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The biggest and most common challenges student-led think tanks face include:
- Fundraising and financial sustainability due to limited resources and lack of expertise.
- Maintaining motivation and long-term engagement of members who are unpaid volunteers.
- Measuring impact and defining success due to the nature of their work.
- Building a strong network and recognition to amplify their influence.
Student-led think tanks are resourceful and dynamic organisations, led by passionate students and recent graduates looking to contribute to public policy discussions, and impact public policy in their communities. They manage financial difficulties by collecting small fees from members, and event participants, seeking in-kind support from organisations and experts, and building their teams with volunteers. They attract new members, and motivate existing members by building capacity building and networking opportunities.
Measuring impact and defining success pose challenges for student-led think tanks as they have high turnover rates for leaders, and team members, however they can begin to tackle these by strengthening their institutional memory.
Building a strong network of partners is essential in amplifying student-led think tanks’ influence. Many student-led think tanks have partners in NGOs, civil society, think tanks, research institutions, and the private sector. If you are creating a student-led think tank, collaborating with different, well-established student-led think tanks in the beginning can help you access potential partners in different sectors.