Harris Social Impact Fellowship: $75K Stipend for US-Based Data Talent

This call closed on 19 October 2026. The Harris Social Impact Fellowship was an 11-month, full-time, in-person programme run by the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy for technically trained early-career graduates. Applications for the 2027-2028 cohort closed on 19 October 2026 at 11:59 PM Central Time. It was a US-eligibility opportunity: applicants had to be authorised to work in the United States, so most readers in MENA and Africa could not apply.

For US-based data scientists, engineers, statisticians and applied mathematicians who wanted to point those skills at social problems, this was a funded way to do it.

At a glance

Who could apply to the Harris Social Impact Fellowship?

The organizer listed these requirements for the 2027-2028 cohort:

• A recent college graduate or early-career professional. The bachelor’s degree had to be conferred before the fellowship started.
• Strong technical, quantitative or analytical skills, with a demonstrated capacity for serious work of that kind.
• Authorisation to work in the United States.

The University of Chicago stated that it could not sponsor visas for this programme. Visa holders were responsible for checking whether participation fit their current status. The fellowship was in person, so remote participation was not an option.

What the fellowship offered

For the 2027-2028 cohort, the programme page listed a $75K stipend for living and healthcare expenses and $21K that fully covered the fellowship academic credential. Fellows also receive mentorship from policy leaders, professional development coaching and access to a network of faculty, alumni and practitioners.

The year starts with 8 weeks of intensive, faculty-led coursework. It continues with a 9-month applied placement with research centres and policy institutes, and ends with a capstone project.

How applications worked

1. Applicants were expected to read the official programme page and confirm that they met the work authorisation requirement.
2. They prepared a motivation statement of about 300 words and a one-page technical experience statement.
3. They gathered a resume, transcripts and one letter of recommendation.
4. Everything was submitted on the application portal by 19 October 2026, 11:59 PM Central Time.

Selection ran in phases, starting with a take-home technical assessment and including lab matching interviews. Information sessions were listed for 7 October 2026 and 16 October 2026, 12 to 1 PM Central Daylight Time. Questions went to SocialImpactFellowship@uchicago.edu. If the fellowship reopens, check the official programme page.

Advice from the Impact DOTS team

• The team’s advice was to check work authorisation first. It was a hard requirement and the university would not sponsor a visa.
• A strong technical experience statement was concrete. The organizer asked for demonstrated capacity for serious analytical work, so it named the methods, data and results handled.
• The motivation statement connected the applicant’s skills to a social problem. The programme was built around applying technical work to public policy and social impact.
• Applicants were advised to plan for the take-home technical assessment, for example by practising on an unfamiliar dataset under a time limit.
• The 19 October deadline was a hard stop, and the application needed a letter of recommendation, so recommenders had to be asked early.

FAQ

Sources

• Harris Social Impact Fellowship programme page
• Harris application portal