URAF: Herchel Smith Undergraduate Science Research Grant Program

URAF: Herchel Smith Undergraduate Science Research Grant Program

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Harvard University
Last Updated: December 17, 2025

Summary

The Herchel Smith Undergraduate Science Research Grant Program at Harvard University supports undergraduate students in conducting independent summer research in STEM fields. This competitive award provides a stipend, travel funds, and coverage for research presentation expenses. Applicants must commit to a 10-week full-time project and maintain good academic standing. Preference is given to those pursuing science concentrations and who have not previously received this fellowship, ensuring a rich research experience that may lead to publication.

Overview

Description Herchel Smith is a competitive and generous award supporting undergraduate scientists conducting a substantive, independent summer research project in mathematics, engineering, life, physical/natural or computer sciences. The Herchel Smith program intends to engage students who likely are graduate-school bound in a merit-based process, to give them an experience not unlike graduate students, from defining an independent project to presentation (and, ultimately in many cases, publication) with disciplinary rigor and intellectual depth.The project can be based anywhere in the world, but must be affiliated with a university, lab, or research enterprise and be at least 10-weeks in duration with a full-time in commitment, and employ a high degree of autonomy and input by the applicant in its design and execution (although the project may be a part of, and feed into, a larger ongoing research project supervised by a faculty PI or research host). Benefits A summer stipendTravel funds necessary for domestic and international locations outside of Boston, if applicable Funding allowance for expenses related to presenting research at professional conferences or meetings (e.g., registration fees, travel costs Terms of summer funding: The Herchel Smith program award cannot be combined with: Harvard Summer Undergraduate Research Village (HSURV) program awards: If accepted to both Herchel Smith and an HSURV program, the applicant must choose ONE award. [new policy for summer 2025]Other URAF administered awards: Yun award, Harvard College Research Program (HCRP), Generative AI Summer Program The award may be combined with research program awards from other academic institutions (not Harvard), where the student will be performing their proposed Herchel Smith research. Stipends may be adjusted based on the nature of the other programs awards. For specific details, the student should consult with the Herchel Smith program administrator. Co-funding on the same research experience may be possible with Harvard academic departments and academic centers, though applicants should be fully award the extent of co-funding lies at the discretion of the specific departments and centers. (Of course the exception is URAF awards and Harvard Summer Undergraduate Research Village (HSURV) programs. see above point.)Awardees of the Herchel Smith award cannot concurrently pursue summer school courses, internships, or public service projects, while doing their proposed research. Further, the student cannot be receiving Harvard funding for multiple and concurrent summer experiences as specified by OUE's Summer Funding Policy.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. All Harvard College continuing undergraduates in good academic and disciplinary standing  Must be able to commit at least 10 weeks of full-time effort to the proposed project Applicant research must be in the following fields: math, life and physical sciences, engineering, computer science (not clinical research).