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Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street

Cambridge, MA 02138

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Harvard
School of Engineering
and Applied Sciences*
A brief guide† for prospective undergraduate students, their parents, and the just plain curious
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* Defined by our students and alumni as: “A thriving intellectual community.” “Rich and rigorous.” “Camaraderie mixed in with Newton’s laws,
and Kant mixed in with differential equations.” “An engineering island in a sea of liberal arts disciplines.” “Multidimensional.” “The best of
both worlds.”
† For more info, visit our website: www.seas.harvard.edu
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* Defined by our students and alumni as: “A thriving intellectual community.” “Rich and rigorous.” “Camaraderie mixed in with Newton’s laws,
and Kant mixed in with differential equations.” “An engineering island in a sea of liberal arts disciplines.” “Multidimensional.” “The best of
both worlds.”
† For more info, visit our website: www.seas.harvard.edu

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»

“So–why would anyone -

choose to attend Harvard


as an engineer? how to apply:

“Perhaps because Harvard has a thriving intellectual community


where people from all backgrounds can come together to discuss Agassiz House
10 Garden Street
issues ranging from politics to structure design.
“Surrounding yourself with others who think as you do and (617) 495-1551
www.admissions.college.harvard.edu
dream as you do can only help you to grow in directions you www.harvard.edu
have already turned to on your own.
“To truly stretch the bounds of your mind requires interacting For more information about undergraduate
with people whose interests lie beyond your own and learning study in engineering and applied sciences
from them what you can.” at Harvard:
harvard school of
—Belle Koven ’06* engineering and applied sciences
Academic Office
Pierce Hall 110
Cambridge, MA 02138

0V
* Belle truly put the art into engineering: While at Harvard she served as a
stage manager for on-campus theater productions. She also found the time
to study abroad and to help others through MentorNet, an e-mentoring
program in science and engineering.

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1
»

“So–why would anyone -

choose to attend Harvard


as an engineer? how to apply:

“Perhaps because Harvard has a thriving intellectual community


where people from all backgrounds can come together to discuss Agassiz House
10 Garden Street
issues ranging from politics to structure design.
“Surrounding yourself with others who think as you do and (617) 495-1551
www.admissions.college.harvard.edu
dream as you do can only help you to grow in directions you www.harvard.edu
have already turned to on your own.
“To truly stretch the bounds of your mind requires interacting For more information about undergraduate
with people whose interests lie beyond your own and learning study in engineering and applied sciences
from them what you can.” at Harvard:
harvard school of
—Belle Koven ’06* engineering and applied sciences
Academic Office
Pierce Hall 110
Cambridge, MA 02138

0V
* Belle truly put the art into engineering: While at Harvard she served as a
stage manager for on-campus theater productions. She also found the time
to study abroad and to help others through MentorNet, an e-mentoring
program in science and engineering.

2
Academics:
All-inclusive

The “Harvard experience”—immersion in a multifaceted intellectual set-


ting—is part of what makes learning engineering and applied sciences here
a singular experience.
Because of our emphasis on preparing broad-minded students—whom
we call “renaissance engineers”1—we’ve designed programs and courses
that meet the need of students at multiple levels.
The concentration is open to those who might not have had opportu-
nities for rigorous mathematics or exposure to engineering or computer
science in high school. At the same time, the program caters to those who
dream about taking Math 55 their first year.
Many of our classes are small, thanks to the 5:1 student/faculty ratio.
Professors and administrators are accessible in and outside of class.2 And,
collaborative courses and research with Harvard’s world-class programs in
the life and physical sciences expose students to the bigger picture, too.3
We offer an ab degree option (which is relatively rare among our peers)
as well as an abet-accredited sb (in Engineering Sciences only). Our con-
centrations promote flexibility and, yes, even fun.4 That means you’ll have
time to indulge your passion for the yo-yo, push the pigskin down the turf
5, investigate the wacky world of quantum science 6, or create the next
great start-up in your dorm room.7
Although you can dig deep into specific areas of research, the goal is to
train future leaders and thinkers in all fields as well as professionals in engi-
neering and applied sciences. 8
Alum Yi Liu ’05 (Engineering Sciences, sb) put it this way: “Harvard em-
phasizes not just the education of the subject but the education of a person.”

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1 Renaissance engineering is about the future, not the
past: training students who excel in applied science
but also have a broad knowledge of other disci-
plines and wish to connect advances in engineering
to society’s most challenging problems.
2 A professor from a local university who visited bio-
engineer Kit Parker’s “Cellular Engineering” to see
whether he might want to create a similar course
confessed that it would simply be too much work to
replicate (even without the after-class BBQ).
3 “I was given the special opportunity to study phys-
ics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, statistics,
and computer programming, while also gaining
the problem-solving skills of an engineer”—Daniel
Foti ’06. Moreover, our concentrations are ideal for
completing premed requirements.
4 We celebrate National Engineers Week, drop eggs
off buildings, play robot soccer, and offer free candy
at the Academic Office.
5 In 2005, over 50 percent of the students in ES-96, a
team-based design course, were members of either
a JV or a Varsity sport.
6 One of our colleagues in the Physics Department
wrote a book called Warped Passages: Unraveling
the Mysteries of the Hidden Dimensions.
7 Students have found the time to start companies
while earning their degrees (see page 14).
8 Miriam Esteve ’85 is Executive Vice President of
Operations, Technology, and Project Management
at U.S. Trust. Stephanie Wilson ’88 is an astronaut.
Clay Mitchell ’99 runs one of the most technologi-
cally sophisticated farms in the world.

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»Degrees of freedom

applied mathematics construction at an international robot


“Math will rock your world.” That sentence exhibition. The bots, which use no central-
recently appeared on the cover of Busi- ized control, rely on fancy algorithms to
nessWeek magazine. The math rocking the build simple buildings from a blueprint.
world is applied mathematics, an area of
study that uses mathematics to understand
how a leaf unfurls, predict when the next engineering sciences (ab or sb)
hurricane might hit, and sort through the Engineering is about building bridges—
information overload of the online era. but in ways you might not expect. Break-
Areas of focus include biological sciences, throughs in basic research and innovative
economics, engineering, and computer- technologies create bridges to every area in
science, among others. the sciences. In particular, students say that
The newly created am-50 course cov- engineering provides an ideal platform for
ers all the bases—in fact, the first segment exploring topics in biology and medicine.
explores a double-header: statistics and Areas of focus include biomedical sciences
baseball. Number theory, brain science, and and engineering, electrical engineering
economics (ideal for future i-bankers and and computer science, engineering physics,
Einsteins alike) shows up later in the term. environmental sciences and engineering,
and mechanical and materials sciences and
engineering.
computer science In es-100, a capstone engineering
The answers to today’s big questions— design course, Chelsey Simmons ’06
whether in engineering, physics, biology, designed a new surgical system in order
or economics—inevitably have computa- to treat patients with osteoporosis who
tion at their core. Computer science is of are undergoing spinal fusion, a common
course about creating code and running remedy for back pain. Chelsey is attending
software, but it takes more than clever the Stanford School of Engineering for
keystrokes to go from an idea to an end graduate school.
product or solution. Areas of focus include
software, graphics, e-commerce, artificial For the complete scoop on courses, suggested
intelligence, networks, parallel and distrib- schedules, and requirements, see http://seas.
uted systems, algorithms, and theory. harvard.edu/undergradstudy/.
Assistant Professor of Computer Science
Radhika Nagpal has re-engineered the
proverbial “class on the grass.” She and
her students recently demonstrated a fleet
of Lego Mindstorm robots doing collective

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Renaissance
Engineer*
2
“The experience of living on an
engineering island in a sea of liberal
arts disciplines has reminded me
that the full potential of technology is reached only when a
broad user base is able to understand and utilize all of the
functionality provided by that technology.
“I want to be able to feel like I’m making a difference in the
lives of ordinary people … and my experience as an engineer
at Harvard has helped me to expand my working paradigm
to the point where I’m able to take the needs of that group
into consideration as I dream about the next generation of
innovation.”
—Darren Baker ’06/’08

* Darren is from West Jordan, Utah. Before attending Harvard, he said, “If I had to pick one
word to describe my interests, it would have to be ‘variety.’ My scholastic interests range
from chemistry and computer science to the study of history and foreign languages.”
Research:
Mind-expanding

Opportunities abound for undergraduates to conduct and experience re-


search in engineering, the applied sciences, and related fields at Harvard.

» Listen to dozens of lectures on dozens of topics by the world’s top researchers (and
those who employ them).1
» Get your hands on state-of-the-art equipment in the newly constructed undergradu-
ate bioengineering lab; scope out the small world of nanotechnology by building your
own scanning tunneling microscope; design microchips for use in sensor networks.2
» Participate in faculty labs; take part in term-time or summer research program; 3
work and live in one of the “smartest” cities in the U.S.4

If you desire all the details or have specific aims(e.g., “I’d really like to
work on quantum-cascade lasers, program a smarter computer agent, or
model the atmosphere”)or want to know what our faculty members have
been up to, visit www.seas.harvard.edu/research/.
And there’s more to come. Harvard has announced plans to invest heav-
ily in science and engineering.5 In fact, our change in name from “Division
of” to “School of” Engineering and Applied Sciences is the most visible sign
of this commitment.
On a practical level, this investment means hiring additional faculty mem-
bers (expected to increase by 50% in engineering alone) and constructing
advanced facilities such as the Laboratory for Integrated Science and Engi-
neering and the Northwest Building, dedicated to interdisciplinary science
and engineering.6

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2
1 Some past luminaries have included Bill Gates COL
’77 and India’s Kapil Sibal, Minister of Science &
Technology and Ocean Development.
2 William Adams ’06 created a microelectrode array: a
14mm x 14mm “data collector” for cardiac electro-
physiological experimentation, built entirely within
the Center for Nanoscale Systems clean room.
3 Harvard offers the Program for Research in Science
and Engineering (PRISE), a 10-week 2 residential
community, and the Research Experience for Un-
dergraduates (REU), summer opportunities focused
on materials research and nanoscale science and
engineering.
4 That’s what Boston Magazine says. Lots of
universities, lots of people with PhDs, lots of
high-tech companies.
5 “Harvard will need to invest ambitiously in sciencesci-
enceengineering
and and engineering
in theincoming
the coming
yearsyears
and toand consider
to consider
how best to how
nourish
bestnew
to nourish
fields while
new fields
sustaining
while
sustaining
its traditional
its traditional
strengths, many
strengths,
of which
many lieoffirmly
which
lie firmly
within thewithin
boundaries
the boundaries
of existingofdepartments.”—
existing depart-
ments.”—President’s
President’s Office, 2006
Office, 2006
6 The first building on Harvard University’s future
Allston campus will be dedicated to interdisciplin-
ary science and stem cell research.

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»Bugs, bubbles, and soccer bots

geneva trotter ’09 works in Assistant anand bala subramaniam ’06, who con-
Professor of Electrical Engineering Rob centrated in biological sciences and is now
Wood’s lab on the design, construction, a research fellow in engineering, worked
and verification of a cockroach-inspired with Associate Dean and Vicky Joseph Pro-
microrobotic leg mechanism. Geneva ar- fessor, Howard Stone, to create micron-to
rived with a “leg up”—she loves track and millimeter-scale peapod-, doughnut-, and
field and basketball. sausage-shaped bubbles.
Wood is working to develop tiny insect- To prod them into unconventional
like flying vehicles weighing in at one gram shapes, the team coated ordinary gas
or less. His goal is to produce autonomous bubbles with a tightly packed layer of tiny
(no pilot) low-cost fliers that can cover particles and then fused them. Someday
a wide area with gliding or active flight. these odd bubbles may be used as carri-
Using insect-inspired optical-flow motion ers for delivering drugs, vitamins, or even
detection, large numbers of fliers could flavors.
rapidly fan out to scout an area. For now the work has produced a
Nature paper—with Bala Subramaniam
as the lead author.

The cofounders of the Robotic Futbol Club


of Cambridge (rfc), jeff ma ’07 (Phys-
ics) and jie tang ’08 (Computer Science),
recently did some kicking and scheming in
Atlanta and Bremen, Germany.
RoboCup, an international robotic
football competition, offers university-
based teams the chance to build a team of
autonomous robots and compete in head-
to-head matches.
The Harvard team also opted for
intellectual collaboration rather than
competition: it joined forces with under-
grads from mit. (An interesting aside: At
the turn of the 20th century, Harvard
and mit nearly merged.)

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2
Renaissance
Engineer*
3
“I have a niche, and it was by
immersing myself in other options
that I so easily discovered it.
“All I really want to do is study the limitless beauty of
machines and design ways to harness it. Studying engineering
in a liberal arts setting has shown me that intellectual ability is
multidimensional.
“By offering courses in a wide range of disciplines and
bringing together a group of students who excel in a variety of
areas, Harvard has exposed me to the many flavors of interest
and ability. I’ve not only discovered my own unique combination
of vector components, but learned to appreciate those of my
classmates, too.”
—Anjuli P. Kannan ’09

0W
* Anjuli won a grant from Harvard’s South Asia Initiative to live in India for eight weeks in a
Rajasthan village and help teach computer literacy. She’ll no doubt rely on her experience as
a teaching fellow for “Computer Science 50, Introduction to Computer Science 1.”
Innovation:
Inside and out

Microsoft, Facebook, and a dozen dot-com ideas came to light in the wee,
dark hours. They all blossomed (or didn’t) at Harvard.1
From free mini-MBA seminars 2 to working with faculty members who
have founded their own companies 3 to summer internship opportunities
at companies like Google 4, IBM, Microsoft, and McKinsey Co., engineer-
ing and applied sciences students have many avenues for on-the-job train-
ing before they graduate.
Right on campus, budding entrepreneurs can get a boost from the Tech-
nology and Entrepreneurship Center at Harvard (TECH) and the emerg-
ing Translation Lab. Both initiatives provide courses and one-on-one con-
sulting for students interested in exploring idea generation and technology
transfer.
We also encourage real-world (and off-campus) experiences. In 2007,
three engineering students were awarded Weissman scholarships 5, which
enable participants to live and work across the globe. Moreover, as cultural
literacy has become increasingly critical for science and engineering, we’ve
made it easier for even SB students to have experiences abroad.6
In addition to coming up with the next Great Big Idea, we encourage
you to heed the advice of a Harvard graduate and now faculty member:
“Think of your freedom of choice—of what courses to take, of how to
spend your Sunday afternoons, whatever—as a commodity that is precious
in and of itself.”7

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1 Part of the code for what became Microsoft’s first
commercial program is displayed in Maxwell
Dworkin—a building made possible by a donation
from Steven Ballmer ’77 and Bill Gates COL ’77 and
named for their mothers.
2 In keeping with the real-world emphasis of the
noncredit course, stellar faculty members, as well
as some of Cambridge’s most successful practicing
entrepreneurs from Harvard Business School teach
the seminars.
3 Pulmatrix, a start-up that develops products to
diagnose, treat, prevent, or inhibit the spread of
airborne infectious diseases, grew out of an under-
graduate engineering course.
4 In 2004, Google placed the following ad in the Har-
vard Square subway station: “[first 10-digit prime
found in consecutive digits of e].com”
5 During the summer of 2007, 39 Weissman interns
worked in a wide range of private and public
organizations in business, education, the environ-
ment, government, health and medicine, law, media,
public service, science, and urban planning.
6 Courtney O’Brien ’09 (AM) studied in Paris;
Jacqueline Stenson ’08 (ES) studied in Durban,
South Africa; and Christina Ke Xu ’09 (CS) studied
in Kingston, Jamaica.
7 Harry Lewis
Lewis,’68,
Harvard
’74, Harvard
College Professor
College Professor
and Gordon
and
McKay Professor
Gordon McKay Professor
of Computer
of Computer
Science Science
and former
and
Dean ofDean
former the College.
of the College.

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»Drug delivery,
delivery room, classroom

oluwarotimi “rotimi” okunade ’07 A team composed of undergraduates ezra


spent her summer in Pretoria, South rapoport ’06, nick orenstein ’06, david
Africa, with Medicine in Need (mend), jakus ’06, and james moran ’05 captured
a nonprofit company started by faculty first place in the Harvard Student Agen-
members and students at Harvard and cies’ Center for Enterprise’s Entrepreneur-
aimed at liberating burdened populations ial Contest.
from diseases of poverty through ad- In their business plan, the team devised
vanced drug and vaccine delivery. a venture called lono Medical Systems,
“My work has been to administer a dedicated to the design and production of
study at different [tuberculosis] treatment a wireless device that can employ passive
centers all over South Africa, which is to acoustic measurement techniques to detect
justify the entry of such a formulation into and monitor the heartbeat of a human
clinical trials there,” she says. fetus in utero.
“This is something which we invented
and feel very connected to,” Orenstein
said. “I never expected to be making
something that could actually help save
people’s lives.”

The Harvard Crimson reported on a novel


class meant to inspire novel ideas:
“Have you ever had a great idea that was
too wild or far-fetched to become reality?
… In es-147, students from many aca-
demic disciplines work on idea translation
and ‘artscience,’ attempting to put their
dreams into tangible form.
“McKay Professor of the Practice of
Biomedical Engineering David A. Edwards
focuses on applying his own ideas and
research to real-life problems, and he chal-
lenges his students to do the same.”
In fact, in addition to being a serial en-
trepreneur, Edwards writes novels.

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3
Renaissance
Engineer*
4
“Engineering in a liberal arts
setting means that there is
camaraderie mixed in with
Newton’s laws, and Kant mixed
in with differential equations.
“The liberal arts requirement here has given me the
opportunity to study a wide variety of subjects including classical
Greek literature, philosophy, linguistics, French, and African-
American history.
“The engineering education that I am getting in Harvard’s
liberal arts setting is preparing me quite well to face the
challenges of any career I choose.”
—Florence Evina-Ze ’07/’08

0
* Florence, who was on the Harvard track team and Vice President of the Harvard Society
of Black Scientists and Engineers, also spent a summer working in London at a firm that
specializes in research on renewable energy and low carbon technologies.
Things to come:
Unlimited application

Ultimately, acquiring a degree in engineering and applied sciences from Har-


vard can be both fulfilling and fun (even with all those problem sets).1
The degree is also very practical—which, given the cost of college these
days as well as the cost of living, matters.2
Further, science and engineering increasingly shape our society and
our world.3 Thomas Friedman, author of The World Is Flat4, has said, “I’m
not saying that every politician needs to be an engineer, but it would be
helpful if they had a basic understanding of the forces that are flattening
the world.”
Most important, our curriculum offers excellent preparation, whether
you are intending to practice as an engineer, researcher, or physician; are
planning for a career in business, education, government, law, or medicine;
or have no idea what you want to be when you grow up 5.
“We want our passion for discovery and innovation to attract the curious,
inspire a future generation of globally educated leaders, and help improve
society and the world.”6

To put this into perspective…

primary occupation post harvard %


computer software, hardware, systems··························23
banking, finance, communications··································11
engineering & science····················································11
education······································································ 8
full-time student·························································· 7
law················································································ 6
consulting····································································· 6
medicine, health care, public health······························ 5
arts, government, politics·············································· 5
other 7 ········································································18
(Data taken from a 2007 alumni survey of graduates from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences)

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1 To get the full picture, e-mail us (ugradadmissions@
seas.harvard.edu) with any questions, and most
important, visit the campus.
2 A 2005 survey conducted by the National Associa-
tion of Colleges and Employers revealed that nine of
the 10 highest average starting salaries go to those
with degrees in engineering and applied sciences.
3 “Engineering and applied sciences are everywhere
and underlie everything, from commerce to quan-
tum physics, and connect every place, from Boston
to Bangladesh”—Venkatesh “Venky” Narayanamurti,
Dean of the Harvard School of Engineering and Ap-
plied Sciences.
4 A book widely discussed by engineering deans.
5 Steven Ballmer ’77 (Applied Math/Economics), chief
executive officer of Microsoft, successfully blended
technology with management.
6 Taken from the strategic vision document for engi-
neering and applied sciences.
7 Some alumni like to keep everyone guessing.

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»Banker, baker, cgi-maker

gary schermerhorn ’85 (Computer Sci- Given that surveys predict most individuals
ence), cfo-coo at Goldman Sachs Tech will have several careers during their work-
Division, paved a path that combined a ing lives, not all those who earn technical
foundational approach with a practical one. degrees will limit themselves to technical
“While I wrestled with philosophy or ab- fields—at least in the traditional sense.
stract computing theories, I was concerned joanne chang ’96 (Applied Math/
that students at other universities were Economics) went from consulting at
receiving a more practical, technical educa- McKinsey to being the pastry chef/owner
tion,” he says. “But I gained a much broader of Flour Bakery in Boston (famed for
perspective on technology. I can’t say that making its own pop tarts). ken keeler ab
it’s only the Harvard approach that has ’83 and phd ’90 (both in Applied Math)
made me this way, but I would be against switched from equations to comedy,
diluting the foundational approach to tech- becoming a writer and producer for The
nical learning to expand the practical.” Simpsons and Futurama.

danielle feinberg ’96 (Computer Sci-


ence), lead lighting artist at Pixar Anima-
tion Studios, found inspiration in class for
her future career.
“It was fall of 1994 in my junior year,”
seh recalls. “I was sitting in Professor
Joe Marks’s computer graphics class. He
showed a couple of the Pixar short films
one day, and I absolutely fell in love with
computer animation. It was like everything
I had ever tried to do, taken 10 million
levels up.”

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4
»Numbers of note

5:1faculty/student ratio
$37.5 million n sponsored rese i

400,000 square feet of existing dedicated classrooms, labs,


30 approximate percentage of our faculty members who hold joint appointments in oth
2/3 portion of the laboratory for integrated science and engineering
8, 9 academy

members of our faculty members who belong to the national academy of engineeri
of sciences (respectively); 4 are members of both
5,

1, 4 harvard college professorships held by our faculty; mcarthur found
guggenheim fellowship holders (respectively)
10 weeks in the undergraduate program for research in science
200,

170, 41 chapters of engineers without borders (including a group
in which students are working (respectively)
5 robot soccer players built and used by the harvard-mit team in a robocup “small
133

freshman seminars offered, with topics offered in 2006–2007 rang
science of sailing to superconductivity to freud to cyberspace in
400 dollars awarded in a video gaming competition sponsored by the harvard
70 percentage of engineering and applied sciences faculty members who
2 citation impact rank of harvard in the category of engineering and computer science
4.43

mean on a scale of 1-6 (1 being very negative and 6 being very positive)
about the harvard school of engineering and applied sciences
earch conducted by our faculty (as of the end of 2007)

and facilities at hseas

her departments or schools at harvard

(lise) that is underground

ing and to the national

dation ‘genius grant winners;

and engineering (prise) held each summer

from harvard); active ewb projects; countries

league” tournament

ging from a history of germs to the


court
interactive media group

agreed to serve as freshman advisers in 2006–2007

in a 2002 analysis by isi (for 1998–2002 data)

showing how alumni feel


Q&A
how long has harvard done what are the engineering
engineering? students like?
The Lawrence Scientific School, which Like other Harvard students: smart, deter-
housed the University’s first programs mined, dedicated, diverse (approximately
related to engineering and applied sciences, 35% of concentrators are female and 40%
was founded in 1847. are minorities or foreign nationals), and
enjoying broad interests. Hear it from
but don’t all the “real” engineers go them: “I am glad that I have friends with
to technical institutes? a wide variety of interests …”; “I knew I
That’s like saying all the “real” biology or would concentrate in engineering … [but]
history students go to Harvard. Moreover, I wanted to attend a college with an active
engineering is increasingly like one of music program.”
the liberal arts in the way it interacts with
other fields (and that assessment came what sort of research have
from an engineer). students done?
Past students have created bio-inspired
what distinguishes harvard’s machines, built a cycle-plane simulator,
academic programs in engineering? implemented wireless sensor networks, co-
In a word: Harvard. Undergraduates authored papers on quantum science and
who pursue engineering and applied technology, and investigated the role of ma-
sciences at Harvard are not enrolled in a terials and processes at the nanoscale that
separate school or college as they would regulate the earth’s environment. In short,
be in some other programs. Here, study- whatever your research passion, given the
ing engineering is only one aspect of a resources at Harvard, you can find a faculty
student’s experience. member who does it and the funding to go
along with it. For complete details see: www.
seas.harvard.edu/research/

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does an engineering degree at how can i get involved if i do not
harvard fully prepare students for concentrate in engineering?
graduate school and careers? Opportunities include extracurricular activi-
Past students have attended graduate school ties such as the Harvard College Computer
programs at leading universities (including Society (hcs) and the Harvard College
those with “technology” in their names) in Engineering Society (hces); competitions,
areas ranging from engineering to law to such as those available through the Harvard
business to medicine. Others have taken Computing Club (hc3); and campus-wide
jobs right after graduation with leading con- groups such as Women in Science at Har-
sulting, engineering, and business firms. vard-Radcliffe (wishr).

what is the size of the program? what does the future hold for
Data from 2006–2007: Undergraduates: ~ engineering at harvard?
300 concentrators (over 40% of students In the past decade, the Engineering and
are minorities, including Asian, or foreign Applied Sciences program has undergone a
nationals; 35% of students are women). spectacular renewal, hiring 40 new fac-
Graduate students: 346. Faculty members: ulty members and building a host of new
73 full-time and about 87 participants in all. facilities. “Continued rapid growth in key
areas of engineering and life sciences, in
particular, is not only vital for the competi-
tive position of the University … but also in
maximizing the return on our investment
in buildings and infrastructure—which will
bolster the health of the Faculty as a whole
…” (Faculty of the Arts and Sciences Dean’s
Annual Letter, 2006).

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1
»Learn more

“So–why would anyone


All undergraduates apply and are admitted
through Harvard College. Students do not
need to declare their intended concentra-

choose to attend Harvard


tion until the sophomore year.

as an engineer?
For more information about Harvard
College, financial aid, campus visits, and
how to apply:
harvard college office of
“Perhaps because Harvard has a thriving intellectual community admissions and financial aid
where people from all backgrounds can come together to discuss Agassiz House
10 Garden Street
issues ranging from politics to structure design. Cambridge, MA 02138
“Surrounding yourself with others who think as you do and (617) 495-1551
www.admissions.college.harvard.edu
dream as you do can only help you to grow in directions you www.harvard.edu
have already turned to on your own.
“To truly stretch the bounds of your mind requires interacting For more information about undergraduate
with people whose interests lie beyond your own and learning study in engineering and applied sciences
from them what you can.” at Harvard:
harvard school of
—Belle Koven ’06* engineering and applied sciences
Academic Office
Pierce Hall 110
Cambridge, MA 02138
(617) 495-2833
E-mail: ugradadmissions@seas.harvard.edu
www.seas.harvard.edu

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* Belle truly put the art into engineering: While at Harvard she served as a
stage manager for on-campus theater productions. She also found the time
to study abroad and to help others through MentorNet, an e-mentoring
program in science and engineering.

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Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

1
Harvard
School of Engineering
and Applied Sciences*
A brief guide† for prospective undergraduate students, their parents, and the just plain curious
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* Defined by our students and alumni as: “A thriving intellectual community.” “Rich and rigorous.” “Camaraderie mixed in with Newton’s laws,
and Kant mixed in with differential equations.” “An engineering island in a sea of liberal arts disciplines.” “Multidimensional.” “The best of
both worlds.”
† For more info, visit our website: www.seas.harvard.edu
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