Academic Career Guide: Visiting Scholar at Harvard

Name: Academic Career Guide: Visiting Scholar at Harvard
Rating: 4.8 (24 reviews)

Based on instructor's successful path: from a student to tenured faculty

Last updated 9/2022

English

What you'll learn

Students: motivation and study habits
Ph.D. candidates: open a new research field
Postdocs: enter new areas of science without a failure
Junior Faculty: succeed without own group, lab space and funding
Examples: interdisciplinary approach, ideal and real research problems, science of simplicity
How to avoid mistakes in different stages of academic career
Harvard visiting scholar program
Unconventional ideas, critical thoughts, personal views

8 sections • 28 lectures • 1h 44m total length

Introduction3:08
Explore a scientific career guide from a visiting scholar at Harvard, detailing the path from student to tenured faculty and strategies to boost your curriculum vitae and opportunities.

General information4:44
Introduction text
Example: Cover letter to host, academic CV4:35
Learn to craft a concise cover letter to a Harvard host for a visiting scholar position, assemble a european-style academic cv, and secure funding and visa support.
After arrival at Harvard3:43
Explore Harvard's comprehensive onboarding for visiting scholars, from obtaining your Harvard Key, ID card, and research appointment to lab training, safety, and access to seminars, resources, and campus tours.
Survival guide 012:21
unpack a Harvard survival guide for visiting scholars, outlining PI expectations, letters of recommendation, collaborative lab culture, weekly meetings, and how intellectual, practical, and financial contributions drive high impact publications.
Survival guide 022:14
Attend conferences, present papers, build cv, access lab budgets and equipment, prioritize safety and waste management, collaborate with lab mates, and publish clear, data-driven research stories.
Survival Guide 033:52
Extracurricular activities1:25
Embark on a visiting scholar experience at Harvard by joining diverse clubs and activities that cultivate talents, explore interests, and connect with like-minded peers across academic and cultural groups.
Life after Harvard1:48

Motivation, achievements, awards 013:49
Focus on favorite subjects to build motivation for a future career. Develop study habits, leverage group work, and pursue early awards to strengthen your university applications.
Motivation, achievements, awards 024:05
Motivation, achievements, awards 034:25
Propel motivation and a high study ethic to drive a student toward national and international success, mastering lab experiments, data analysis, and adapting to new environments through independent research.
Example: ideal and real research problem5:31
Analyze ideal versus real research problems in a transistor DNA sensor, where DNA charges alter resistance, water and ions influence signals, and an insulating monolayer controls leakage and sensitivity.

Choosing a Ph.D. topic4:16
Approaching research 015:07
Approaching research 022:54
PhD students choose between continuing a topic and exploring a new field, balancing graduation requirements with discoveries and high impact publications.
Approaching research 033:08
Apply hypothesis testing to explore relationships between variables with empirical data, including optical properties of nanorods. Design experiments, prepare conditions, record data, and analyze results with simple setups and LabVIEW.
Example: unexpected results5:10
Explore how catalysts lower energy barriers to speed reactions and how hydrogen peroxide experiments reveal saturation and unexpected surface effects. Learn publishing in two parts with hypotheses and follow-up data.

Entereing new areas of science 14:09
Navigate entering new areas of science by embracing flexible schedules, entrepreneurial mindset, and proactive collaboration; leverage postdoc opportunities, fellowships, and international labs to advance groundbreaking research.
Entereing new areas of science 23:52
Learn how to navigate entering new areas of science by leveraging literature searches, contacting authors, and building collaborative experimental setups, while assessing lab leadership and publication strategies for postdocs.
Entereing new areas of science 34:36
Entereing new areas of science 44:50
Switch to a new project after six months if it doesn't work, and publish to build a strong postdoc profile through collaborations, authorship, citations, and a high QS index.
Example: science of simplicity4:00

Research, teaching and funding4:52
Interdisciplinary approach1:44
Break down disciplinary silos to solve complex problems and drive innovations. Cultivate interdisciplinarity as a habit of mind by combining physics, photonics, chemistry, mechanics, electronics, biology, and nanomaterials dimensions.
Example: interdisciplinary approach4:01
Explore how an interdisciplinary approach blends robotics, microfluidics, and biomedical scientists to solve problems that one discipline cannot. Implement combined robotics and microfluidic expertise with biocompatible structures to generate drops and capsules for targeted drug delivery.

It is desirable to have experience in engineering or applied science
It is expected that the course audience is familiar with fundamentals of scientific research and academic publishing
Please note: this course does not provide detailed guide how to publish academic papers
Please note: this course does not discuss preparation and acceptance to degree programs at Harvard

The course introduces requirements for a visiting scholar program at Harvard University, followed by the scientific career guide based on a personal story of instructor “from a student to tenured professor”.

Harvard University is ranked #1 in Best Global Universities. We all know how difficult it is to join Harvard. Being at Harvard is a great chance to work with the brightest, most intellectual and talented people.

Harvard will make a big difference in how people see your CV. Another unique thing about Harvard is being able to say to your colleagues, friends, and family that “you went to Harvard.”

Other people consider Harvard a great place to be inspired for significant achievements in life. For example, Microsoft and Facebook have started at Harvard dorms.

However, do not commit to a place based on the brand name alone. In life, everything depends on the shift that must happen to you. Your discoveries, career opportunities, and success depend only on your hard work ethic, high motivation, and methodology.

The course instructor has studied and worked in many leading institutions worldwide, including the University of Toronto, Max Planck Institute, Princeton University, Technical University of Munich, and Harvard University. To date, he has co-authored 50 academic papers, which generated more than 5000 citations. He is a pioneer in several research fields and has received multiple international awards. In addition, he has attracted more than 1 Million Dollars in research grants.

Bachelor and master students interested to become leaders in science and technology
Ph.D. candidates: how to choose a research topic
Postdocs: how to enter new areas of science without failure
Junior faculty: ideas to succeed without own group, lab space or funding
Junior scientists: how to avoid mistakes in academic career