Initiatives

Fellowships are at the core of PDRI-DevLab’s mission to integrate research, training, and impact. We build vertically integrated teams where undergraduates, Master’s students, predoctoral fellows, and postdoctoral researchers work alongside Penn faculty on applied projects in migration and displacement, AI and data science for development, and climate, land, and governance. This model turns live research into a classroom, equipping fellows with experience across the full research cycle, from design and fieldwork to analysis and policy engagement.

Our training ecosystem includes Summer Fellowships, Predoctoral and Postdoctoral programs, Visiting Fellowships, and competitive research grants for graduate students. Together, these initiatives create a pipeline of scholars who not only contribute to publications, policy briefs, and global partnerships during their time at Penn, but also go on to lead in academia, international organizations, and applied research worldwide.