U.S. programs at the same time.

In addition to engaging in research and scholarly development activities, scholars will receive:

• A stipend
• Paid for housing and dining plan in Harvard housing facilities
• Access to Harvard’s recreational facilities and libraries
• Travel allowance for traveling to/from Boston, MA

Transportation

The program will cover the Scholar’s travel expenses to and from the program up to the designated summer travel allowance. 

Housing

Amgen Scholars will live in one of Harvard’s River Houses in single or double room accommodations, within suites or stand-alone rooms – that are single or double occupancy. Single rooms are not guaranteed. Rooms contain ceiling fans (NO air conditioning). The program provides additional personal fans for each Amgen Scholar. There are no kitchen facilities available to any undergraduate program participants over the summer months. Amgen Scholars receive a dining plan with their housing. For any accommodation and accessibility concerns related to housing, transportation to labs or otherwise, scholars should directly be in contact with the program well in advance of the start of the program.

After your application has been submitted, you will receive an email confirming your application has been submitted from the application system. Applicants can check the status of your application through the system. Applicants who are being strongly considered for the cohort will be invited to semi-finalist interviews conducted at the end of February through March 1. All applicants will be notified of the selection results after interviews are completed, starting the first week of March. Please do not contact our office requesting updates on the status of your application. 

All application materials should be submitted to the Harvard University Funding Portal by the deadline: February 1, 2026, 11:59PM Eastern Time.  Incomplete applications will not be considered.

There are 5 components to this application:  A) Essays, B) Resume, C) Letters of Recommendation, D) Transcript, E) Research Areas and Lab Interests

All uploaded materials should be in PDF Format. 

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A) ESSAYS: Essays should be written in a word document and then saved as a PDF. The PDF file should be uploaded to this portal.

Document formatting: 

• The essays should be single spaced and written in a font size no smaller than 11pt and no larger than 12pt.
• Each page of the document should have the applicant's Last Name and First Name, and Current College/University at the top and be numbered.
• Each essay question should be labeled accordingly as Research Interest, Preparation, Goals, and Contribution to Community. 

Essay 1. Research Interest: Describe the research area that is most interesting to you. How does your first-choice lab advance these interests and what might you learn from this lab? Why does this research matter to the field and to others beyond academia? Focus on your first-choice lab but include a paragraph at the end to discuss your second and third choices. 

(375 words minimum, 750 words maximum)

Essay 2. Preparation: Your essay should address all points below. 

• Explain how your coursework has prepared you for this research experience. Instead of listing all courses, reflect on the key courses (or groupings of courses) that have shaped your intellectual interests, and your preparation and motivation for doing research. Describe what you learned and how those outcomes relate to this research experience.
• Describe the skills and knowledge you have developed in contexts outside of your coursework and how these insights may support your success in this research experience. Contexts you may consider drawing from may be jobs/other professional experiences, self-study, sports/athletics, group work, extracurriculars/clubs, community service, tutoring, research experiences, and any other areas relevant to you.  

(250 words minimum, 500 words maximum)

Essay 3. Goals: Your essay should address all points below.  

• Describe your long-term and short-term professional and academic goals. How do you see your participation in the Harvard Amgen Scholars Program advancing these goals and your development as a scientist?
• In reflecting about your goals for this question, applicants should also make sure to: Describe two learning goals you would like to work on through the program and how these goals relate to your development and trajectory as a scientist.  Additionally, describe what success would look like for you at the end of the summer program and how you will know you are successful. 

(250 words minimum - 500 words maximum) 

Essay 4. Contribution to community: The program community is built on shared interests in scientific discovery, exchange of ideas and learning resources, peer support and connection. Describe 2–3 actions you have taken to support peers’ learning and/or to foster community, and 2–3 actions you plan to take during this summer experience to do the same.  (250 words minimum - 500 words maximum) 

B) Two (2) page (maximum), single-spaced resume

C) Two (2) letters of recommendation

• Letters should be from science professors, academic advisors, or previous/current lab research mentors (if any). Letters should be on institutional letterhead and in PDF format; Letters should not exceed two-pages single spaced.
• Letter writers should comment concretely about the applicant’s preparation, potential, drive, and curiosity for pursuing questions in science, their aptitude for doing research, and how the program may further benefit the student’s development and the achievement of their intellectual and professional goals. Points letter writers should address are the following:
• How long and in what capacity do you know the applicant?
• Can you provide brief examples of their initiative, motivation, and determination in an academic and/or research activity?
• In your opinion, how is the applicant prepared to enter the research training environment provided by at this Amgen Scholars Program site (Harvard)?
• If you have only interacted with the student in a classroom setting, please reflect on how the student’s performance and participation in that course connects to their research potential and ability to be successful in and contribute to a research environment.
• Please address the applicant’s potential lab host selections and/or their potential research training environment. Why might any of these choices or exposure to particular learning environments be a good fit for the applicant at this time and as the experience relates to their overall academic and professional goals?
• How would the applicant practically benefit from and contribute to the Harvard-Amgen Scholars community?  

D) Current Transcript

• Transcripts must be current, including Fall grades, course titles, and must NOT be encrypted. If applicant is a transfer student, please submit transcript(s) from institutions previously attended as well as your current college or university. Transcripts must also include grades for any semesters studied abroad.
• For students studying abroad for Fall semester who will have a delay in grades posting, please submit a scanned .pdf of your most recent unofficial transcript. However, be mindful that we cannot consider applications unless they are complete, which includes a transcript with the Fall semester. You should contact your study abroad program and your home institution to request a transcript with Fall grades whenever they are available. Please make sure to email our staff (amgenscholars@harvard.edu) to keep us updated on your situation.  

E) Research Areas and Lab Interests
On this application, applicants must specify up to 3 potential Harvard laboratory hosts and 3 potential research areas. Ahead of submitting an application, applicants should investigate areas of interest and potential laboratory hosts. Students should not contact potential laboratory hosts in advance of the application, as the program matches admitted students to hosts within their interest areas.

Laboratory Matching Process:

The Harvard-Amgen Scholars Program collaborates with faculty across the university, its affiliated research institutes and hospitals, who pursue laboratory-based research in biotechnology and biomedical sciences.  In the application, applicants indicate up to three potential faculty hosts from the departments, institutes and schools, listed below. Applicants should not reach out to faculty prior to being admitted to the program.  The matching process is driven by capacity of the laboratory for mentorship, student’s areas of interest, and a mutual discussion and agreement on fit and learning goals between potential host and the admitted student. Admitted students will be connected with potential faculty hosts as well as others in their field of interest they have indicated in their application by the Amgen Scholars Program staff. In the past, Amgen Scholars have been matched with laboratory hosts with affiliations to the following Harvard departments, affiliated hospitals and institutes: Wyss Institute, Broad Institute, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard Stem Cell Institute, and the Division of Medical Sciences at Harvard Medical School (which also encompass faculty affiliated with Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Joslin Diabetes, and hospitals like Mass General Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconness, Brigham & Women’s, Boston Children’s Hospital and more). 

Harvard College students who are currently doing work in a biotechnology or biomedical research lab may be eligible to continue this research as an Amgen Scholar, if they are selected; however, this is not guaranteed or expected. (For instance, the student may choose to go through the matching process for a new lab.

If you have questions about faculty hosts or their Harvard appointments, please contact the Harvard-Amgen Scholars Program (amgenscholars@harvard.edu).