The application period is October 1 – December 1, 2026

Application Deadline: December 1, 2026, 11:59 pm EST

INFORMATION SESSIONS

In order to participate in an information session, prospective applicants must first register via the links below. After you register, you will receive an email containing the link with which to access the Zoom meeting.

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

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

Program Dates: June 28 – August 27, 2027

The Summer Fellowship program offers an opportunity for outstanding Italian students to gain hands-on basic biomedical research experience at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and its world-class affiliated hospitals and laboratories. The program is open to Italian students who are enrolled in a STEM Master’s degree (“laurea specialistica”), OR in the 4th or 5th year of a STEM “laurea a ciclo unico,” OR in the 4th, 5th, or 6th year of medical studies in Italy. In addition to a two-month research placement in a Harvard lab, the program encourages student mobility and allows young scientists to broaden their horizons by engaging with diverse scientific environments.

Summer Fellows receive guidance in applying to a particular lab and are assigned a lab supervisor or postdoc mentor once placed in a lab. The mentoring component is an important benefit inherent in the program; Fellows establish relationships with colleagues that often last beyond the summer they are in the lab.

In addition to their research activities, Fellows are required to attend weekly Career Development Seminars, where they will meet – either on line or in person – with scientists and faculty from academia and other industry professionals, based in Boston or in Europe, to discuss education and career pathways.

Each Summer Fellow, upon completion of the program, receives a stipend of USD 6,000 to support living, travel, and visa expenses. Detailed information about the visa application process will be provided upon acceptance into the program.

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.

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 any 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.