Penn Social Impact Accelerators

The Penn Social Impact Accelerators do not require an application. After enrollment, students must complete a short registration form through Canvas that will help us design a customized curriculum for your group. In order to officially reserve your space, all tuition costs must be paid prior to programming.

No. Our program is designed to have the lowest tuition possible without losing the integrity of the educational experience. We’re proud to say it is the most affordable comparable executive program that we are aware of. Since the program tuition is already being offered at a discounted rate relative to similar programs, we’re unfortunately unable to offer scholarships. We can, however, offer students who would like additional time to complete their payment the option of an interest-free payment plan over the course of 3 months, as long as the total is paid in full prior to programming. Some students have received partial or full tuition from their employers or a donor. Feel free to use this template to calculate the program cost for you and to share with your employer if it is useful in your funding applications.  

The $950 tuition deposit is not refundable. Refunds on balances paid will be made consistent with the School of Social Policy and Practice OpenSP2* refund policy.

Refund requests must occur within 14 days of the start of the class or program (the first materials-release date, for on-demand classes or programs, or the orientation date, for structured programs). Programs that include live class sessions require cancellation and refund requests to be made at least 14 days in advance of the course start date.

The school may provide a transfer option to individuals who cancel beyond the limits of this policy, at the discretion of the program leader.

Refund requests will be honored only if less than 25% of course materials have been engaged with (based on course data analytics).

*OpenSP2 is a division of the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2) which reserves the right to change, alter, adjust this policy. OpenSP2 reserves the right to cancel any program for low enrollment or other extenuating circumstances at any time, before the start of the program. If SP2 cancels a program, all participants will receive a full refund. Please also note programs offered on 3rd party platforms (edX or Coursera) are subject to the policies of that platform.

Official communications may be sent to admissions@csis.upenn.edu.

There are no educational prerequisites to enroll in this program — we are looking for leaders across all industries with a variety of perspectives. Applicants should be comfortable learning in the English language, and have the capacity to connect to our livestream for online programming.  

If you have questions, or if you think you might need a learning accommodation, please don’t hesitate to reach out at admissions@csis.upenn.edu so we can discuss your questions.

Students who complete an entire program will automatically join our alumni network. Alumni are a critical part of the CSIS family, and they receive lifelong access to the CSIS community. We have a private LinkedIn and Facebook group dedicated to conversations online for anyone in our network to share resources and support one another. We also host a free alumni summit in Philadelphia to bring our diverse community together and offer one another a deep sense of community and connection. In September 2025, we will be hosting our annual alumni summit in-person.