A fully funded four-day conference at Harvard Kennedy School for US undergraduates considering public service careers. Flights, accommodation and meals covered, with no fees. Applications close 10 July 2026.
The Public Policy Leadership Conference is Harvard Kennedy School's recruitment and outreach programme for undergraduates weighing a career in public service. Over four days on campus in Cambridge, participants meet faculty and current students, sit in on policy sessions, and work through what graduate study in public policy actually involves.
The eligibility rules are narrower than most programmes listed here, and they are strict:
The graduation condition catches people out. The programme is aimed at students with time left to act on it, so final-year students are excluded by design.
International students studying outside the US are not eligible. If that is you, the other programmes on this site will be a better use of your time.
Flights, accommodation, meals and transport in Boston. There are no application or registration fees.
Applications close 10 July 2026 at 5pm Eastern. Apply through Harvard Kennedy School using the official link.
PPLC is a recruitment and outreach programme as much as a conference. Harvard Kennedy School uses it to reach undergraduates who might not otherwise consider graduate study in public policy — particularly those from backgrounds under-represented in the field.
That shapes the programme: sessions with faculty and current students, practical material on applications and funding, and policy discussions that give a real sense of what the study involves.
You cannot be graduating in the 2026-2027 academic year. The programme is built for students who still have time to act on what they learn, so final-year students are excluded by design rather than by oversight.
The rest of the criteria are equally firm:
Studying outside the US makes you ineligible, and the citizenship condition excludes most international students within the US as well. This is worth stating plainly rather than leaving you to discover it in the form — the other programmes listed on this site have far wider eligibility.
Flights, accommodation, meals and transport in Boston, with no application or registration fees. Cost is deliberately removed as a barrier.
Applications close 10 July 2026 at 5pm Eastern, for a conference running 29 October to 1 November.
Places are no longer being allocated. Have a look at what else is coming up, or write to us if you think this is an error.
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