Nominate an SDP Fellow From Your Agency

Who are Nominated Fellows?

A nominated SDP Fellow is a rising star within your organization with analytic chops, high-quality written and verbal communication skills, and the passion and drive to be a changemaker within education. These fellows remain as full-time employees at partner organizations.

Before identifying the employee(s) you wish to nominate, please review the following selection competencies SDP uses when screening Nominated Fellow candidates. A strong candidate for a Nominated Fellow is someone who is:

  • Working with data and strategy as a core daily function of their role
  • Advanced with descriptive analyses, at minimum, and can communicate key insights from a dataset using Excel, R, STATA, or another software
  • Regularly interfacing with senior leadership and is positioned to move critical initiatives forward and share their learnings across the organization
  • Exhibiting growth potential within the organization and is excited to learn and continue their growth
  • Committed to remaining with your organization for the next two years, at minimum, given this opportunity

Process

  1. Informational Call: To ensure you and your agency have a full understanding of the SDP Fellowship program, and before submitting your application, you should schedule a 15-30 minute Zoom call to learn more about the program and our timeline. Please email sdprecruitment@gse.harvard.edu to schedule this informational call if you have not done so already.

  2. Online Application: Submit an application detailing your organization's need for a Nominated SDP Fellow, the type of work or project you have in mind, and administrative information. Partnership applications for Nominated Fellows open on August 1, 2023 and will be reviewed on a rolling basis through 9am ET on March 18, 2024. Spots may fill up, and we encourage partner organizations to apply early. A final deadline is scheduled for May 6, 2024, at 9am ET.

  3. Nominee Application: After review of your organization's application, your Nominated Fellow(s) will be invited to complete an online Nominee Application prior to attending the Partner /Fellow Review Call.

  4. Partner/Fellow Review Call: You will join SDP leadership, along with SDP outreach and program representatives, for a 60-minute Zoom call to further discuss your goals, anticipated obstacles, and share more information about the fellowship. Nominated Fellow(s) will also attend this call and will be asked screening questions about their analytic background, prior experiences, and motivations for joining the fellowship.

  5. Contract Execution: All partner agencies must sign a formal MOU with Harvard, outlining the obligations and expectations of the fellowship program

  6. Fellowship Acceptance: Once the MOU is fully executed, partners and fellows will receive a formal acceptance letter to the SDP Fellowship as well as information about onboarding and orientation. Supervisors and fellows participate in onboarding and orientation activities beginning in Fall 2024.

Timeline

We recommend applying sooner rather than later to ensure you reserve a spot in the cohort. Partnership applications for Nominated Fellows open on August 1, 2023 and will be reviewed on a rolling basis through 9am ET on March 18, 2024. Spots may fill up, and we encourage partner organizations to apply early. A final deadline will be May 6, 2024, at 9am ET.

Cost

There is a partnership fee associated with partnering with SDP to nominate an SDP Fellow. This fee is payable up front or in installments and covers all activities and travel over the two-year fellowship including:

  • workshops (and airfare/lodging) for the fellow and the supervisor
  • full access to toolkits and network resources
  • virtual learning
  • a faculty or industry advisor in Year 2 to ensure the rigor of your fellow's work
  • support for a completed analytic project commissioned by your agency.

SDP Fellows remain with their agencies as full-time employees, and partners are responsible for continuing to provide them with a salary and benefits.

Learn More

Interested in nominating a fellow for your organization?  Email us with questions, schedule a call, or share more information with the candidate you'd like to nominate.