Project Guidelines

Expectations, timelines, and project deliverable

1) If your bid is selected, the State Department officials who requested the research will reach out to your faculty supervisor to set up an initial meeting with your group, introduce you to available resources and contacts. At that meeting you will get acquainted, discuss further details, ask for any information you may need for your project and establish a basic timeline according to the Semester Schedule recommended by the State Department’s Diplomacy Lab office.

2) Develop clear expectations in terms of the respective roles of students within your Diplomacy Lab project. Who will be researching and submitting contributions? Who will coordinate submission of a final report? How will the various contributions be streamlined?

3) Have a set timeline that builds in adequate time for review and editing prior to the submission of the final product to the Department of State.

4) Establish regular meetings with your team, and your supervising faculty. For example, teams can meet weekly alone and bi-weekly with the supervising faculty depending on how frequently you will require status updates and draft reviews.

5) Determine early in the semester what the final product that is submitted will look like, e.g., how many pages, format, etc.

6) Teams and supervising faculty should engage in video and teleconferences with State Department officials and receive feedback. This will help clarify any questions you may have on your project early and ensure that you are on the right track.

7) Set up the dates to meet with the State Department in advance to avoid scheduling conflicts. At a minimum, meet online at least:

• Once before the project begins,
• Once at the start of term and once around the middle of the term.
• Some teams may also have final conferences with State Department officials at the end of the project to discuss their findings, via videoconference or in person if funding and travel restrictions permit. 

8) Anticipate potential modifications to the scope of the project, timelines, and be willing to be flexible in this regard.

Additional guidelines

Diplomacy Lab project reporting

Final deliverables are shared with the State Department at a final presentation. A copy of final project is due to Weiser Diplomacy Center within a week of the final presentation.

Publicity & Outreach

Students, faculty and staff will collaborate to publicize Diplomacy Lab via articles, quotes and impact pages on Weiser Diplomacy and Ford School websites and social media.