Research Grants and Fellowships

For: Untenured faculty members, recent recipients of a Ph.D. (or equivalent), and advanced doctoral candidates whose research relates to governance and public policy in the Arab world and broader Middle East.

Duration: Academic Year (September - June)

Application and Deadline: The application period to apply for a 2024-2025 fellowship will open at 10:00am EDT on October 2, 2023. The deadline to apply is December 1, 2023. Recommendation letters are due by December 15, 2023. Decisions will be announced on or before February 15, 2024.

Fellowship Description: The Middle East Initiative offers one-year Emirates Leadership Initiative Fellowships for research related to governance and public policy in the Arab world and broader Middle East. These fellowships, all of which carry a stipend, are intended to support the next generation of policy-oriented scholars on the challenges and opportunities facing and emanating from the region.

Eligible candidates include untenured faculty members, recent recipients of a Ph.D. (or equivalent), and advanced doctoral candidates. We welcome applications from political scientists, historians, economists, sociologists, and other social scientists. We encourage applications from women, minorities, and citizens of all countries.

Applicants for pre-doctoral fellowships: Applicants must have passed general examinations, advanced to candidacy, received dissertation prospectus approval, and concluded all necessary fieldwork for the dissertation by the time of application. Applicants who have more than one year remaining in their doctoral programs are unlikely to be selected.

Applicants who expect to complete their Ph.D. program after submitting their application but prior to the fellowship start date can apply for a postdoctoral appointment. Postdoctoral fellowship offers are contingent upon submitting proof of Ph.D. completion prior to the September 1st fellowship start date.

Priority will be given to applicants who combine rigorous social scientific methods, real-world, policy relevance, and the ability to communicate clear and compelling perspectives to non-specialist audiences. We are particularly interested in scholars who study economic diversification, the economic and social impacts of developments in technology, regional security, and energy and the environment. We are especially interested in scholars who study these themes in the Arabian Gulf region.

This program is made possible through funding from the Emirates Leadership Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School. 

For: Scholars from Kuwait, ranging from recent recipients of a PhD (or equivalent) to the senior level.

Duration: One semester (about four months)

Application and Deadline: The deadline to apply for the Spring 2023 Kuwait Visiting Research Fellowship has passed. Applications for this position are no longer being accepted at this time. 

Fellowship Description: The Middle East Initiative hosts a scholar each spring to conduct a research project on a topic relevant to policy and development in the Middle East and North Africa. Eligible candidates include scholars from Kuwait, ranging from the postdoctoral to the senior level. We are interested in research that focuses on the Arabian Gulf (preferably with specific attention to the State of Kuwait) and one of the following five policy areas:

Science and Technology: Deployment and impacts of new information technologies, automation processes, and artificial intelligence: new frontiers in urban design and sustainability; anticipating and managing global health challenges.

Energy and the Environment: Externality impacts of energy development; renewable options; impacts of and measures to deal with the impact of climate change in the region.

Education Reform: Higher education management; curricular reform; workforce development and training; equipping the region's youth to be globally competitive.

Economic Development: Economic development and structural diversification; building a stronger private sector; attracting foreign investment.

Governance: Regulatory and legal reform; strategic planning and crisis management; public policy analysis, design and delivery; institutional reform. 

The Kuwait Visiting Research Fellow is expected to be in residence at Harvard for the duration of their appointment and to participate actively in MEI and Belfer Center activities as appropriate. The fellowship includes a $7,500 monthly stipend.

Application Requirements:

The deadline to apply for the Spring 2023 Kuwait Visiting Research Fellowship has passed. Applications for this position are no longer being accepted at this time. 

CV

Three recommenders (name, contact details, in what capacity they worked with you) who will submit letters of recommendation on your behalf.*

Research proposal (3-5 pages)

Writing sample with an abstract of 300 words or less. The writing sample should not exceed 50 pages. It can be a journal article, book or dissertation chapter, a white paper, policy brief, etc.

*It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure these letters are received by the recommender deadline. Emails with a link to upload the letters of recommendation will be sent to all listed recommenders once the applicant submits their application.

Please submit inquires to Marina Lorenzini at: mlorenzini@hks.harvard.edu

The Kuwait Program at Harvard Kennedy School is made possible through funding from the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences.

For: Senior Practitioners and Academics

Duration: One Semester (about four months)

Application Deadline: The deadline to apply for the fall 2022 position has passed. Applications for this position are no longer being accepted at this time. 

The Middle East Initiative hosts senior policymakers and academics to engage with students and faculty as a visiting scholar for one semester as part of the Kuwait Program at Harvard Kennedy School. The Kuwait Program at Harvard Kennedy School is made possible through the generous support of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS).

Applications from scholars working on contemporary issues of policy relevance to the Middle East, and the Arabian Gulf in particular, in the disciplines of political science, economics, history, and sociology are especially welcome. All visiting scholars are expected to either:

Conduct a research project preferably with a Harvard Kennedy School faculty member; or

Lead a not-for credit eight week study group on a topic relevant to policy and development in the Middle East and North Africa.

The visiting scholar is required to be in residence for the semester and is expected to participate in Middle East Initiative activities and must be available to students throughout their time on campus. In some cases, visiting scholars may be asked to teach a course on campus. The program will provide the visiting scholar $5,000 a month and a housing allowance.

Contact: For more information, contact Marina Lorenzini by email at: mlorenzini@hks.harvard.edu. 

The Middle East Initiative accepts research proposals for projects that target major policy issues affecting the Middle East and North Africa. Funding is made possible by the Emirates Leadership Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School and the Kuwait Program at Harvard University. Details regarding priority topic areas for each program can be found below. 

The deadline to apply for the AY2023 cycle has passed. Applications for this funding opportunity are no longer being accepted at this time.

For each program there are two categories of research proposals:

Major Research Projects - Proposals may be for one- or two-year grants to support research by Harvard faculty members and can be applied toward research assistance, travel, summer salary, workshops, and course buy-out. 

Exploratory Research Projects – Exploratory grants are intended to support travel to Kuwait or to the UAE to participate in academic seminars and conferences, develop research projects with local scholars and institutions, and share the results of Harvard faculty research with local audiences.