This is an archive. See the current website at www.ssp.harvard.edu.
Summer Seminars
Summer Seminars are limited-enrollment courses inspired by Harvard's renowned Freshman Seminars, which for many years have provided entering Harvard freshmen with an intense academic experience of the highest level. These seminars are listed with the appropriate departments and are indicated in the course list by the title Summer Seminar. Their course numbers usually are a double-digit number followed by a letter.
Enrolling a maximum of 15 students, Summer Seminars are offered over a wide range of subject areas, including the life sciences, social sciences, and humanities. Lectures and talks by visiting experts are planned, and, in varying ways, each seminar emphasizes small-group instruction, namely, close attention to writing, an expanded opportunity for classroom discussion, and the opportunity to do independent research under the direction of a senior member of the Harvard faculty. Peer study groups outside of class are encouraged, as are in-class presentations by students; thus, the Summer Seminar provides ample opportunity for students not only to shape their own course of study but also to begin to learn by teaching others. The approach is a dynamic and proactive one that gives students a major role in determining the focus and methodology of their own research. This multidimensional, student-centered approach to learning has been a cornerstone of the Harvard freshman experience since 1963, and it is an education model that has been emulated at universities all over the world.
Summer Seminars are open to SSP juniors and seniors, and also to college undergraduates. Because enrollment in Summer Seminars is limited and courses fill on a first-come, first-served basis, early application and early registration are advised.
Summer Seminar Courses
Please note that the seminars listed here are just a sampling. A complete list of Summer Seminars will be available at registration.
- BIOL S-23a Metabolism and Physiology
- CELT S-37h Poets and Poetry in the Celtic Literary Tradition
- ENGL S-36z Utopia and Anti-Utopia
- ENGL S-37u Bob Dylan: The Lyrics in their Literary, Cultural, and Musical Contexts
- EXPO S-40 Summer Seminar--Gothic Fiction
- HIST S-1514 Summer Seminar--Nationalism in Modern Western Europe
- HARC S-34g Saint Peter's and the Vatican from Antiquity to the Baroque
- MATH S-21u Calculating Pi
- NELC S-38g Lost Languages and Decipherment
- PSYC S-23d Behaviorism and Behavior Modification
- SOCI S-47e Politics of Love and Friendship: The Sources of Human Affiliation in the Family, Society, and State
Top of page
