Harvard University courses

Climate adaptation is critical to sustainability across social and geographic scales. Through this course, students learn the importance of climate adaptation, its costs and benefits, and how to develop an adaptation plan at whatever scale is needed and for a…

This course is about how to lift the veil of an insider's industry. Students learn how quantitative finance is applied in practice and utilized by the world's largest investment banks, asset management firms, hedge funds, pension plans, and insurance…

In this course, students gain familiarity with statistical tools used to summarize and describe the world around us and to test theories about how that world works. Understanding statistics and how they are used and misused is vital to assimilating…

Research projects in sustainability are complex and transcend the boundaries of conventional disciplines such as economics, international relations, and sociology. Sustainability issues affect and interact with monetary stability, industrial policy, and more;…

Harvard University presents "Leading for Workplace Well-Being and Organizational Health," an essential course in the Emerging/Needs Review category. This program offers a deep dive into strategies for fostering workplace well-being and enhancing…

This course treats human resources (HR) as a core strategic lever rather than an administrative function. We focus on aligning human capital strategy with organizational goals across the employee life cycle, including workforce planning, talent acquisition,…

Offered by Harvard University, "The United States and China: Opium War to the Present" delves into the complex historical and contemporary relationship between these two global powers. This course, categorized under Emerging / Needs Review, examines pivotal…

Harvard University presents Human Endocrine Physiology, an in-depth course in the Emerging/Needs Review category. This academic offering explores the intricate workings of the endocrine system, covering hormone regulation, glandular functions, and their…

How would you choose the ideal worker out of 400 applicants? Is it possible to predict employee motivation? Are virtual teams more effective than in-person teams? Questions like these can be answered through the help of industrial and organizational (I/O)…

This course introduces students to the demands and conventions of academic reading and writing. It focuses on analyzing texts, building effective arguments, and using evidence and secondary source material. Instruction on the stages of the writing process,…

What happens to the human brain and behavior when we are exposed to isolated, confined, and extreme environments? Examples include spaceflight; high altitude flights or mountaineering; submersed or underwater activities; and polar, desert, or jungle…

This course focuses on lifestyle medicine, which is the science and application of healthy lifestyles as interventions for the prevention and treatment of lifestyle-related diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, obesity, some neurological…

This course embarks on an interdisciplinary exploration of how fantasy literature both draws from, and transforms, local cultural traditions. By engaging with canonical texts such as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and Patrick Rothfuss's The Name of…

This dramatic arts course explores the rehearsal and performance of theatrical monologues and stories. The ability to work on a monologue or a personal story is a foundational skill for all performers. We explore various techniques to allow greater emotional,…

This course serves as foundational preparation for Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) sustainability and global development practice capstone track candidates, enabling them to conceptualize, structure, and propose a comprehensive plan for their capstone project in…

This course is the final requirement for candidates in the Master of Liberal Arts, biology or biotechnology programs pursuing advanced training in biomedical research. Building on the foundation laid in BIOS E-597 , students complete and submit a systematic…

Harvard University's News Reporting and Writing course offers an in-depth exploration of journalistic practices within the Emerging/Needs Review category. Designed for aspiring reporters, this program covers essential techniques for gathering, analyzing, and…

How can we harness the power of rewards to improve our mental health and well-being? Is there a fine line between rewards that are beneficial and those that are harmful to our lives? This course examines the complex world of rewards. We explore different…

This course integrates clinical psychology and cognitive neuroscience to explore the biological underpinnings of mental illness. We adopt a systems-level approach, examining the relationship between the function and dysfunction of specific brain circuits and…

Deterrence is the use of threats to convince an adversary from taking an action and is part of a larger concept of coercion. Throughout history, deterrence has been used by people and states to manage conflict. The formal development of deterrence theory came…

We often think of slavery as being a dark chapter in our past, but this is a tragic oversimplification. What defines slavery in the modern world, and what are the moral, political, and social implications of its continued existence? As we explore its…

Case studies are a cornerstone of sustainability and global development scholarship and practice, grounding abstract theories and concepts in real-world examples. This course familiarizes students with the case study model and provides guidance in producing a…

The field of systems biology has emerged as a result of two revolutions. The first is decades of progress in molecular biology and biochemistry which have identified many of the molecules and chemical reactions needed for life. The second is the 'omics…

Marketing has become digital marketing; with digital now accounting for 75 percent of all advertising spend, it is the primary source of profit at companies like Amazon. Additionally, agentic artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the way we execute…

All museums share responsibility for preserving and interpreting our cultural and natural heritage for the benefit of the public and society. However, museums are more than the collections they house and the exhibits and programs they present. Each museum is…

This course teaches the mathematics needed to understand how artificial intelligence (AI) works under the hood. As machine learning becomes more ubiquitous and the software libraries easier to use, developers may become unaware of the underlying design…

The last one hundred years of east central European history represents a fascinating case for students of comparative politics interested in political transitions and regime changes, as well as social and economic transformations and their political…

The modern concept of sustainable development is said to have begun in 1972 with the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, although the concept of sustainability has been part of ancient and native cultures across the globe throughout history.…

Among the first lessons of any introductory writing workshop is the importance of cultivating authority on the page; of not only charming your readers, but making them trust you. What to do, then, with our culture's seemingly boundless appetite for stories…

This course introduces students to the power of storytelling as a tool for sustainability communication. Whether they work in policy, business, community engagement, or research, students learn how to translate complex environmental challenges into narratives…

We often say to each other today that our society has become incapable of civil debate. But perhaps this is not solely because of our increasing political and cultural polarization, but because we have forgotten the ways that formal debate and oratory were…

Murder mysteries have become among the most popular realms of commercial fiction, with an insatiable demand for new titles each year among the millions of the genre's loyal devotees. This course guides students in conceiving their own murder mystery, from…

The course builds on the foundation of PSYC E-597f to focus on transforming proposals into actionable prototypes that enhance resilience, health, and well-being. Students explore the practical application of mindfulness and positive psychology principles in…

Students are introduced to foundational concepts and advanced techniques in large language models (LLMs) to understand the pivotal role of LLMs in natural language processing (NLP). The course covers a range of topics, including transformer architecture, and…

This experimental laboratory course is intended to complement CHEM E-27 (offered previously) and CHEM E-27x . Practical applications of the concepts learned in lecture, such as chirality, enzyme catalysis, and pharmacology, are expanded upon in the…

What gives rise to democracy? What leads it to die? This course has a broad comparative and global sweep, seeking to answer these questions by analyzing the development of democracy in Europe, the United States, and Latin America. The course introduces…

This experimental laboratory course is intended to complement CHEM E-27 (offered previously) and CHEM E-27x . Practical applications of the concepts learned in lecture, such as chirality, enzyme catalysis, and pharmacology, are expanded upon in the…

This advanced workshop is for students who want to delve deeper into an aspect of flash fiction by experimenting with unusual structures. We explore the subgenre of flash fiction known as hermit crab flash, which borrows a familiar form of text as a narrative…

Leadership takes many forms, and the challenges that the inexperienced new manager and highly tasked frontline manager faces can be considered significant to the individuals. Topics include communication, motivation, perception, personality, difficult…

What is populism and how much of a threat is it to democracy? The recent rise of authoritarian-populism, across both long-established and developing democracies, has posed new challenges for good governance. This course explores the conditions for the rise of…

This course sets the foundation for academically strong consulting capstones starting with client identification. It is mandatory for candidates in the Master of Liberal Arts, sustainability , who wish to enroll in ENVR E-599a in the following semester. The…

This course establishes a strong foundation for academically rigorous capstones. It is mandatory for candidates in the Master of Liberal Arts, global development practice, who wish to register for DEVP S-599 in the upcoming summer term. In this course,…

In this course, students produce the capstone project that they planned in JOUR E-597 . We focus on workshopping drafts of the projects, which students revise and edit with the advice of the instructor and peers. The capstone also features guest speakers,…

In this course, students gain familiarity with statistical tools used to summarize and describe the world around us and to test theories about how that world works. Understanding statistics and how they are used and misused is vital to assimilating…

This course explores data modeling methodologies with the goal of understanding how to choose, apply, and interpret appropriate statistical designs and analyses for practical data problems. Topics covered include understanding the relationships in the data,…

This tutorial helps students develop an academically strong thesis proposal. During the semester, they map critical issues of project design such as scope, background, methodology, and expected outcomes. Students are encouraged to contact their research…

Harvard University's Capstone: Developing the Manuscript: Fiction or Nonfiction course offers advanced guidance for emerging writers refining their manuscripts. This professional development opportunity in the Emerging/Needs Review category provides tailored…

This proseminar introduces students to basic behavioral science research methods in psychology and anthropology. It teaches them how to read and evaluate research papers and translate their ideas into viable research projects. Topics include library and…

Cloud and generative artificial intelligence (AI) represent a pivotal convergence of AI technologies and cloud-hosted services, effectively addressing the unique challenges inherent in these rapidly evolving fields. In cloud computing, security architectures…

Since the origins of our species some 300,000 years ago, humans have spread globally, including to some of Earth's most extreme environments: mountains miles above sea level, polar regions, and remote islands. Through biological and sociocultural adaptations,…