Research course

Electrical Engineering

Institution
Harvard University
Qualifications
PhD

Entry requirements

Students with bachelor’s degrees in the natural sciences, mathematics, or engineering are invited to apply for admission.

Through the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, prospective students apply for doctoral degree study at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). These programs lie at the interfaces of engineering, the applied sciences (from biology to physics), and technology.

When applying, select “Engineering and Applied Sciences” as your program choice and your degree and area of interest in the Area of Study menu. You must complete the Supplemental SEAS Application Form as part of the online application process. Please read the form carefully and indicate your specific interests only in the area to which you are applying.

Months of entry

August

Course content

"Among the many things that make graduate study at SEAS uniquely rewarding, two stand out: our world-class faculty; and the fact that SEAS is part of the larger Harvard community. Our students have limitless opportunities for fruitful collaboration with colleagues from preeminent programs in the sciences, and world-class schools of medicine, business, law, government, design, and public health."

-Dean Frank Doyle

John A. Paulson Dean, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; John A. & Elizabeth S. Armstrong Professor of Engineering & Applied Sciences

Electrical Engineering (EE) covers a range of research areas from devices (such as lasers and robotics) to systems (such as computer architecture and the human brain). The emphasis on practice infused with fundamental science and mathematics offers ample research opportunities, both theoretical and experimental, at the forefront of the field and its interdisciplinary applications.

EE is closely tied with Harvard's efforts in applied mathematics, applied physics, computer science, and bioengineering.

Interdisciplinary research efforts include:

  • Optimal NMR spectroscopy using quantum control
  • Signal processing for fast nanopore DNA sequencing
  • Ultrafast silicon transceivers design using stochastic resonance
  • Casimir force generation using MEMS devices
  • Quantum circuits design

Please see the Faculty list for particular research interests.

Fees and funding

5 years’ funding is guaranteed to all Harvard GSAS PhD students.

Applicants who are British citizens, normally resident in the UK and who are, or will be, graduates of a British university, are welcome to submit an additional application for a Kennedy Scholarship and/or a Frank Knox Fellowship.

An application for either award is separate from and totally independent of an application to a particular programme. Frank Knox Fellowship funding is advantageous in the taught-master phase of a doctorate. Both awards offer significant social and networking benefits.

Qualification, course duration and attendance options

  • PhD
    full time
    60 months
    • Campus-based learningis available for this qualification

Most Harvard PhDs begin with a two-year taught master.

Course contact details

Name
SEAS Admissions
Email
admissions@seas.harvard.edu
Phone
001 617 496 6100