Get Involved
Back to Index
Get Involved
Top Summer Opportunities

March will come around and you’ll hear it. The whispers echoing around Annenberg. Around your entryway. In your dorm room. It’s inescapable: “What are your summer plans?” People FREAK THE F*CK OUT, and often unnecessarily so. Here are some suggestions.

Do Research

If you perform particularly well in a class or become total besties with your seminar professor or are pre-med, don’t be afraid to ask around for research opportunities, both on campus and back home. While spots are occasionally saved for upperclassmen, lucky freshmen can snag some pretty cool research jobs every summer, from embarking on archaeological digs to proposing new economic models for developing countries. You know. Typical Harvard stuff.

Find a Start-Up

You want “real-world experience?” Ugh. FINE. Here’s the deal: Do some research into burgeoning start-ups around the whole damn US of A. Send out emails that go something like this: “Hi! I’m (insert name)! I’m a Harvard freshman and I love your company and you and puppies and America and please let me intern for you.” One of them will bite. Trust us. You probably won’t get paid. But you’ll get the “experience” you long for. You know. Making copies. Printing shit. Delivering coffee. Pro tip: Go to the start-up career in February—some app developers will be there scouting for enthusiastic freshmen who look like they can make a mean cappuccino.

Stay Home

Freshman year is long. It’s tough. It’s messy and memorable and has good moments and bad ones and IT’S JUST A LOT OKAY. But seriously. Nobody gives a shit what you do after freshmen summer except for that one crazy kid in your Econ section. So go home and enjoy yourself. Relax. Get swole. Lifeguard. Tutor. Catch up with friends. Travel.

Next article
Rheede Erasmus,  Editor in Chief
rheede.erasmus@hsa.net
Brammy Rajakumar, Publishing Director
brammy.rajakumar@hsa.net
Hannah Phan, Studio 67 Managing Director
hannah.phan@hsa.net
The Unofficial Guide to Harvard Copyright © 2020 by Harvard Student Agencies, Inc., Burke-McCoy Hall, 67 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge, MA 02138. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from Harvard Student Agencies, Inc. Photographs reproduced with permission from Austin Eder, Ronia Hurwitz, Lance Katigbak, Mark Kelsey, Cindy Niu, Winnie Wu, and Christina Yee. Printed in Canada by Friesens Corp. The Harvard name and/or VERITAS shield are trademarks of the President and Fellows of Harvard College and are used by permission of Harvard University. LEGAL DISCLAIMER. Although every effort was made to ensure that the following information was correct at the time of going to press, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any part for any loss or damage caused by errors, omissions, or any potential travel disruption due to labor or financial difficulty, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause. ADVERTISING DISCLAIMER. All advertisements appearing in Unofficial Publications are sold by an independent agency not affiliated with the editorial production of the guides. Advertisers are never given preferential treatment, and the guides are researched, written, and published independent of advertising. Advertisements do not imply endorsement of products or services by Unofficial Guides, and Unofficial Publications does not vouch for the accuracy of information provided in advertisements. If you are interested in purchasing advertising space in an HSA publication, contact: Studio 67, 67 Mount Auburn St., Cambridge, MA 02138, USA, or studio67.hsa.net.