Seed for Change Student Grant Competition
Eligibility
Teams must be led by one currently enrolled Harvard student at the time of submission; this can include undergraduate students or graduate/doctoral students. No more than three additional team members can apply as a joint effort, and other team members (besides the team leader) do not need to be Harvard students. A Harvard faculty member must submit an endorsement letter either directly into CARAT, or send it to srafey@fas.harvard.edu. The endorsement letter confirms that the team has communicated with a Harvard faculty member about the idea, and the faculty can speak to the strength of the proposal and applicants.
Application Process
After submitting an application, each project will be reviewed through a multi-stage review process; this aims to review each proposal for feasibility, methodology, and societal impact, as well as the strength of the applicants and their plan. After this review, finalists will be asked to pitch their projects, after which the final winners will be selected. The total grant term will last from July 2025 to June 2026.
Application Period: November 19, 2024 – February 7, 2025
How to Apply
All applicants must submit the following material via CARAT:
- A <5-page project narrative (including background/literature review, problem statement, proposed solution, and implementation details/plan; should address feasibility/viability, project sustainability, potential for impact, and potential collaborators; appendices and visual materials can exceed page limit)
- An annotated budget spreadsheet with estimated expenses (including roughly 1-paragraph justifying each line-item expense/category)
- Resume(s) (must be provided for each team member)
- An endorsement letter from a Harvard faculty mentor who will advise the team occasionally during the grant period and can speak to the academic merit of the proposal. Endorsement letters can either be uploaded directly into CARAT or can be submitted via email to Selmon Rafey, Program Manager (srafey@fas.harvard.edu).