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, and 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.
SSP juniors and seniors, and college undergraduates are given priority to enroll in Summer Seminars. Because enrollment in Summer Seminars is limited and courses fill on a first-come, first-served basis, early application and early registration are advised.
Please note that the seminars listed here are just a sampling. This list will continue to be updated.
Eight-Week Session
- ENGL S-36z Summer Seminar—Utopia and Anti-Utopia
- ENGL S-37u Summer Seminar—Bob Dylan: The Lyrics in their Literary, Cultural, and Musical Contexts
- HARC S-34g Summer Seminar—Saint Peter’s and the Vatican from Antiquity to the Baroque
Short Session I
- HIST S-44i Summer Seminar—The Golden Age of Piracy
- HIST S-1572 Summer Seminar—The Holocaust in History, Literature, and Film, Section 1
- SOCI S-188 Summer Seminar—Theories of Globalization and Development
Short Session II
- HIST S-1572 Summer Seminar—The Holocaust in History, Literature, and Film, Section 2
- PSYC S-25x Summer Seminar—The Meaning of Madness