Exploring Academic Pathways
Exploring Academic Pathways
Your curricular choices shape what you learn and where your academic journey takes you.
Even before you arrive on campus, you'll have the opportunity to explore different disciplines, preview gateway courses, and receive support through your academic advising network.
Enter your first year with an open mind: try courses in a field you've never studied before, follow a question across disciplines, and discover what resonates with you.
Academic Advising
When you begin at Harvard College, you are supported by an advising network that includes a Resident Dean of First-Year Students, a Proctor, and a Peer Advising Fellow (PAF). Your first-year advising network will help you transition to college academics, assist you in navigating Harvard's resources and in exploring curricular and co-curricular opportunities, and help you plan for your choice of concentration.
Virtual Drop-in Advising
Have questions after attending Building Your Harvard Education, reviewing Summer Orientation to Academics at Harvard, or connecting with faculty and departments? First-Year Academics staff are available for 15-minute virtual drop-in appointments to help you think through any questions that remain – and, if needed, connect you with the people best positioned to answer them – as you prepare for course registration.
Academic Webinars
To help you thoughtfully evaluate your course selection, department and programs across the college offer a series of virtual academic webinars. These webinars will address math placement, pre-med planning, Humanities 10, First-Year Seminars, SEAS (School of Engineering and Applied Sciences), and how to think about the process of choosing a concentration and a career.
Recordings will be provided following each webinar for students to review at their convenience.
LPS A Course Information Session
June 29, 2026
Life and Physical Sciences A (LPS A) is an introductory science course that prepares students who are interested in concentrating in Physical or Life Sciences or in applying to medical school.
First-Year Seminar Information Session
August 3 at 11:00 AM
A First-Year Seminar is one of the Harvard gems you'll enjoy in your first-year. Join this webinar to learn why you should enroll in at least one (if not two) First-Year Seminars.
Hum10 Informational Session
August 4 at 11:00 AM
As the Arts & Humanities Division's introduction to the study of the humanities, Humanities 10 offers a wide-ranging, yearlong conversation about literature, art, and philosophy; it also fulfills the Expository Writing requirement. Find out more about Hum10 and how to apply during one of our two webinars.
Making Sense of Your Math Placement Score
August 4 at 12:00 PM
Start your math journey on the right foot and make informed decisions about your course selection by understanding what information your placement exam is communicating and what to expect from the upcoming skill check. At the end of the session there will be an opportunity to ask questions.
SEAS Webinar and Q&A Session
August 4 at 1:30 PM
Learn about the Applied Math (AM) and Computer Science (CS) concentrations, and all four tracks of the Engineering concentration (Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Environmental Science & Engineering and Mechanical Engineering), receive general information, and have your questions answered live during this session.
Science or Humanities — Do I Have to Choose?
August 5 at 2:00 PM
Here's the good news: you don't have to choose. In this session you'll talk with faculty whose teaching and research draw on methods from the sciences, the social sciences, and the humanities. You'll also learn about concentrations where you can study an area of science, become competent in an area of engineering, or take pre-med courses for credit, while asking big questions about how science and medicine interact with ethics, politics, religion, and more.
Hum10 Informational Session
August 5 at 4:00 PM
As the Arts & Humanities Division's introduction to the study of the humanities, Humanities 10 offers a wide-ranging, yearlong conversation about literature, art, and philosophy; it also fulfills the Expository Writing requirement. Find out more about Hum10 and how to apply during one of our two webinars.
History at Harvard
August 6 at 12:00 PM
Interested in history as a potential concentration or secondary? Join us to learn about course offerings, advising, and opportunities in the History Department. There will be plenty of time for questions.
Beyond the Requirement: Finding Your Language at Harvard
August 6 at 1:00 PM
Harvard offers instruction in over 80 languages, so where should you start? Join the Harvard Language Center and language department faculty to discover how language study can help shape your Harvard experience. We’ll review the language requirement and the language citation, offer a taste of language course offerings, and preview this year’s Language Center programming. We’ll also share how learning a language can open doors to study opportunities in the community, in your future career, and abroad. Come with your questions!
Deciding Between Math 19a, 21, 22, 55 or APMTH 22a
August 6 at 4:00 PM
Learn more about and ask questions about the Math 19a, 21, 22, 55 and Applied Math 22a courses. The webinar will start with a description of these courses and then continue until all participant questions and concerns about taking these courses are answered.
Exploring Sociology
August 7 at 12:00 PM
Are you interested in the social sciences? Join us for an info session to learn more about Sociology-- what it is, why we're passionate about it, and how sociology can address today’s most pressing social issues. We'll go over Fall 2026 courses that will help you explore the discipline, and you'll have a chance to talk with current students about their experiences and what drew them to the field.
Preparing for Medical School and Other Health Pathways for First-Year Students
Available early August
In this asynchronous recorded webinar, science faculty and pre-health advisors will discuss which courses meet premed/pre-health requirements as well as helpful resources for students considering a career in the health professions (including medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine, etc). Students are encouraged to bring any resulting questions to our August virtual Q&As.
Premed/Pre-Health Course Registration Q&A for First-Years
August 10 at 1:00 PM
Meet the MCS premed/pre-health advisors and the Pre-Health Peer Advising Fellows. Bring whatever questions you have about courses and being premed/pre-health at Harvard.
Premed/Pre-Health Course Question Center with the Pre-Health PAFs
August 11 at 11:00 AM
Meet the Pre-Health PAFs (Pre-Health Peer Advising Fellows) and ask any questions, including how these PAFs have built their time at Harvard (summers, courses, extracurriculars, paths to medical school, etc.), how to use MCS premed/pre-health resources, course questions, and more.
Language and Science Placement Exams
If you are interested in taking chemistry or life sciences courses, in your first year or beyond, it is important to take the Science Placement Exam. The result will provide the most accurate recommendation of where to start. You should also take a placement exam in any language with which you have prior experience and intend to study at Harvard.
- Language: Depending on the language, these exams range in length from 30 minutes to 3 hours. Exams in four languages (French, German, Italian, and Spanish) are available on the Harvard Placement Exam platform. All other language exams are administered by the individual language departments.
- Science: This exam consists of two 45-minute separate parts that will focus on the basic concepts of chemistry or biology. It is 90 minutes total in length.
Concentration Exploration
In your first year, you’ll explore disciplines widely—while also starting to narrow your concentration options. With more than 3,700 courses in 50+ undergraduate fields of study at Harvard, there are a wide range of possibilities. You can learn more about each concentration, including recommended gateway courses, through the Advising Programs Office.
Gateway courses are introductory classes offered within each academic department that are intended to acclimate students to the respective concentration. Gateway courses are an excellent way to intentionally explore an academic area of interest. If you have considered a particular concentration, taking a gateway course in this area is the best way to determine whether the subject matter is a good fit for you.