harvard research

Important Addresses

Harvard College

University Hall Cambridge, MA 02138

Harvard College Admissions Office and Griffin Financial Aid Office

86 Brattle Street Cambridge, MA 02138

Social Links

If you are located in the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway (the “European Economic Area”), please click here for additional information about ways that certain Harvard University Schools, Centers, units and controlled entities, including this one, may collect, use, and share information about you.

• Application Tips
• Navigating Campus
• Preparing for College
• How to Complete the FAFSA
• What to Expect After You Apply
• View All Guides
• Parents & Families
• School Counselors
• Información en Español
• Undergraduate Viewbook
• View All Resources

Search and Useful Links

Search the site, search suggestions.

students in a lab with a professor. they are all wearing lab coats

Unlock Your World

From laboratory study to archival research to investigations in the field, Harvard students engage in world-class research across all disciplines and make groundbreaking contributions to their fields.

With support from a variety of funding sources, students collaborate with renowned faculty researchers whose work has been featured in top journals and awarded prestigious grants. Whether you assist your professor or lead your own project, you'll receive guidance, support, and the benefit of their expertise.

Research Opportunities

Are there research opportunities for undergraduates.

Yes - available to students as early as their freshman year. You may find research projects through individual inquiries with departments and professors, through the  Harvard College Research Program  (HCRP), or through the  Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program  (MMUF). The  Faculty Aide Program , run by the Student Employment Office, links professors to undergraduates interested in becoming research assistants. Read more about HCRP and MMUF on the  Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships website , and find additional opportunities on the  Student Employment Office website . 

Expanding Our Campus

The state-of-the-art Science and Engineering Complex expands Harvard's campus with an additional 500,000 square feet of classrooms, active learning labs, maker space, and common areas.

Term-Time Research

During the academic year, you can conduct research for credit, as determined by the director of undergraduate study in each department.

Students can also receive funding from one of many sources. Additionally, many faculty members across academic departments hire students directly to serve as research assistants.

funding sources

Harvard college research program.

The  Harvard College Research Program  (HCRP) provides term-time and summer grants for students conducting independent research in collaboration with a faculty mentor.

Faculty Aide Program

The  Faculty Aide Program  (FAP) provides half of a student’s total wages when working for an approved faculty member as a research assistant.

Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program

The  Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program  (MMUF) provides a term-time stipend, as well as the option for summer research funds, to a group of approximately 20 juniors and seniors, selected in the spring of their sophomore years.

Laboratories

Summer Research

Harvard offers many residential research programs for students staying on campus during the summer. In addition, funding is available to support independent research locally, domestically, and internationally.

Building Learning through Inquiry in the Social Sciences

Building Learning through Inquiry in the Social Sciences  (BLISS) is a 10-week program for students working with Harvard faculty on research projects in the social sciences. BLISS provides a stimulating, collegial, and diverse residential community in which students conduct substantive summer research.

Harvard College-Mindich Program in Community-Engaged Research

The  Harvard College-Mindich Program in Community-Engaged Research  (PCER) introduces students to the field of engaged scholarship, which seeks to advance the public purpose of higher education through scholarship that has impact within and beyond the academy.

Program for Research in Markets and Organizations

The  Program for Research in Markets and Organizations  (PRIMO) is a 10-week summer program that allows students to work closely with Harvard Business School faculty on projects covering topics from business strategy to social media, and from innovation management to private equity.

Program for Research in Science and Engineering

The Program for Research in Science and Engineering  (PRISE) is a 10-week summer program that aims to build community and stimulate creativity among Harvard undergraduate researchers in the life, physical/natural, engineering, and applied sciences.

Summer Humanities and Arts Research Program

The  Summer Humanities and Arts Research Program  (SHARP) is a 10-week summer immersion experience in which students engage in substantive humanities- and arts-based research designed by Harvard faculty and museum and library staff.

Summer Undergraduate Research in Global Health Program

The  Summer Undergraduate Research in Global Health Program (SURGH) is a 10-week summer program in which students research critical issues in global health under the direction of a Harvard faculty or affiliate mentor. Participants live in a diverse residential community of researchers, attend weekly multidisciplinary seminars with professionals in the global health field, and make connections beyond the traditional health sphere.

Summer Program for Undergraduates in Data Science

The Summer Program for Undergraduates in Data Science (SPUDS) is a 10-week summer data science research experience that encourages community, creativity, and scholarship through applications across the arts, humanities, sciences and more fields. Students interested in mathematics, statistics, and computer science collaborate on projects with a Harvard faculty host.

Voyage of Discovery

The Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships helps students navigate the research opportunities available here on campus, in the Cambridge area, and around the world.

Related Topics

College offices.

Harvard College offices provide support and help students to navigate everything from academics to student billing.

From physical spaces to funding, Harvard provides the support for students to follow their curiosity as they investigate and explore their world.

Academic Environment

Explore what makes Harvard such a unique place to live and learn.

Toggle Academics Submenu

• Utility Menu

Apply   |   Contact Us   |   Carol Davis Fund   Anonymous Feedback to the Physics Chair

The Harvard Department of Physics and its collaborators are leaders in a broad spectrum of physics research, utilizing facilities and technologies that are continually being modified and improved with changing research interests and techniques. This provides students, postdoctoral fellows, and other research sholars with opportunities to work in first-class facilities at Harvard, both on individual investigator-led research projects and in scientific collaboration through a variety of research centers.

To learn more about research at our department, please explore the links at left.

• Faculty by Research Area
• Research Centers
• Research Scholar FAQs
• Useful Links for Research Scholars
• Scientific Ethics and Professional Integrity

The OVPR reviews, develops, and implements Harvard’s research-related policies, as well as the organization and execution of academic research, especially in the sciences. With Harvard’s increasing pursuit of cross-disciplinary ventures, the VPR works closely with university and school leadership to identify and ease the practical impediments inherent to interdisciplinary research in a highly decentralized academic environment. Additionally, a critical mission of the Office is to develop best practices for education, training, and guidance to promote the responsible conduct of research and to ensure compliance in all areas of research administration.

The Office, with the concurrence of the Provost, convenes as appropriate university-wide committees that bring together key faculty and administrators from across Harvard to address matters relating to research and research training policies and practices. These committees, with full cognizance of applicable federal and state law, regulation, and guidance, review existing institutional policies and implementation practices that bear on the oversight and conduct of research, and consider ways to enhance, harmonize, supplement or supplant them. The VPR works closely with faculty and administrative colleagues in government affairs, sponsored research, technology licensing, university development, and other domains to cultivate and sustain sound and appropriate relations with industry and with private and government agencies involved with academic research.

The OVPR also assists faculty in securing the necessary support for their important scholarly work – be it through one of the five internal funding opportunities it oversees; coordinating, in conjunction with the schools, the university’s competitive process for federal and foundation funding; or establishing university guidance around corporate giving.

Vice Provost for Research

John h. shaw, ph.d..

Russ Ashenden, Ph.D.

Autumn Bennett

Julie Chamberlin

Matthew Fox, J.D.

Rose Garcia

Jonathan M. Girard

Liza Harsch

Ani Heller, J.D., LL.M

Lesli Howard

Emre Keskin, Ph.D.

Willy Lensch, Ph.D.

Melissa J. Lopes, J.D.

Shana Maikhor

Drew Nichols

Elizabeth Parsons

Brooke Pulitzer

Anna Suojanen

Ara Tahmassian, Ph.D.

Jennifer Towers, MS

The Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Campus Center, Suite 664 1350 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02138

[email protected]

Academics & Research Overview

Academics and Research are at the core of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. As the largest division of Harvard University and the only one responsible for both undergraduate and graduate education, the FAS is home to an abundance of academic resources and research endeavors.

FAS Schools, Divisions, and Units

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences comprises three Schools, four academic divisions, 50 museums, and 25+ libraries.

Department and Program Directory

The FAS’s academic departments and centers support a community unparalleled in its academic excellence across the broadest range of liberal arts and sciences disciplines

Centers and Institutes

FAS academic centers and institutes serve as hubs of interdisciplinary research and innovation.

Harvard Museums of Science and Culture

The Harvard Museums of Science and Culture is a consortium of the six museums in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard. Together, these six museums (Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments; Mineralogical and Geological Museum; Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East; Harvard University Herbaria; Museum of Comparative Zoology; and Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology) look after more than 28,500,000 objects that represent Earth’s history, life, and cultures.

Harvard Library

Harvard Library collections number over six million digitized items, 21 million volumes, 400 million manuscripts, one million maps, and tens of millions of digital images, and its rare and special collections are amongst the most remarkable in the world.

Dean’s Competitive Fund for Promising New Research Bridge funding, seed funding, and enabling subventions for critical equipment

FAS Research Administration Services Research management and policy, conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment, human subjects

Harvard University Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Development and Diversity Grants for enabling research

Harvard Office of Technology Development Intellectual property, patents, licensing, sponsored research collaborations, startup ventures

Harvard Office of the Vice Provost for Research Policy and compliance, research funding, education and training, research offices and committees

Office for Scholarly Communication Spearheads campus-wide initiatives to open, share, and preserve scholarship

Research Policies Principles and policies that govern research, instruction, and professional activities

Academic Resource Center Resource for students’ academic and personal development

Academic Technology Group Multimedia teaching materials, technology and classroom support, visualization and simulation tools

Advising Programs Office Academic advising for all Harvard College undergraduate students

Canvas Student dashboard to access class materials, assignments, and schedules

Disability Access Office (DAO) Accommodations for students with disabilities

Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning Faculty and student development, in-class and online pedagogy, and educational research

Education Support Services Learning spaces, Recording, multimedia technology, and media production services

Harvard Initiative for Learning and Teaching (HILT) Innovative teaching and learning grants, teaching and learning consortium, research fellowships, programming around teaching and learning

Harvard University Information Technology (HUIT) Harvard’s central information technology unit

HarvardX Online learning objects and tools, integration of online with on-campus teaching and learning

my.harvard Student portal to search for courses, manage class enrollment, access personal and financial information, and view grades and check-in items

Teaching.fas.harvard.edu Designed for faculty who are teaching in Harvard College and Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, this site will help you navigate the process of teaching and the wealth of resources available to support you.

Resources for Faculty

• Utility Menu

44d3fa3df9f06a3117ed3d2ad6c71ecc

• Administration

research-banner.jpg

Current student and faculty research, initiatives, and resources in the department 

Find Faculty by Economic Field

Behavioral Economics

Industrial Organization

Political economy.

Economic Development

International Economics

Public economics, econometrics, labor economics, financial economics, macroeconomics, economic history, research initiatives.

Our faculty-led initiatives showcase just some of the department's vast endeavors to further our understanding of the world through the lens of economics.  Our current initiatives are listed below.

Foundations of Human Behavior Initiative

The Foundations of Human Behavior Initiative (FHB) supports research that produces transformative insights about the psychological, social, economic, political, and biological mechanisms that influence human behavior.   

German Administrative Data Project

The Research Data Center (FDZ) of the German Federal Employment Agency (BA) in the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) facilitates access to micro data on the labor market for non-commercial empirical research.

The Lab for Economic Applications and Policy (LEAP) facilitates research related to government policy, with the aim of injecting scientific evidence into policy debates

Opportunity Insights

Opportunity Insights identifies barriers to economic opportunity and develop scalable solutions that will empower people throughout the United States to rise out of poverty and achieve better life outcomes.

The Weiss Fund

The Weiss Fund for Research in Development Economics is funded by the CRI Foundation and aims to sponsor research that will positively affect the lives of poor people in poor countries. 

Faculty Feature

Professor Robin Lee and his co-author, Professor Kate Ho, have just been announced as the winners of the 2020 Frisch Medal of the Econometric Society for their paper “Insurer Competition in Health Care Markets”. 

Student Feature

Elisa Rubbo is awarded the Padma Desai Prize in Economics and Jonathan Roth wins the David A. Well's Prize.

Research Resources

Use of Human Subjects

• Harvard FAS Human Subject Research Site
• Human Subject Payment Information

Research Agreements / Contracts

• Model Consulting Agreement of Harvard
• Harvard Legal Agreements Workflow, Negotiating Authority and Signing Authority

Research Travel Information

• Travel on Sponsored Funding
• Harvard Travel Services
• Global Support Services

Data Use Agreements

Learn more about data use agreements

• Utility Menu

gA4 tracking code

Department of chemistry and chemical biology.

• Donate to CCB

Faculty & Research

Our faculty pursue innovative, ground-breaking research in the broad fields of Chemistry and Chemical Biology , specializing in the following areas:

Radcliffe Institute For Advanced Study

The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University—known as Harvard Radcliffe Institute—is one of the world’s leading centers for interdisciplinary exploration. We bring students, scholars, artists, and practitioners together to pursue curiosity-driven research, expand human understanding, and grapple with questions that demand insight from across disciplines.

Tackling Environmental Inequality across Academic Disciplines

Such environmental changes as pollution and climate change affect not only our ecosystem but also our people—those in low-income communities most of all. In this episode, our hosts talk to two recent Radcliffe Engaged Student Grant awardees from different disciplines—healthcare policy and the law—both of whom used the funds to study environmental inequality.

Meet Our 2023–2024 Fellows

Laura DeMarco

Ruth B. Grossman

Rosemary Ida Kabahuma

Chika O. Okafor

Alison C. Rollins

Iryna Smaznova

Jennie C. Stephens

Leah Stokes

Christina Warinner

Borncurious podcast.

Kindness—It’s Good for You!

Let’s Talk about Climate Resilience

A Conversation with Ruth J. Simmons

Math—It’s Not Just Numbers

Is Losing an Hour of Sleep Really That Big a Deal?

A Conversation with Sherrilyn Ifill

Riding the Radcliffe Wave

Free Speech, Political Speech, and Hate Speech on Campus

The Thrill of Archival Discovery

Using Machine Learning to Listen to Whales

Justice-Impacted Brilliance

Language and Thought around the World, Part 1

Language and Thought around the World, Part 2

A Conversation with Tressie McMillan Cottom

Wounds across Borders

The US Pain and Overdose Crises

The Unique Power of Cartoons

Healthcare Disparities for People with Disabilities

By the numbers, highlights: women, gender, and society.

Radcliffe Day 2024 | Sonia Sotomayor

Gender and Politics: Navigating Power and Perception

Gender and Politics: Keynote Conversation with Laphonza Butler

Rewrite, Organize, Remix: Visions of Feminist Organizing

A Female Landscape and the Abstract Gesture

The Women of NOW

Kim and Judy Davis Dean’s Lecture in the Social Sciences: Conversation with Ruth J. Simmons

In Their Own Voices: Black Women's Lives from the Archives

Claudia Goldin Recognized with Nobel in Economic Sciences

The Brains behind Barbie

Radcliffe Day 2023 | Ophelia Dahl

Minding the Gap: Gender and the Mental Health Crisis

Kim and Judy Davis Dean's Lecture in the Social Sciences: Conversation with Tressie McMillan Cottom

Striving for a Full Stop to Period Poverty

Life after Roe

Solidarity! Transnational Feminisms Then and Now

The Heisenberg Variations: Imagination, Invention, and Uncertainty

Conference: The Age of Roe: The Past, Present, and Future of Abortion in America

Organizing for a Pathway to Redemption

The Unseen Inequity of Cognitive Labor

It's Complicated: 375 Years of Women at Harvard

The Most Secret Garden

(Why) Reporting the Voices of African Women and Girls Matters

A Woman's Place at the Harvard Observatory

Marketing Menstruation

Fifty Years after The Feminine Mystique

Why Whales Sing and Dolphins Don't

Gender and politics: keynote conversation with laphonza butler and maura t. healey.

Audre Lorde, June Jordan, and a Homemade Field of Love

De-poisoning Catalysts for Sustainable Chemical Processing

Creating Equitable and Innovative Solutions to the Climate Crisis

Farming the Future: Livestock's Leap to Net Zero

Under What Conditions Is War Legal and Moral? A New History of the US Military in Afghanistan

The Milk Paradox

Digital Amati: Digitally Curating and Studying the Italian Violin-Making Tradition

News & ideas.

Student Spotlight: Chassidy Winestock PhD ’24

The Sounds of Change

Student Spotlight: Justis Gordon ’24

Erika Lee Appointed Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation Faculty Director of Schlesinger Library

A "Grassroots-Driven Sisterhood"

Bringing the Past to the Present

Funding the Civil Rights Movement

Research with Generative AI

Resources for scholars and researchers

Generative AI (GenAI) technologies offer new opportunities to advance research and scholarship. This resource page aims to provide Harvard researchers and scholars with basic guidance, information on available resources, and contacts. The content will be regularly updated as these technologies continue to evolve. Your feedback is welcome.

Leading the way

Harvard’s researchers are making strides not only on generative AI, but the larger world of artificial intelligence and its applications. Learn more about key efforts.

The Kempner Institute

The Kempner Institute is dedicated to revealing the foundations of intelligence in both natural and artificial contexts, and to leveraging these findings to develop groundbreaking technologies.

Harvard Data Science Initiative

The Harvard Data Science Initiative is dedicated to understanding the many dimensions of data science and propelling it forward.

More AI @ Harvard

Generative AI is only part of the fascinating world of artificial intelligence. Explore Harvard’s groundbreaking and cross-disciplinary academic work in AI.

funding opportunity

GenAI Research Program/ Summer Funding for Harvard College Students 2024

The Office of the Vice Provost for Research, in partnership with the Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships, is pleased to offer an opportunity for collaborative research projects related to Generative AI between Harvard faculty and undergraduate students over the summer of 2024.

Learn more and apply

Frequently asked questions

Can i use generative ai to write and/or develop research papers.

Academic publishers have a range of policies on the use of AI in research papers. In some cases, publishers may prohibit the use of AI for certain aspects of paper development. You should review the specific policies of the target publisher to determine what is permitted.

Here is a sampling of policies available online:

• JAMA and the JAMA Network
• Springer Nature

How should AI-generated content be cited in research papers?

Guidance will likely develop as AI systems evolve, but some leading style guides have offered recommendations:

• The Chicago Manual of Style
• MLA Style Guide

Should I disclose the use of generative AI in a research paper?

Yes. Most academic publishers require researchers using AI tools to document this use in the methods or acknowledgements sections of their papers. You should review the specific guidelines of the target publisher to determine what is required.

Can I use AI in writing grant applications?

You should review the specific policies of potential funders to determine if the use of AI is permitted. For its part, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) advises caution : “If you use an AI tool to help write your application, you also do so at your own risk,” as these tools may inadvertently introduce issues associated with research misconduct, such as plagiarism or fabrication.

Can I use AI in the peer review process?

Many funders have not yet published policies on the use of AI in the peer review process. However, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has prohibited such use “for analyzing and formulating peer review critiques for grant applications and R&D contract proposals.” You should carefully review the specific policies of funders to determine their stance on the use of AI

Are there AI safety concerns or potential risks I should be aware of?

Yes. Some of the primary safety issues and risks include the following:

• Bias and discrimination: The potential for AI systems to exhibit unfair or discriminatory behavior.
• Misinformation, impersonation, and manipulation: The risk of AI systems disseminating false or misleading information, or being used to deceive or manipulate individuals.
• Research and IP compliance: The necessity for AI systems to adhere to legal and ethical guidelines when utilizing proprietary information or conducting research.
• Security vulnerabilities: The susceptibility of AI systems to hacking or unauthorized access.
• Unpredictability: The difficulty in predicting the behavior or outcomes of AI systems.
• Overreliance: The risk of relying excessively on AI systems without considering their limitations or potential errors.

See Initial guidelines for the use of Generative AI tools at Harvard for more information.

• Initial guidelines for the use of Generative AI tools at Harvard

Generative AI tools

• Explore Tools Available to the Harvard Community
• Request API Access
• Request a Vendor Risk Assessment
• Questions? Contact HUIT

Copyright and intellectual property

• Copyright and Fair Use: A Guide for the Harvard Community
• Copyright Advisory Program
• Intellectual Property Policy
• Protecting Intellectual Property

Data security and privacy

• Harvard Information Security and Data Privacy
• Data Security Levels – Research Data Examples
• Privacy Policies and Guidelines

Research support

• University Research Computing and Data (RCD) Services
• Research Administration and Compliance
• Research Computing
• Research Data and Scholarship
• Faculty engaged in AI research
• Centers and initiatives engaged in AI research
• Degree and other education programs in AI

Featured Scientist

Our research is focused on understanding neuronal metabolism and how it is influenced by – and influences – neuronal activity and excitability.

Community Stories

Upcoming events.

• Utility Menu

Department of Psychology

• https://twitter.com/PsychHarvard
• https://www.facebook.com/HarvardPsychology/
• https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFBv7eBJIQWCrdxPRhYft9Q
• Participate

The Department is organized into four Research Programs:

• Cognition, Brain, & Behavior
• Developmental  
• Clinical Science

Each consists of a group of faculty members who jointly administer graduate admissions and training in some subfield of psychology. Individual faculty and graduate students typically participate in more than one program, which are set up more for administrative convenience, not as a commitment to any boundaries to research, teaching, or graduate training.

The Department of Psychology also provides opportunities for anyone interested in participating in psychology research studies at Harvard  and for Harvard researchers who run those studies.

• Developmental Psychology
• Social Psychology

• Utility Menu

GA4 tracking code

• CARAT (Opportunities Database)
• URAF Application Instructions
• URAF Calendar

Summer Research

Explore summer research opportunities at harvard through uraf, resources listed here are not exhaustive, but highlight some key residential summer programs and independent funding options to start..

See additional options at the end of this page to expand your search for summer opportunities!

Harvard Summer Undergraduate Research Village (HSURV) Programs

The Research Village is a collection of residential summer research programs for Harvard College students that run for 10 weeks from June through August (summer dates to be confirmed in January 2024). Students conduct research, participate in professional development workshops, program cohort meetings, and program-specific and Village-wide social activities. Students showcase their research achievements in the final week of their summer program through research presentations. Students from the programs of the Research Village live together in the same River House on campus, creating a robust and exciting living, learning, and social community of undergraduate researchers. Students admitted to Research Village programs receive a stipend, free housing, and meals. Programs that comprise the Village are led by URAF and other partnering offices and academic departments at Harvard. Each program has specific application, eligibility and participation requirements and February deadlines .  For application instructions, see each individual program page or this page . Please explore these opportunities thoroughly to find the best option for you! 

• Program for Research in Science and Engineering (PRISE) 
• Summer Program for Undergraduates in Data Science (SPUDS ) - led by Harvard Data Science Initiative
• Summer Undergraduate Research in Global Health (SURGH) Program - led by the Harvard Global Health Institute (HGHI)
• Summer Humanities and Arts Research Program (SHARP)  
• Building Learning Inquiry for Social Sciences (BLISS) - led by FAS Social Science
• Program for Research in Markets and Organizations (PRIMO) - led by Harvard Business School
• Kempner Research in Artificial & Natural Intelligence for Undergraduates with Mentorship (KRANIUM)  - led by the Kempner Institute (new for Summer 2024)
• Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability Summer Undergraduate Research Fund (SURF)  - led by the Salata Institute (new for Summer 2024)

Want to get a glimpse of past work from PRISE, SHARP, BLISS, PRIMO, SPUDS, SURGH fellows? See here:   HSURV Abstract Books  

Additional Village affiliate programs

Additional summer programs run by URAF and other Harvard schools and departments live in the same River House as the core Village programs mentioned above. Each program will have different application requirements, eligibility criteria, programming and benefits. Please explore which program is the best fit for you. 

• Harvard Amgen Scholars Program  
• Harvard SEAS Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU)  - led by the School of Engineering and Applied Science, Office of Education Outreach & Community Programs
• Harvard Stem Cell Institute Program (HIP)  - led by the Harvard Stem Cell Institute
• Generative AI Research Program

Independent Project Funding Programs 

URAF provides funding for Harvard College students to pursue their independent summer research projects. Independent funding programs typically do not offer organized housing and meals as part of the award; instead they offer larger stipends for use towards accomodations arranged by awardees themselves. Unlike residential programs, these funding programs offer the flexibility to set start and end dates over the summer, and to do research in the field and/or remotely, outside of Cambridge, Massachusetts. There are no obligations to attend workshops and other on-campus programming over the summer. To be considered for funding through these programs, students must have the autonomy and independence over the design, implementation and execution all aspects of the research project proposed. Independent funding awards administered by URAF are: 

• Harvard College Research Program – independent project mentored by Harvard faculty 
• Herchel Smith Undergraduate Science Research Program – independent projects mentored by Harvard OR non-Harvard faculty 

There are many more independent research funding options offered through academic departments and research centers. Explore the following resources: 

• CARAT  - database of funding opportunities at Harvard, including department based thesis research funding, funding at research centers and more  
• Microbial Sciences Initiative Fellowship  
• Research Centers and Institutes

Want to expand your search for more summer opportunities, see here:

Resources for your search

Harvard University Theses, Dissertations, and Prize Papers

The Harvard University Archives ’ collection of theses, dissertations, and prize papers document the wide range of academic research undertaken by Harvard students over the course of the University’s history.

Beyond their value as pieces of original research, these collections document the history of American higher education, chronicling both the growth of Harvard as a major research institution as well as the development of numerous academic fields. They are also an important source of biographical information, offering insight into the academic careers of the authors.

Spanning from the ‘theses and quaestiones’ of the 17th and 18th centuries to the current yearly output of student research, they include both the first Harvard Ph.D. dissertation (by William Byerly, Ph.D . 1873) and the dissertation of the first woman to earn a doctorate from Harvard ( Lorna Myrtle Hodgkinson , Ed.D. 1922).

Other highlights include:

• The collection of Mathematical theses, 1782-1839
• The 1895 Ph.D. dissertation of W.E.B. Du Bois, The suppression of the African slave trade in the United States, 1638-1871
• Ph.D. dissertations of astronomer Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (Ph.D. 1925) and physicist John Hasbrouck Van Vleck (Ph.D. 1922)
• Undergraduate honors theses of novelist John Updike (A.B. 1954), filmmaker Terrence Malick (A.B. 1966),  and U.S. poet laureate Tracy Smith (A.B. 1994)
• Undergraduate prize papers and dissertations of philosophers Ralph Waldo Emerson (A.B. 1821), George Santayana (Ph.D. 1889), and W.V. Quine (Ph.D. 1932)
• Undergraduate honors theses of U.S. President John F. Kennedy (A.B. 1940) and Chief Justice John Roberts (A.B. 1976)

What does a prize-winning thesis look like?

If you're a Harvard undergraduate writing your own thesis, it can be helpful to review recent prize-winning theses. The Harvard University Archives has made available for digital lending all of the Thomas Hoopes Prize winners from the 2019-2021 academic years.

Accessing These Materials

How to access materials at the Harvard University Archives

How to find and request dissertations, in person or virtually

How to find and request undergraduate honors theses

How to find and request Thomas Temple Hoopes Prize papers

How to find and request Bowdoin Prize papers

• email: Email
• Phone number 617-495-2461

Related Collections

Harvard faculty personal and professional archives, harvard student life collections: arts, sports, politics and social life, access materials at the harvard university archives.

• University News
• Faculty & Research
• Health & Medicine
• Science & Technology
• Social Sciences
• Humanities & Arts
• Students & Alumni
• Arts & Culture
• Sports & Athletics
• The Professions
• International
• New England Guide

The Magazine

• Current Issue
• Past Issues

Class Notes & Obituaries

• Browse Class Notes
• Browse Obituaries

Collections

• Commencement
• The Context
• Harvard Squared
• Harvard in the Headlines

Support Harvard Magazine

• Why We Need Your Support
• How We Are Funded
• Ways to Support the Magazine
• Special Gifts
• Behind the Scenes

Classifieds

• Vacation Rentals & Travel
• Real Estate
• Products & Services
• Harvard Authors’ Bookshelf
• Education & Enrichment Resource
• Ad Prices & Information
• Place An Ad

Follow Harvard Magazine:

University News | 4.17.2024

The Enterprise Research Campus, Part Two

Tishman speyer signals readiness to pursue approval for second phase of commercial development.  .

ERC phase A construction in March 2024. The regulatory approval process for phase B will begin soon.   | PHOTOGRAPH BY JIM HARRISON

Tishman Speyer, the development partner that is building an Enterprise Research Campus (ERC) in Allston on property leased from Harvard, took the first step toward construction of the second phase (phase B) of that project on April 16. With the submission of a letter of intent to the Boston Planning and Development Agency, the firm signaled that it would soon initiate the regulatory approval process for an additional 720,000 square feet of laboratory/research and development and office space, and approximately 320,000 square feet of residential housing (including affordable units) with a mixture of ground floor retail and community uses. The second phase is proposed on 4.8 acres of University-owned land at 100 Western Avenue, across from Harvard Business School. Tishman Speyer first previewed its plans for this second phase of development in 2021.

A groundbreaking to celebrate the first phase ( phase A, now well underway ), which includes 900,000 square feet of commercial development, including lab space for life sciences companies, 343 rental apartments (a quarter of them affordable), a 246-room hotel, street-level shops and restaurants, and more than 2 acres of public outdoor space took place on November 1, 2023.

You might also like

Historic Humor

University Archives to preserve Harvard Lampoon materials

Academia’s Absence from Homelessness

“The lack of dedicated research funding in this area is a major, major problem.”

Sean Kelly Named Dean of Arts and Humanities

Will begin new role July 1

Most popular

Poise, in Spite of Everything

Nina Skov Jensen ’25, portraitist for collectors and the princess of Denmark. 

Claudine Gay in First Post-Presidency Appearance

At Morning Prayers, speaks of resilience and the unknown

Dominica’s “Bouyon” Star

Musician “Shelly” Alfred’s indigenous Caribbean sound

More to explore

Exploring Political Tribalism and American Politics

Mina Cikara explores how political tribalism feeds the American bipartisan divide.

Private Equity in Medicine and the Quality of Care

Hundreds of U.S. hospitals are owned by private equity firms—does monetizing medicine affect the quality of care?

John Harvard's Journal

Construction on Commercial Enterprise Research Campus in Allston

Construction on Harvard’s commercial enterprise research campus and new theater in Allston

Featured Topics

Featured series.

A series of random questions answered by Harvard experts.

Explore the Gazette

Read the latest.

When math is the dream

A space for researchers to meet, and AI and natural intelligence to do the same

A fresh take on must-see TV

Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer

Harvard announces return to required testing

Leading researchers cite strong evidence that testing expands opportunity

Students applying to Harvard College for fall 2025 admission will be required to submit standardized test scores, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences announced on Thursday. This new policy will be applied to the Class of 2029 admissions cycle and will be formally assessed at regular intervals.

For the Class of 2029 admissions cycle, Harvard will require submission of scores for the SAT or ACT. In exceptional cases in which applicants are unable to access SAT or ACT testing, other eligible tests will be accepted.

In a message to the FAS community on Thursday, Edgerley Family Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Hopi Hoekstra foregrounded “a number of factors” that underscored the decision.

“Standardized tests are a means for all students, regardless of their background and life experience, to provide information that is predictive of success in college and beyond,” she said. “Indeed, when students have the option of not submitting their test scores, they may choose to withhold information that, when interpreted by the admissions committee in the context of the local norms of their school, could have potentially helped their application. In short, more information, especially such strongly predictive information, is valuable for identifying talent from across the socioeconomic range.”

In research published last year, Harvard Professors Raj Chetty and David J. Deming and co-author John N. Friedman used data from more than 400 institutions and about 3.5 million undergrads per year to better understand socioeconomic diversity and admissions. Standardized tests emerged as an important tool to identify promising students at less-well-resourced high schools, particularly when paired with other academic credentials.

“Critics correctly note that standardized tests are not an unbiased measure of students’ qualifications, as students from higher-income families often have greater access to test prep and other resources,” said Chetty, the William A. Ackman Professor of Public Economics and director of Opportunity Insights . “But the data reveal that other measures — recommendation letters, extracurriculars, essays — are even more prone to such biases. Considering standardized test scores is likely to make the admissions process at Harvard more meritocratic while increasing socioeconomic diversity.”

Deming, the Kennedy School’s Isabelle and Scott Black Professor of Political Economy and a professor of education and economics at the Ed School, pointed to access as a key issue.

“The virtue of standardized tests is their universality,” he said. “Not everyone can hire an expensive college coach to help them craft a personal essay. But everyone has the chance to ace the SAT or the ACT. While some barriers do exist, the widespread availability of the test provides, in my view, the fairest admissions policy for disadvantaged applicants.”

In June 2020, as the pandemic severely limited access to standardized testing, Harvard began a test-optional policy under which students could apply to the College without submitting scores. The admissions cycle for the Class of 2028 was the fourth for which students were able to apply without submitting test scores. However, admissions has welcomed applicants to submit test scores, and the majority of those who matriculated during the past four years did so.

“Test scores can provide important information about a student’s application,” said William R. Fitzsimmons, dean of admissions and financial aid. “However, they representonly one factor among many as our admissions committee considers the whole person in making its decisions. Admissions officers understand that not all students attend well-resourced schools, and those who come from modest economic backgrounds or first-generation college families may have had fewer opportunities to prepare for standardized tests.”

In recent years, nonprofits such as Khan Academy have offered robust test-prep tools at no charge. In her message, Hoekstra said that access to testing should never prevent a student from applying to Harvard, and included information for those who may not be able to access the SAT or ACT, as well as tools such as Schoolhouse.world and other sources for no-cost tutoring and no-cost test preparation.

“We recognize that in parts of the United States there may be fewer students than in the past taking SAT or ACT for their state universities — and international applicants can also face barriers to testing,” said Joy St. John, director of admissions. “We hope that promising students faced with such challenges will still apply, using alternative forms of testing.”

Said Hoekstra: “Fundamentally, we know that talent is universal, but opportunity is not. With this change, we hope to strengthen our ability to identify these promising students, and to give Harvard the opportunity to support their development as thinkers and leaders who will contribute to shaping our world.”

Share this article

You might like.

Dora Woodruff was drawn to beauty of numbers as child. Next up: Ph.D. at MIT.

The Kempner Institute buzzes with new code, numbers, ideas

Isabella Madrigal has a vision: storytelling that’s compelling, inspires better, more equitable world

Finding right mix on campus speech policies

Legal, political scholars discuss balancing personal safety, constitutional rights, academic freedom amid roiling protests, cultural shifts

Good genes are nice, but joy is better

Harvard study, almost 80 years old, has proved that embracing community helps us live longer, and be happier

Exercise cuts heart disease risk in part by lowering stress, study finds

Benefits nearly double for people with depression

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

The Research-Backed Benefits of Daily Rituals

• Michael I. Norton

A survey of more than 130 HBR readers asked how they use rituals to start their days, psych themselves up for stressful challenges, and transition when the workday is done.

While some may cringe at forced corporate rituals, research shows that personal and team rituals can actually benefit the way we work. The authors’ expertise on the topic over the past decade, plus a survey of nearly 140 HBR readers, explores the ways rituals can set us up for success before work, get us psyched up for important presentations, foster a strong team culture, and help us wind down at the end of the day.

“Give me a W ! Give me an A ! Give me an L ! Give me a squiggly! Give me an M ! Give me an A ! Give me an R ! Give me a T !”

• Michael I. Norton is the Harold M. Brierley Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. He is the author of The Ritual Effect and co-author of Happy Money: The Science of Happier Spending . His research focuses on happiness, well-being, rituals, and inequality. See his faculty page here .

Partner Center

• Presidential Search
• Editor's Pick

Harvard Launches Lengthy Review Process for Phase B of Enterprise Research Campus

‘Less Exciting and Less Fun’: Undergraduates Voice Frustrations with Science Lab Renovations

Activists Demand ‘Indefinite Pause’ on Plans to Renovate Democracy Center for New Nonprofit

Harvard’s Leadership Appeals To Admitted Students During Visitas Weekend

‘Home for the Next 4 Years’: Admitted Students Experience Harvard at Visitas 2024

Harvard filed a Letter of Intent to the Boston Planning and Development Agency for Phase B of the Enterprise Research Campus Project this week, kicking off an extensive approval and local engagement process for the final stretch of the next major addition to Harvard’s Allston expansion.

Development firm Tishman Speyer submitted the letter on behalf of the University, outlining the details of Harvard’s plans to develop a million square feet of labs, offices, and housing across two residential and three life sciences buildings.

The University envisions the ERC — a 36-acre, mixed-use district entirely on Harvard-owned land — as a regional hub for innovation in life sciences and technology, containing research and office space, housing, and local shops.

The project’s first phase, comprising 900,000 square feet of lab, office, residential, and commercial space, broke ground this summer after Harvard and Tishman Speyer donated millions to establish an affordable housing fund and committed to making a quarter of its residential units income-restricted — a first among private housing projects in Boston.

At the time, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu ’07 called it “one more moment of history between the city of Boston and Harvard” in a centuries-long relationship.

The project’s second phase is now set to undergo a review process where residents and officials will be able to provide comments before the project receives final approval from the BPDA.

Residents and advocates will also have the opportunity to ask Harvard to provide benefits for the area to offset the impacts of the development — benefits which could match the tens of millions promised by the University during Phase A negotiations.

In a texted statement, Cindy Marchando, chair of the Harvard Allston Task Force, said the group was “thrilled to see the LOI submitted.” She added they would work “to ensure that Harvard's ambitious expansion not only enhances the institution but also enriches the local community.”

In its Tuesday letter, Tishman Speyer committed to adding affordable housing among the new units to be built in Phase B. They also pledged to continue developing a proposed greenway intended to stretch across the ERC district as a source of open space in the “long-underutilized” area. Phase B will also include ground-level and below-ground parking.

In a statement, Carl J. Rodrigues, the CEO of the Harvard Allston Land Company, wrote that he looked forward to working with the city and other stakeholders “to ensure that the ERC becomes a vibrant and inclusive mixed-use community that will foster creativity, exploration, research, and culture.”

Harvard’s ERC project is of an enormous scale. When Tishman Speyer secured $750 million in financing for it in mid-2023, it was the largest construction financing package in the country so far that year.

The letter of intent comes amid the active development of several other Harvard projects in Allston.

The ERC Phase A remains under construction, as does a separate project at 175 North Harvard St., which will relocate the American Repertory Theater and add affiliate housing. Two other buildings in Allston — 180 Western Ave and 176 Lincoln St. — on Harvard-owned land are also waiting to begin construction.

—Staff writer Jack R. Trapanick can be reached at [email protected] . Follow him on X @jackrtrapanick .

Want to keep up with breaking news? Subscribe to our email newsletter.

• Share full article

Advertisement

Supported by

Harvard and Caltech Will Require Test Scores for Admission

The universities are the latest highly selective schools to end their policies that made submitting SAT or ACT scores optional.

By Anemona Hartocollis and Stephanie Saul

Harvard will reinstate standardized testing as a requirement of admission, the university announced Thursday, becoming the latest in a series of highly competitive universities to reverse their test-optional policies.

Students applying to enter Harvard in fall 2025 and beyond will be required to submit SAT or ACT scores, though the university said a few other test scores will be accepted in “exceptional cases,” including Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate tests. The university had previously said it was going to keep its test-optional policy through the entering class of fall 2026.

Within hours of Harvard’s announcement, Caltech, a science and engineering institute, also said it was reinstating its testing requirements for students applying for admission in fall 2025.

The schools had been among nearly 2,000 colleges across the country that dropped test score requirements over the last few years, a trend that escalated during the pandemic when it was harder for students to get to test sites.

Dropping test score requirements was widely viewed as a tool to help diversify admissions, by encouraging poor and underrepresented students who had potential but did not score well on the tests to apply. But supporters of the tests have said without scores, it became harder to identify promising students who outperformed in their environments.

In explaining its decision to accelerate the return to testing, Harvard cited a study by Opportunity Insights , which found that test scores were a better predictor of academic success in college than high school grades and that they can help admissions officers identify highly talented students from low income groups who might otherwise had gone unnoticed.

“Standardized tests are a means for all students, regardless of their background and life experience, to provide information that is predictive of success in college and beyond,” Hopi Hoekstra, dean of the faculty of arts and sciences, said in a statement announcing the move.

“In short, more information, especially such strongly predictive information, is valuable for identifying talent from across the socioeconomic range,” she added.

Caltech, in Pasadena, Calif., said that reinstating testing requirements reaffirmed the school’s “commitment as a community of scientists and engineers to using all relevant data in its decision-making processes.”

Harvard and Caltech join a growing number of schools, notable for their selectivity, that have since reversed their policies, including Brown, Yale, Dartmouth, M.I.T., Georgetown, Purdue and the University of Texas at Austin.

For Harvard, the move comes at a time of transition, and perhaps a return to more conservative policies.

Last June, the Supreme Court struck down race-conscious college admissions in cases involving Harvard and the University of North Carolina, raising fears that with the demise of affirmative action, those schools would become less diverse.

And in January, Harvard’s first Black president, Claudine Gay, resigned under pressure from critics who said she had not acted strongly enough to combat antisemitism on campus after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, and under mounting accusations of plagiarism in her academic work, which she stood by.

The provost, Alan Garber, was named interim president, while the dean of the law school, John Manning, became interim provost, the university’s second-highest administrative position. Mr. Manning is considered a strong potential candidate to replace Dr. Gay. His background stands out for his conservative associations, having clerked for the former Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia.

In the current climate on campus, a return to test scores could be seen as a return to tradition. It also may address concerns of many parents that the college admissions process, especially in elite institutions, is inscrutable and disconnected from merit.

Applications to Harvard were down by 5 percent this year, while those at many of its peer universities went up, suggesting that the recent turmoil may have dented its reputation. But it still received a staggering number of undergraduate applications — 54,008 — and admitted only 3.6 percent. Requiring test scores could make sorting through applications more manageable.

Critics of standardized tests have long raised concerns that the tests helped fuel inequality because some wealthier students raised their scores through high-priced tutoring. But recent studies have found that test scores help predict college grades, chances of graduation and post-college success, and that test scores are more reliable than high school grades, partly because of grade inflation in recent years .

But Robert Schaeffer, director of public education at FairTest, an organization that opposes standardized testing, said Thursday that the Opportunity Insights analysis had been criticized by other researchers. “Those scholars say that when you eliminate the role of wealth, test scores are not better than high school G.P.A.,” he said, adding that it is not clear whether that pattern is true among the admissions pool at super selective colleges such as Harvard.

Mr. Schaeffer said that at least 1,850 universities remain test optional, including Michigan, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin and Syracuse, which have recently extended their policies. “The vast majority of colleges will not require test scores.” An exception, he said, could be the University of North Carolina system, which is considering a plan to require tests, but only for those students with a G.P.A. below 2.8.

Acknowledging the concerns of critics, Harvard said that it would reassess the new policy regularly. The school said that test scores would be considered along with other information about an applicant’s experience, skills, talents, contributions to communities and references. They will also be looked at in the context of how other students are doing at the same high school.

“Admissions officers understand that not all students attend well-resourced schools, and those who come from modest economic backgrounds or first-generation college families may have had fewer opportunities to prepare for standardized tests,” William R. Fitzsimmons, Harvard’s dean of admissions and financial aid, said in a statement.

Harvard said that in the interest of selecting a diverse student body, it has enhanced financial aid and stepped up recruitment of underserved students by joining a consortium of 30 public and private universities that recruits students from rural communities.

An earlier version of this article misstated Robert Schaeffer’s position. He is the director of public education at FairTest, not the director.

How we handle corrections

Anemona Hartocollis is a national reporter for The Times, covering higher education. More about Anemona Hartocollis

Stephanie Saul reports on colleges and universities, with a recent focus on the dramatic changes in college admissions and the debate around diversity, equity and inclusion in higher education. More about Stephanie Saul