Academics
Our academic programs blend rigorous analysis, immersive policy placements, and collaborative seminars to equip emerging leaders with the knowledge, networks, and practical experience needed to transform bold ideas into impactful civic solutions.
Our academic programs immerses participants into a living laboratory where big questions collide with real‑world problems. You’ll dive into rigorous coursework then put theory into action through collaborative projects. Week by week, you’ll learn to frame complex challenges, design evidence‑driven solutions and measure their community impact.
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Alongside your fellow changemakers, you’ll debate emerging technologies in our weekly seminars, challenge assumptions in small‑group labs, and build a network of city leaders, policy experts and innovators.
By the end of your program, you won’t just acquire new knowledge, you’ll own practical experience turning bold ideas into civic solutions that improve lives and reshape our urban future.
Explore our programs
Data Analytics &
Urban Policy - City Placement Program
A data-intensive semester + summer program for current undergraduate and graduate students, as well as recent graduates (within two years of graduation) focused on solving real-world urban challenges. Program participants gain hands-on experience applying data analytics to issues like housing, transportation, and public health, within municipal offices through our placement program.
Public Innovation Fellowship
A year-long program for researchers and practitioners who turn evidence into action across PII’s six focus areas. Fellows pair rigorous methods in data science, causal and geospatial analysis, standards, and responsible AI with embedded work in partner agencies to design, test, and scale solutions; each produces a Public Innovation Dossier and a pilot or decision-ready plan that leaves a durable capability in the host organization.
Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship High School Program
A 10-week term-long program that empowers high school students to explore the intersection of technology and society. Participants learn to use cutting-edge AI tools to build innovative solutions to real-world problems, gaining technical skills and critical insight into technology’s role in shaping the future.
Global Innovation & Entrepreneurship Program
GIEP brings students into the heart of innovation, connecting them with U.S.-based startups, city leaders, and venture capital mentors. Participants gain hands-on experience in entrepreneurship while contributing to research and publications with Harvard collaborators. The program blends real-world startup engagement with academic rigor, preparing students to lead in a rapidly changing global economy.