Harvard Library's May-Crane Fellowships offer undergraduate and graduate students at Harvard the opportunity to work on a project at the library. Fellows work closely with a library mentor to complete their project.
Fellows are awarded up to $4,000 (undergraduate students) or up to $6,000 (graduate students) to complete a library project under the guidance and mentorship of a librarian or archivist.
How to Apply
Any undergraduate or graduate student who is currently enrolled at Harvard is encouraged to apply.
How to Apply
- Choose a Project: Review the proposed fellowship projects (see projects listed below). Choose which you'd like to apply to work on. You may submit more than one application.
- Submit your application: 2025 applications are due Friday, February 28. 2025.
Application Deadline
February 28, 2025
Fellowship Dates
- Fellow Selection Announcement: early spring 2025
- Fellowship runs: June - August 2025
Award
- Undergraduate students: up to $4,000
- Graduate students: up to $6,000
Projects will indicate if they are for undergraduates or graduate students.
Selection Process
A small committee of Library leadership members selects the fellows for the program.
About the Fellowship
The May-Crane Fellowships are designed to encourage undergraduate engagement with Harvard Library and to help advance the careers of graduate students. Fellows partner with library staff to work on projects in a range of areas, from collections to preservation to research, teaching and learning.
During the fellowship, a library mentor supervises and provides expertise as fellows complete their projects. These are immersive opportunities where fellows become an integral part of the library. While getting to know librarians and the library environment firsthand, they will be expected to assume responsibility for their projects and work independently.
At the end of the projects, the fellows will be asked to submit a final report describing their work and evaluating their experiences and contributions. Fellows will also be given the opportunity to present their work as a cohort.
About the fellowship
- Fellows are assigned a mentor from the library and work on defined projects under the mentor's supervision.
- Fellows are expected to assume full responsibility for their projects.
- Each fellow must submit a final report of this work describing and evaluating their experiences.
- Fellows acknowledge that the project is based in Massachusetts and work must be completed while physically in Massachusetts.
Things to Know
- Undergraduate or graduate students currently enrolled (not incoming nor outgoing) at Harvard are eligible to apply.
- This fellowship is an hourly, paid role; fellows will be responsible for submitting hours weekly to their supervisor (details to be provided if awarded)
- The fellowship runs for approximately 10 weeks, for a total of ~150 hours.
- Students holding a concurrent exempt (salaried) position are ineligible for this fellowship as it is a non-exempt position.
- Applicants understand the information on the Student Employment Office site, particularly that students can work no more than 40hr/week when classes are not in session.
- If applicable, students are responsible for discussing this fellowship opportunity with their financial aid advisor.
- International students are responsible for having the necessary work authorization to work at Harvard University in an administrative role (not research or teaching roles) that is paid hourly.
- Fellows understand that if any of their eligibility criteria change during the fellowship their eligibility will be reviewed and may result in an early end of the fellowship.
Library Projects
Projects support work across Harvard Library and range from digitizing materials to working on exhibits or taking a deep dive into a collection. Select a project that resonates with you.
Harvard Map Collection: Contextualizing early modern maps
Graduate
The Harvard Map Collection, founded in 1818, is the oldest map collection in the US. It houses one of the largest collections of maps, atlases and digital data in North America. The collection has grown to include 500,000 maps, more than 10,000 atlases, and several thousand reference books. Topographic maps, city plans, nautical charts, and thematic maps comprise this excellent research collection representing all chronological periods and significant map makers. The Map Collection also has a strong commitment to digital resources and manages the collections of the Harvard Geospatial Library (HGL).
This project is designed to extend both content and methods-based approaches for engaging with cartographic collections held in the Harvard Map Collection. The fellow will employ 'collections as data' approaches, drawing from numerous archival sources, such as diaries, correspondence, royal charters, financial ledgers and newspaper advertisements to inventory and determine original funding sources for maps held in the Collection from the early modern period. These analyses will be molded into new datasets aligned with and enriched by holding records metadata, and ultimately integrated within a geospatial information system (GIS) framework. This will allow researchers to explore trends in map patronage, including the state commissions and private investments underpinning the production of materials held in the Collection, thereby extending future possibilities for working with them in research, teaching and learning environments.
The project has three deliverables: (1) A narrative and methods-based writeup for the Map Collection knowledge sharing site, detailing both steps for creating a contextually-rich map inventory as well as steps for turning it into mappable data; (2) A well-described contribution of open-source data materials, modeled by the researcher and enriched in partnership with GIS librarians to facilitate metadata enhancements and GIS approaches; (3) A GIS map depicting findings from the cartographic inventory analysis.
No specific skills are required though the ideal candidate may be interested in economic history, has experience working with archival resources or conducting data analysis and analytical skills.
Widener Discovery Center: Centering Public Engagement
Graduate
As the Widener Discovery Center moves towards its 2026 opening, engaging the general public becomes vital to its success. This fellowship project aims to develop strategies that will draw in Harvard's neighbors and visitors to campus to actively participate in the Discovery Center's offerings. The fellow will work closely with library staff and community leaders to explore current engagement practices and glean insights from similar institutions. By analyzing existing data and conducting interviews, the fellow will craft recommendations that align with the Center's mission of becoming an inclusive and accessible space for exploration and learning. This work will serve to enhance community relations and increase public interest in Harvard's unparalleled library resources.
To complete this project, the Fellow will be responsible for drafting surveys and focus group frameworks to better understand community needs and interests, and surfacing surfacing potential collaborations, partnerships or programs.
The ideal candidate may exhibit the following skills: strong analytical and research skills, experience with community outreach or public engagement initiatives, excellent communication and writing skills, is collaborative, familiarity with survey and focus group design.
Past Fellows and Projects
Summer 2023 Fellows
- Hinal Jajal: Historic Dataset Pilot Research
- Rachel Beard: Documenting and Exploring Rare Atlases
- Antara Bhattacharya & David Alan Hannan: Transliteration Tools for Arabic and Persian Languages
- Vivian Nha Nguyen & Dhruv Chugh: Expanding Geospatial Access
Learn about the 2023 May-Crane Fellows' projects.
Summer 2022 Fellows
- Leo Sarbanes: Recreating Physical Exhibits for the Digital World
- Bes Bajraktarevic: DIBAR Digitization Program Support
- Sarah Aziz: Finding Aids for Middle East Collections
- Ricky Sanchez: Urban Segregation
Learn more about the 2022 May-Crane Fellows' projects.
Previous project outcomes have also included:
- Selecting a platform and curating online exhibits to enhance users' virtual experience
- Augmenting information in the online collection, City Maps and Urban Environments, to demonstrate historical segregation in cities
- Project management of digitization processes on EDIBA collections
- Creation of a comprehensive virtual finding aid for Middle East Collections
- Building out watermark and image databases and drafting watermark imaging protocol
- Enhancing Wikipedia entries for historical Harvard women and minority figures
- Evaluating the Peer-Research Fellows and First-Year Librarians programs
- Creating ‘how-to’ research guides for students in conjunction with the launch of GenEd 2.0
- Crafting content for digital materials to increase awareness of Harvard’s collections