Summer Fellowship: how to apply

The Summer Fellowship program follows a two-step application process. First, candidates must apply to and be accepted into the program. Second, once admitted, Fellows must apply and secure placement in a Harvard host laboratory. Because labs receive many requests each year and have only a limited number of positions, we strongly encourage applicants to contact their labs of interest as early as possible, ideally while completing the first step of the process. Reaching out in advance offers key advantages: (a) increasing the likelihood of securing a spot in a desired lab, and (b) gaining a clearer understanding of ongoing projects, which can lead to more informed decisions and stronger applications. Please note that, although Fellows receive guidance during the lab placement process, they are responsible for contacting the PI directly to request a position.

The Giovanni Armenise Harvard Foundation and its partners provide partial funding to Summer Fellows to receive basic biomedical research training in a laboratory at Harvard Medical School (HMS) or an affiliated hospital, from June 28 – August 27, 2027. The program is aimed at students enrolled in Italian universities who wish to explore the American research system and who will return to their home institution to complete their degree.

Notes:

• In accordance with the mission of the Armenise Harvard Foundation, this program is intended to support basic science research only. Applications to conduct clinical research or engage in clinical activities will not be accepted.
• In order to be eligible, candidates must either: (1) be Italian citizens, OR (2) be permanent residents of Italy. Applications from students enrolled in an Italian university who are permanent residents of Italy (but not Italian citizens) will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
• Exchange students at Italian universities (i.e. students who moved to Italy solely to attend school) are not eligible.
• At the time of this Call, we anticipate offering the Summer Fellows Program in Boston in the summer of 2027. We will, however, continue to closely monitor public health developments and will adjust the program as needed in response to safety guidelines, U.S. and/or Harvard travel restrictions, or any suspension of visa issuance, as circumstances evolve.

The Foundation receives, on average, 100 applications each year and awards ten fellowships. In addition to an excellent academic record and a well-rounded application, the Selection Committee places particular emphasis on the Personal Essay and the Lab Choice Statement. Strong applications demonstrate maturity, a clear ability to articulate why you wish to spend the summer in your selected lab(s), and how this experience will contribute to your future career path.

ELIGIBILITY

Students enrolled in an Italian public or private university in a “laurea specialistica” with a focus on biomedical and STEM research, OR in the 4th or 5th year of a “laurea a ciclo unico” with a focus on biomedical and STEM research, OR in the 4th, 5th, or 6th year of Medicine are eligible. (STEM fields encompass Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math and – besides areas that are obviously connected to biology – may include such specializations as physics, chemistry, engineering, and mathematics.) Students expecting to graduate before August 31, 2027 are not eligible. Previous research experience is strongly encouraged.

The Armenise Harvard Summer Fellowship is a full-time program designed to provide an immersive research experience. Accordingly, it cannot be held concurrently with any other summer fellowship or research position and requires a full-time commitment from all Fellows, including mandatory participation in all Career Development Seminars. This structure ensures that Fellows can fully engage with their lab and make the most of this unique opportunity.

FELLOWSHIP PAYMENT

Successful applicants will receive a fellowship payment of USD 6,000, intended to help cover costs such as travel to Boston, housing during the fellowship, health insurance, visa application fees, and other incidentals. Please note that the fellowship amount is not guaranteed to cover the total cost of living in Boston for two months.

Fellowships are sponsored either directly by the Armenise Foundation or by one of its U.S.- or Italy-based partners. Payments are made as reimbursements at the end of the program, so Fellows should plan their summer finances accordingly. In order to receive the stipend, participants must first complete all program requirements and receive a Certificate of Completion, as detailed further below.

Important Tax Information: For students receiving fellowship payments directly from the Armenise Foundation, a portion of the payment will be withheld for U.S. income taxes, in accordance with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. These taxes are withheld from payments processed through Harvard, but may be refunded when personal U.S. income tax returns are filed the following year during tax season. Fellows receiving funding from an Italian institution are not subject to U.S. income tax withholding.

PAST SPONSORS

Other partners in the program, which is under the Patronage of the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research, have included: Alira Health, Chateau Restaurant, Collegio Borromeo, Collegio Ghislieri, Collegio Nuovo, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Fondazione Invernizzi, the University of Pavia, the University of Naples “Federico II”,  Humanitas University, San Raffaele University, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, the University of Turin, CIBIO/University of Trento, the University of Catania, and the University of Florence.

INFORMATION SESSIONS

Join us for an information session to learn more about the Summer Fellowship program and the application process. These sessions are a great opportunity to ask questions and gain valuable insights. In order to participate in one of the sessions, interested candidates must first register via one of the links below. After you register, you will receive an email containing the link with which to access the Zoom meeting.

Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 15:30 Italy/9:30 AM Boston: Zoom_InfoSession_1

Thursday, November 5, 2026  at 15:30 Italy/9:30 AM Boston: Zoom_InfoSession_2

APPLICATION GUIDELINES

The Summer 2027 Call for Applications opens on October 1, 2026. The deadline for submitting both the application and a letter of reference is December 1, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST. Applications or reference letters submitted after this time will not be accepted.

The application consists of several elements, some of which need to be uploaded, while others must be emailed. Application documents must be in English and typed using 11pt Calibri font, with double-spaced pages and one-inch margins on each side. Please put your last name and first initial in the title of each pdf document (e.g. MillerL CV.pdf, MillerL Personal_Essay.pdf, etc.) and the document title, date, and page number in the header or footer of each separate document.

Click on “Application Form” below to begin the application process. Please have everything that needs to be uploaded ready before you start.

Application Form

1. Student Curriculum Vitae: Submit a CV summarizing your academic achievements as well as extra-curricular activities. If you have just started an internship, indicate its duration, and please include any research experiences that you plan to have between now and June 2027. Your CV should not include a photo. (File name: LastNameFirstInitialCV, e.g. MillerLCV.pdf; the file name should be included as a header or footer in each page of the document). For guidance on how to write a CV and resume, refer to the information at this link (provided by the HMS Office for Postdoctoral Fellows). When preparing your CV, focus on your education, basic research laboratory experience, and other relevant interests or skills.
2. Research Experience Summary (300-750 words): Because the Summer Fellowship is only two months, we seek candidates who have already acquired some foundational skills in the laboratory. The Research Experience Summary is your chance to describe what you have done in labs in the past and what skills you have learned from those experiences. Please elaborate on each of the research experiences listed on your CV, by describing the following: (1) Where you gained the experience: the lab you worked in (including the name of the PI), and the specific start and end dates; (2) Your role: your position or job title, and whether you were an observer only or helped carry out experiments; (3) Your responsibilities: the tasks you performed in the lab and the projects you helped with; (4) Techniques and tools: the research techniques you learned to perform and the tools you learned to use, explaining why you needed to learn each one, what you used it for, and how often you performed or used it independently. (File name: LastNameFirstInitialResearchExperience, e.g. RossiDResearchExperience.pdf).
3. University Transcript in English: Submit your university transcript – an official statement of exam results, with translation, if necessary. (File name: LastNameFirst InitialTranscript, e.g. MillerLTranscript.pdf).
4. Personal Essay (approx. 500 words): Submit a Personal Essay that highlights your career path and research experience (if any), and explains how you expect to benefit from this program. The essay should convey who you are—your scientific interests, research experience, and future aspirations. Be specific, authentic, and personal. You may ask a native English speaker to edit your language; however, essays written by someone else or generated by AI will result in disqualification. Tips for writing your Personal Essay: 1) Personality – Reflect on your strengths as well as areas you wish to develop. 2) Motivation – Explain why you are applying for this fellowship, what you hope to achieve, and how you expect the experience to shape your academic or career development. 3) Science – Share why you chose science, describe any previous scientific experience, and reflect on what you learned from working in a lab—what aspects you enjoyed and what you found challenging. (File name: LastNameFirstInitialPersonalEssay, e.g. MillerLPersonalEssay.pdf. The same file name should be included as a header or footer in each page of the document). For guidance on how to write a personal essay (i.e. cover letter), refer to the information at this link (provided by the HMS Office for Postdoctoral Fellows).
5. Lab Choice Statement (approx. 500 words): Submit a Lab Choice Statement identifying the three laboratories at Harvard Medical School or its affiliated hospitals that you are most interested in, listed in order of preference.  For each lab, specify the full name of the Principal Investigator, the department, and the institute. Refer to the list below for available options. Tips for writing your Lab Choice Statement: Do your research – You cannot change your lab choices after submitting your application (unless none of the labs you selected offers you a position). Carefully review the labs’ websites and publications, and consider contacting them to learn more about their current projects and research directions. Your statement should clearly reflect your research interests, and your indicated ranking will be used to guide placement; Be precise – For each lab, clearly state the Principal Investigator’s full name, the department, and the institute; Show your scientific fit – Describe the lab’s research activity and explain why it interests you. What kind of project would you like to contribute to? How would joining this particular lab support your academic and professional growth? (File name: LastNameFirstInitialLabs, e.g. MillerLLabs.pdf. The file name should be included as a header or footer in each page of the document).                    Important Note: Summer Fellows may not select an HMS or HMS-affiliated laboratory where they have previously conducted research. The program is not intended to support applicants seeking to return to a Harvard lab in which they have already worked. Applicants with prior experience in a Harvard-affiliated lab must instead propose three new laboratories in which they have not previously conducted research.
6. Letter of Recommendation: Provide one letter of recommendation from a professor or supervisor who knows you well and can speak to your independence, aptitude, and academic performance. The letter must be: written on official institutional letterhead; signed by the professor/supervisor; submitted as a PDF; and sent directly by the referee (professor/supervisor), without cc’ing the candidate, to: armeniseharvardfdnsummer@hms.harvard.edu. (File name: LastNameFirstInitialofStudent_from_Referee, e.g. MillerL_from_RossiP.pdf.).

SELECTION PROCESS & AWARD NOTIFICATION

Applicants will be notified of the results of the initial selection process by January 25, 2027. Semi-finalists will be invited for a Zoom interview with the Selection Committee on Saturday, January 30, 2027. Final decisions will be sent to all interviewees by mid-February 2027.

Reminder: The Summer Fellowship program has a two-step application process. First, candidates must apply to and be accepted into the Summer Fellowship program. Second, once admitted, Fellows must apply to and be accepted into a Harvard host lab. During this stage, Fellows receive guidance in the lab application process, but it is their responsibility to contact the Principal Investigator (PI) and request lab placement. As the laboratories receive many requests every year, and there are only a limited number of positions available, we strongly encourage applicants to have preliminary contact with their laboratories of interest as soon as possible, while completing the first step of the selection process.

LABORATORIES

Harvard Medical School (HMS) Laboratories: We encourage applicants to seek laboratory opportunities on the HMS campus. Please refer to the following links to HMS labs.

• http://bcmp.med.harvard.edu/
• http://cellbio.med.harvard.edu/
• http://genetics.med.harvard.edu/
• https://immunology.hms.harvard.edu/
• https://micro.hms.harvard.edu/
• http://neuro.med.harvard.edu/
• http://sysbio.med.harvard.edu/

HMS-affiliated Hospital Laboratories: The following laboratories, located at Harvard-affiliated hospitals, are also available for potential placements. Summer Fellows placed in an affiliate hospital lab will receive a hospital-issued ID, not a Harvard ID.

• https://hscrb.harvard.edu/Research
• http://www.childrenshospital.org/research/
• http://www.brighamandwomens.org/research/
• http://www.bidmc.org/Research.aspx
• http://www.dana-farber.org/Research/Lab-Websites.aspx
• https://www.massgeneral.org/research/
• https://www.broadinstitute.org/ 

ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Visa Application Process: Information about the visa application process will be provided after acceptance into the program. Visa applications from students enrolled at an Italian university who are permanent residents of Italy (i.e. non-Italian citizens holding a permesso di soggiorno but not an Italian passport) will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Please note that exchange students – those who moved to Italy solely to attend university – are not eligible for the program.

As part of the visa application process, Fellows must provide evidence of sufficient personal financial resources to support their stay at Harvard. This requires submitting a bank statement showing that the Fellow and/or their parents have at least USD 2,000 in available funds.

Obtaining a visa involves additional costs, including the visa fee, SEVIS fee, and health insurance. These expenses are eligible for reimbursement as part of the fellowship payment of USD 6,000; however, reimbursement will only be issued after the successful completion of the summer program.

Cost of Living: Boston is consistently ranked among the top five most expensive cities in the U.S. The fellowship stipend of USD 6,000 may not be sufficient to cover the full cost of living for two months. Estimated monthly expenses include: Metro pass: ~USD 90; Housing (shared accommodation): ~USD 1,500-2,000; Groceries: ~USD 500. Fellows should also budget for entertainment, travel, and personal expenses.

Housing: Fellows are responsible for securing their own accommodation in Boston. Please note that housing costs in Boston have risen significantly in recent years.

Benefits and Harvard and Hospital Identification: Summer Fellows placed in HMS labs receive incidental Harvard benefits, including a Harvard-issued ID that grants access to the Longwood-Cambridge shuttle (M2), HMS Countway Library, and other HMS buildings. J-1 Student Interns are not considered Harvard students, however, and therefore are not eligible for certain Harvard student benefits, including housing, student health insurance, and possibly access to athletic facilities. Student Interns should consult their laboratory administrator to determine whether they may be eligible for any other benefits available through their host department or program. Summer Fellows placed in an affiliate hospital lab will receive a hospital-issued ID (not a Harvard ID).

Lab Placement: Fellows are responsible for securing a placement in a host lab, once accepted into the Summer Fellowship Program. This includes contacting the lab, arranging interviews, and coordinating directly with the Principal Investigator. Fellows will receive guidance from the Summer Fellows Director throughout the lab application process. We strongly encourage candidates to reach out to their first-choice lab in advance to learn about potential research projects and availability. Keep in mind that you may not select an HMS or HMS-affiliated laboratory where you have previously conducted research. The lab’s focus must be basis science research; J-1 Student Interns cannot participate in clinical care positions or any position that involves patient contact.

Career Development Seminars: Fellows are required to attend weekly Career Development seminars and workshops, where they will engage with scientists and faculty from academia and industry, based in Boston and Europe, to explore educational and career pathways. These sessions are an integral component of the fellowship program. Active participation is mandatory; partial attendance will result in forfeiture of the certificate of completion at the conclusion of the fellowship program.

Code of Conduct: Armenise Harvard Summer Fellows are expected to uphold the utmost standards of professional behavior and to abide by all norms outlined in the codes of conduct of Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, and the hospital/department of their hosting lab. These regulations apply not only to time in the laboratory and official program events, but also to Fellows’ time and activities off-campus throughout the summer.

Summer Fellowship Symposium: The fellowship experience culminates in the Summer Fellowship Symposium, an event where Fellows have the opportunity to present their summer lab work to their Principal Investigators, lab members, and invited guests. This is a key occasion to showcase your research achievements and engage with peers, mentors, and the Summer Fellows community. Participation is mandatory for all fellows.

Final Report: Fellows are required to submit a final report by the day of the symposium, August 27, 2027, reflecting on their overall fellowship experience and the scientific achievements gained during the summer. Fellows will receive the Summer Fellowship Program certificate of completion at the conclusion of the symposium, provided that the final report has been submitted. Failure to submit the final report by the day of the symposium, will result in forfeiture of the certificate.

Certificate of Completion: Fellows will receive a Certificate of Completion upon successfully fulfilling all Summer Fellowship requirements:

• Mandatory and full attendance at all Career Development Seminars
• Submission of a final report no later than the day of the symposium (August 27, 2027)

Failure to meet these requirements will result in ineligibility of the Certificate of Completion. Only once a Certificate of Completion is issued will participants be able to receive their stipend.

Survey Evaluation: Fellows must complete an online program evaluation within ten days of the fellowship’s conclusion.

Frequently Asked Questions:  For a list of answers to commonly asked questions about the Summer Fellowship and application process, please click here.