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Integrative Study
Our graduate programs cover topics in several broad, multidiscplinary areas
In keeping with the interdisciplinary nature of modern research, we do not have traditional academic departments and do not award degrees by specific research area.
SEAS truly brings the full resources of the University to bear to help enable new discoveries and innovations.
SEAS students are, however, expected to have an SEAS faculty member as their primary adviser; co-advising with other appropriate faculty throughout Harvard is encourages students to pursue interdisciplinary work.
The faculty members in SEAS, nearly 30 percent of whom have joint appointments in other research areas, have close ties with the science departments (especially physics, biology, chemistry, and earth and planetary sciences) in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and increasing ties to Harvard’s professional schools (including business and medicine).
Multidisciplinary and Integrative
The majority of the course offerings, most of which span across disciplines, are listed in the Courses of Instruction under the following broad headings: applied mathematics, applied physics, computer science, and engineering sciences. In addition to lecture courses and seminars, students may take directed reading and research courses in connection with their dissertations and, on occasion, use them to explore topics not covered in regular courses.
Up to half a graduate student's courses may be taken outside the School, and programs that include considerable work in one or more sciences departments are common. Some of the most common links include those with the professional schools such as medicine, public health, and business, as well as the science departments within the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.
Graduate students also benefit from connecting with the variety of SEAS-based and University-wide multidisciplinary and innovative research institutes, centers, and initiatives such as the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. In addition, Ph.D. candidates can take advantage of the new graduate consortium programs.
In addition to lecture courses and seminars, students may take directed reading and research courses in connection with their dissertations and, on occasion, use them to explore topics not covered in regular courses.
We suggest that prospective students and students newly admitted to SEAS, focus on determining what faculty member, lab, or area of research they find most fascinating.
