DEADLINE: Sunday, February 4, 2024 at 11:59pm ET via CARAT
General Description
Herchel Smith is a competitive and generous award supporting undergraduate scientists conducting a substantive, independent summer research project in mathematics, engineering, life, physical/natural or computer sciences. The Herchel Smith program intends to engage students who likely are graduate-school bound in a merit-based process, to give them an experience not unlike graduate students, from defining an independent project to presentation (and, ultimately in many cases, publication) with disciplinary rigor and intellectual depth.The project can be based anywhere in the world, but must be affiliated with a university, lab, or research enterprise and be at least 10-weeks in duration with a full-time in commitment, and employ a high degree of autonomy and input by the applicant in its design and execution (although the project may be a part of, and feed into, a larger ongoing research project supervised by a faculty PI or research host).
Expectations
- Duration of independent project: Herchel Smith fellows must undertake a project that is at least ten weeks in duration.
- The project can be based at Harvard or anywhere in the world, but MUST be affiliated with a university, lab or research enterprise. The faculty and laboratory hosts of affiliated institutions must provide a letter to verify the research project and mentorship commitment.
- Reporting: Fellows must submit a midterm and final report, and research poster
- Presentations: Fellows must present their research through college research symposia and conferences (including those beyond Harvard if possible) in the academic year following their award
Benefits
- A summer stipend
- Travel funds necessary for domestic and international locations outside of Boston, if applicable
- Funding allowance for expenses related to presenting research at professional conferences or meetings (e.g., registration fees, travel costs)
Eligibility
- All Harvard College continuing undergraduates in good academic and disciplinary standing
- Must be able to commit at least 10 weeks of full-time effort to the proposed project
- Preference for students pursuing (or intending to pursue) concentrations and post-graduate study or a professional trajectory in the sciences for whom research experience is essential
- Preference for students who have not previously been awarded a Herchel Smith summer fellowship
Selection Criteria
- A compelling, well-designed research project with a faculty host, specific to a particular site;
- Evidence of appropriately high academic preparation and achievement;
- Relevant work or other experience
- Strongly positive endorsements from Harvard faculty recommender;
- A commitment to full-time research of at least ten weeks duration.
Application Components
Applicants should carefully read the full application instructions (see Download Instructions) to prepare.
- Unofficial Transcript
- Resume (no more than 2 pages)
- Budget – for students doing research outside of Boston, MA, provide a realistic budget for your living, transportation, and other expenses while doing research
- Essays – Substantive Research Proposal (1,000 words max) and Goals statement (500 words max)
- One letter of recommendation
- One letter of confirmation from research host – if the research host is also the writer of the letter of recommendation, a separate letter of confirmation is not needed. The letter of confirmation should be directly sent to URAF at undergradresearch@fas.harvard.edu and must strictly adhere to the guidance in the application instructions.
Application materials must be submitted to CARAT by the deadline. The letter of confirmation should be submitted directly to URAF via email by the deadline.