Applications for the Harvard LEAD Fellowship’s 2027–2028 cohort close on 15 November 2026 at 11:59 p.m. EST. The leadership fellowship runs from September 2027 to August 2028, combining virtual participation with a six-week residence expected in April 2028.
Who should consider it
Although the fellowship promotes women’s leadership in global health, Harvard explicitly welcomes all genders. Applicants must be based or working in a low- or middle-income country, plan to return, hold at least a relevant master’s degree, and have ten years of professional experience while working full-time in global health. Employer support and eligibility for a J-1 visa are required; restrictions apply to recent full-time fellowships.
The residential period includes support for visa fees, flights, housing, course fees and living expenses. It is not an offer of twelve months of accommodation in the United States. Coaching and mentoring form part of the wider fellowship.
Independent application-planning guidance
Before drafting your application, have a practical conversation with your employer about the residence. Identify the responsibilities that would need cover, the decisions you could delegate, and the work that should be completed before departure. A realistic absence plan can make support easier to discuss and reduce disruption to colleagues.
Then choose a leadership problem from your current work. Examples might include coordinating across institutions, developing future managers or communicating evidence to decision-makers. Describe a situation you understand in depth, what you have tried, and which capability you need to strengthen. Avoid making the application a list of prestigious courses you would like to attend.
Connect your professional development to a benefit beyond yourself. If you plan to mentor colleagues, explain whom you could realistically support and how the relationship would work. If you want to improve a service or organisation, specify a manageable change and how you could tell whether it helped.
Build a consistent narrative across your CV, statement and essays. Dates, roles and achievements should agree. Use a small number of examples that show your decisions and their consequences, including what you learned when an approach did not work. Leadership experience is easier to assess when it is grounded in real responsibilities.
Consider personal logistics early too, including care arrangements and the practical implications of a temporary stay abroad. Do not commit to travel before the programme confirms selection and arrangements. A fellowship offer and permission to enter the United States are separate matters.
Read the current application components carefully, respect the length limits and give your organisational reference enough time. The strongest preparation will explain why this development opportunity matters at this point in your career and how you intend to apply the learning when you return.
A practical handover exercise before you apply
The following is independent planning guidance, not an additional Harvard application requirement. Make a three-column handover sheet: ongoing responsibility, temporary decision-maker and escalation contact. Include recurring approvals, sensitive deadlines and meetings where your absence would affect someone else’s work. Mark tasks that can wait separately from tasks that need a named substitute. This gives an employer a concrete basis for discussing leave instead of a general promise that everything will be covered.
Next, test the mentoring idea against an ordinary working week. Who could meet with you regularly after the fellowship, what would each person want to learn, and how much preparation would those meetings require? A small pilot with a clear review point may be more credible than promising a large new programme before you know the resources available. You can describe the intended approach without claiming that colleagues have already agreed to participate.
Finally, prepare a return-to-work note for yourself. Identify one practice you want to improve, one conversation you need to have, and one result you could reasonably review after three months. This makes the proposed benefit tangible while leaving space for the fellowship to change your assumptions.
Read the official programme details and application instructions. Check the current instructions before submitting, including any conditions specific to your circumstances.
