Programme Structure

Applications for our February 2025 programme are now OPEN - Apply HERE

Accepted applicants will be attend two kick-off weekends at Arcadia Impact’s office, one on the 8th-9th of February and the other on the 15th-16th of February. During this time, you will:

  • Have the opportunity to get to know other participants

  • Be equipped with the tools you need to conduct high-impact research

  • Be introduced to the mentors in your stream, who will pitch their research projects to you

  • Express interest in your preferred research projects and be assigned a mentor

  • Meet your research team and mentor

  • Have your first team meeting to discuss the direction of your project

Research Phase

17th February - 30th March

Each participant is expected to spend a minimum of 3 hours per week on their project, but the exact time commitment can be decided by each team. Based on previous iterations, we predict that the most successful teams will include people who can commit up to 10 hours per week.
Each week, your team will submit written work to your mentor for review ahead of your meeting where you will update your mentor on your progress, and they will provide feedback on what you’ve done so far.
On certain dates, you’ll be able to access Arcadia Impact’s office for team meetings/ co-working sessions

Final Submission

30th March

At the end of the 8-weeks your team will submit a written report in the style of a blog post presenting your findings. With your permission we will share these on our website and we highly encourage you to also post this publicly on platforms such as the EA forum or LessWrong.

Presentation phase

31st March -

A team of experts will review and evaluate your team’s written submission. Your team will then deliver a short presentation outlining your findings at the prize-giving ceremony which will be attended by all participants and mentors. Your team’s presentation will also be scored by experts, and the scores from the written submission and presentation will be combined to determine the overall winner.

The winning team will receive a prize of £2000, and smaller prizes will be awarded to runners-up and other participants who particularly impressed us.