Student Opportunities

Mossavar-Rahmani Center For Business and Government (M-RCBG) offers students diverse opportunities to engage at the intersection of business and government, including:

  • Courses taught by center-affiliated faculty equip students with critical concepts and skills for navigating this dynamic field.
  • The center supports the student-run Business & Government Professional Interest Council (B&G PIC), helping members bring leaders from business and government to the school for seminars and small group meetings. 
  • Financial support for student scholarships, internships, special projects, conferences, and journals. 
  • Weekly lunch seminars for students and others that showcase research in regulation, energy and electricity policy, and corporate governance and social responsibility by the world’s leading scholars and practitioners. 
  • Annual fall speed networking event where the center’s senior fellows provide students with career advice, and it supports senior fellow study groups for students. 

While most support goes to students enrolled in Harvard Kennedy School, the center offers the John Dunlop prize to the undergraduate student who writes the best thesis about an issue at the business-government interface.


Funding and Prizes

The center provides financial support for course-related research, summer internships, research assistantships, student organizations, and a small number of fellowships. Several of the center’s research programs also offer funding and prizes—please check the websites of individual programs for details. Learn how to apply for individual grants and research assistantships, the process for funding your event or publication, and prizes.

M-RCBG takes several considerations into account when deciding which student projects to support. Answering "yes" to one or more of the following questions makes you eligible:

  • Are you concentrating your studies in business and government policy, pursuing a joint or concurrent degree at a business school, or otherwise demonstrating an interest in business and government through your coursework?
  • Is an M-RCBG-affiliated faculty member helping to advise your project?
  • Are you pursuing a project that is closely aligned with one or more of the center's research programs?

Contact is Susan Gill for more information at susan_gill@hks.harvard.edu; 617 495-9379. 

Please note that grants to individual students are taxable.

The Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government helps to fund expenses associated with Policy Analysis Exercises and Second Year Policy Analyses (PAEs and SYPAs). Funding is competitive; the same eligibility and selection criteria as listed above. Most grants are $1000-$2000. 

The deadline to submit proposals for funding winter travel, when students generally undertake PAE and SYPA research, is 11am on October 16, 2024. Your application should include the following components:

  • Prospectus or project description
  • Brief explanation of how your project aligns with the work of M-RCBG
  • Itemized budget and timeline/itinerary.  Please note that grant recipients may be asked to provide receipts for project-related expenses
  • Resume or CV (for each partner)

Please use the school's winter funding common application to apply.

M-RCBG provides financial support to students for expenses associated with summer internships. Funding is competitive, and the center’s awards are based on the match between a student’s proposed activity and the research interests of the center’s faculty and programs.  Most grants are between $1000-$2000.   

  • The main deadline for applying for 2025 summer internship funding is noon on March 24, 2025.
  • Pending remaining funds, a second round of applications will be considered. Round 2 applications  are due at noon on April 18.

Please apply through the HKS summer application website. Your application should include the following components:

  • Well-researched student budget
  • Brief statement (not more than one page) explaining how the internship aligns with M-RCBG's work

The center provides small grants (typically up to $1000) to officially recognized Harvard Kennedy School student organizations for publications, conferences, and events that address the business-government interface. Applications are reviewed by the center on a rolling basis. Please send a letter outlining your proposal and need to susan_gill@hks.harvard.edu.

The John Dunlop Thesis Prize in Business and Government is an annual award for Harvard undergraduates. The award is given to the Harvard College graduating senior who writes the best thesis on a challenging public policy issue at the interface of business and government. A $2000 prize will be provided to the winning entry. The application deadline for the 2024-2025 academic year is Thursday, May 22, 2025 at 12 noon. Please submit your thesis, readers' comments, CV, and this application form to mrcbg@hks.harvard.edu.


Other Opportunities

M-RCBG offers many ways for students to engage. It supports the Business and Government PIC, one of the largest student clubs on campus. The center’s senior fellows serve as a resource for students, offering study groups and career advice.

Business & Government Professional Interest Council

B&G PIC leaders work with center staff to identify speakers they would like to bring to the school and organize events on research topics of particular interest to students. 

Senior fellow-led study groups

M-RCBG Senior Fellows hold study groups to discuss their areas of expertise and research projects with students.

Harvard Climate Internship Program

The Harvard Climate Internship Program (HCIP) is a university-wide program supporting graduate students who work in a climate policy-oriented summer internship.

Speed networking and other career events

The center organizes a speed networking session each fall in which students meet with senior fellows to share strategies and contacts for careers at the interface of business and government.