Students may work towards three graduate degrees—Master of Science (considered, in most cases, a terminal degree), Master of Engineering (a terminal degree), or Doctor of Philosophy—in one of four areas: Applied Mathematics, Applied Physics, Computer Science, and Engineering Sciences.

The requirements for each degree are summarized below. Please note that the SEAS graduate degree requirements are currently under review and are subject to change.

Graduate Policies

• Committee on Higher Degrees Policies
• Model Programs
  
• Committee on Higher Degrees Policies (Prior to Fall 2008)

For more information, visit the SEAS Intranet site.

S.M., M.E., and Ph.D.

Graduate students may work towards a Master of Science (considered, in most cases, a terminal degree), Master of Engineering (a terminal degree), and Doctor of Philosophy degree in one of four subjects—Applied Mathematics, Applied Physics, Computer Science, and Engineering Sciences—or graduate with a Ph.D. in the Science, Technology & Management program (with Harvard Business School). The requirements for each degree are summarized below.

Master of Science (S.M.)

The S.M. degree is awarded for the successful completion of eight half-courses (one half-course runs one term) at Harvard. The S.M. degree is non-research based and is considered, in most cases, a terminal degree. Upon successful completion of the S.M. degree, any student planning to pursue the Ph.D. degree (see below), must formally apply to the Ph.D. program (see below). No preferential treatment is given to S.M. degree holders seeking admission to the Ph.D. program. As students admitted to the Ph.D. program can apply for and receive S.M. on completion of the requirements for the master's degree, we strongly encourage any student who is considering ultimately pursuing the Ph.D. at Harvard to apply directly to the Ph.D. program.

Master of Engineering (M.E.)

Students who wish to pursue more advanced formal training without undertaking the research required for the Ph.D. degree may earn the ME degree by successfully completing one year of coursework beyond that required for the SM degree. The M.E. is a terminal degree. No dissertation, foreign language, or general examination is required.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

The PhD requires a minimum academic residency of two years beyond the bachelor’s degree. Programs are individually tailored and approved by a committee on higher degrees.

Normally, students spend one-and-one-half to two years on coursework—10 half-courses, including at least 8 disciplinary courses are required.

Depth and breadth of knowledge are important guiding principles in the Ph.D. program. The first year is ordinarily spent principally on coursework, although some students may begin research. The second year is usually divided between coursework and research, with coursework completed during the third year if necessary.

As soon as coursework is completed, students conduct research full time. Original research culminating in the dissertation is usually completed in the fourth or fifth year. No foreign language is required.

Oral Qualifying Examination

Preparation in the major field is evaluated in an oral examination by a qualifying committee. The examination has the dual purpose of verifying the adequacy of the student's preparation for undertaking research in a chosen field and of assessing the student's ability to synthesize knowledge already acquired.

Dissertation

Upon successful completion of the qualifying examination, a committee chaired by the research supervisor is constituted to oversee the dissertation research. The dissertation must, in the judgment of the research committee, meet the standards of significant and original research.

Final Oral Examination

This public examination devoted to the field of the dissertation is conducted by the student's research committee. It includes, but is not restricted to, a defense of the dissertation itself.

Our graduate programs are administered through Harvard's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS).

Collaborative Programs

Engineering and Physical Biology

Students admitted to the Engineering and Physical Biology (EPB) program through the SEAS will have somewhat different degree requirements than those described above. During the first year, an EPB student will take two half courses specifically designed for this program plus an EPB-specific summer tutorial in computation.

Six other half-courses taken in the first year and four half-courses taken in the second year must include one half-course in bio-engineering, bio-materials or bio-physics, and nine half-courses drawn from offerings in Applied Mathematics, Applied Physics, and Engineering Sciences.

Within these guidelines, the individual program of coursework will be developed by the student in consultation with an EPB Mentoring Committee and representatives of the SEAS. Students will also be speakers each year in an annual one-day EPB/daVinci symposium. Each student in the EPB program will be required to be a teaching fellow in two approved half-courses, with this requirement to be fulfilled by the end of the third year.

Oral Qualifying Examination

Suitability for PhD dissertation research will be determined by a qualifying examination to be taken in the spring of the second year. This oral examination will be conducted by faculty representing biology, biochemistry, engineering and physics and will require the student to respond to questions regarding subject, experimental approaches and conclusions in abstracts of four scientific papers, one from each of the above areas.

Dissertation

Research may begin as early as the end of the first year or as late as the end of the second year and may be undertaken in the laboratory of any member of the daVinci Group which supports this program, or with another member of the FAS science faculty. Dissertation research will normally be completed in five or six years from matriculation.

Medical Engineering and Medical Physics Program

The five- to six-year Medical Engineering and Medical Physics Program (MEMP) program leads to the Ph.D. or Sc.D. in Medical Engineering or Medical Physics awarded by MIT, or the PhD awarded by Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

The MEMP curriculum gives students hands-on experience in biomedical sciences and engineering to allow them to explore the fundamental principles underlying human biology and diseases, discover new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, and ultimately ameliorate human suffering. The range of interests of students in the program is vast; a small sampling of topics includes molecular biology, modeling of biological systems, medical imaging and visualization, instrumentation, biomaterials, and cellular biomechanics.

Requirements and Dissertation

Although pathways through the MEMP program are intended to be individualized and therefore vary widely, there is a broad curricular and administrative structure that is common to all paths within MEMP. Curricular requirements fall roughly into three segments: pre-qualifying, clinical, and dissertation. Curricular tracks within MEMP are Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Systems Physiology and Medicine.

Bioinformatics and Integrative Genomics (BIG)

BIG is a specialized area of study withinHealth Sciences and Technology's Medical Engineering and Medical Physics program. In BIG, bioinformatics is viewed in a broad sense to comprise the overall activity of extracting the functional dependencies of biological systems from the data generated by sequence, microarray, proteomics, and metabolism-probing technologies.

Students interested in BIG are admitted to MEMP and normally take MEMP’s cellular and molecular medicine track along with additional courses specifically to fulfill the BIG concentration. The BIG program seeks students with a very strong quantitative science background. To be considered for admission, students must have completed at least a baccalaureate degree in engineering or physical science or computer science (or equivalent). Recommended preparation includes at least one undergraduate subject in each of the following areas: biology, organic chemistry, computational science, physical chemistry or thermodynamics, biochemistry, and advanced calculus.