Systems Engineering Degree Requirements

• 1 web principles course
• 1 cloud communications course
• 1 cloud computing course
• 1 security and risk management course
• 1 database management course
• 1 IT management course (on campus; see on-campus experience)
• 1 business analytics course
• 3 systems engineering electives

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• CSCI 597C System engineering precapstone
• CSCI 599C System engineering capstone

You enroll in the precapstone and capstone courses in back-to-back semesters and in your final academic year. The capstone must be taken as your sole remaining degree requirement.

Precapstone Overview

The precapstone prepares students to explore interdisciplinary research topics from a variety of industries and areas. Through workshops and collaborating with experts from different disciplines, students identify research topics, apply appropriate systems engineering methods, and use systems thinking to advance innovative solutions. Students receive guidance and advice to work effectively in teams, refine project proposals, and build the domain knowledge necessary in their selected area. By the end of the course, each team submits a detailed capstone proposal, including project rationale, methods, and expected outcomes, which they intend to execute during the capstone, CSCI 599C.

Capstone Overview

After the precapstone, you enroll in the online capstone, CSCI 599C Systems Engineering Capstone.

The capstone is where students execute their team-based capstone project proposal from CSCI 597C. It gives students the opportunity to collaborate on a complex systems engineering topic using their skills. At the completion of the capstone, students are able to demonstrate their ability to think critically about systems, communicate with diverse audiences, and advance innovation in ways that benefit society.

Sample Capstone Topics:

1. Renewable Energy Integration for Smart Grids
   • Objective: Develop a system to integrate renewable energy sources into an existing smart grid infrastructure.
2. Healthcare System Optimization
   • Objective: Enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of a healthcare delivery system using systems engineering methodologies.
3. Supply Chain Management System for E-commerce
   • Objective: Design a robust and efficient supply chain management system.

You can choose to concentrate your degree studies in a specific area to earn a certificate along the way.

Graduate Certificates:

• Back-end Web Development
• Cybersecurity
• Data Analytics

To meet the on-campus requirement, you choose the Standard on-campus option and study with us in the summer. You can easily request an I-20 for the F-1 student visa for Harvard Summer School’s 3-week session. For more details, see International Student Study Options for important visa information.

Come to Cambridge for Convocation (fall) to celebrate your hard-earned admission, Harvard career fairs offered throughout the year, HES alumni networking events (here at Harvard and around the world), and, of course, Harvard University Commencement (May).

• Prior to enrolling in any degree-applicable courses, you must possess a 4-year regionally accredited US bachelor’s degree or its foreign equivalent. Foreign bachelor’s degrees must be evaluated for equivalency.
• If English is your second language, you’ll need to prove English proficiency before registering for a course. We have multiple proficiency options.

To begin the admission process, you simply register — no application required — for the following two, four-credit, graduate-level degree courses (available online).

These prerequisite courses count toward your degree once you’re admitted; they are not additional courses. They are investments in your studies and help ensure success in the program.

• 1 cloud communications course
• 1 database management course

The two courses don’t need to be taken in a particular order or in the same semester, but each course must be completed with a grade of B or higher, without letting your overall Harvard cumulative GPA dip below 3.0.

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During the semester of your second degree course, submit the official application to the program.

Don’t delay! You must prioritize the two degree courses for admission and apply before completing subsequent courses. By doing so, you’ll:

• Avoid the loss of credit due to expired course work or changes to admission and degree requirements.
• Ensure your enrollment in critical and timely degree-candidate-only courses.
• Avoid the delayed application fee.
• Gain access to exclusive benefits.

Eligible students who submit a complete and timely application will have 10 more courses after admission to earn the degree. Applicants can register for courses in the upcoming semester before they receive their grades and while they await their admission decision.

Prospective ALM students can expect acceptance into the program by meeting all the eligibility and academic requirements detailed on this page, submitting a complete application, and having no academic standing or conduct concerns.

GPA. You need to earn a B or higher in each of the two degree courses required for admission and a B– or higher in each of the subsequent courses. In addition, your cumulative GPA cannot dip below 3.0.

Withdrawal Grades. You are allowed to receive two withdrawal (WD) grades without them affecting your GPA. Any additional WD grades count as zero in your cumulative GPA. See Academic Standing.

Repeat Courses. We advise you to review the ALM program’s strict policies about repeating courses. Generally speaking, you may not repeat a course to improve your GPA or to fulfill a degree requirement (if the minimum grade was not initially achieved). Nor can you repeat a course for graduate credit that you’ve previously completed at Harvard Extension School or Harvard Summer School at the undergraduate level.

Courses over five years old at the point of admission will not count toward the degree.

Further, you have five years to complete your degree requirements. The five-year timeline begins at the end of the term in which you complete any two degree-applicable courses, regardless of whether or not you have been admitted to a degree program.

Potential degree candidates must plan accordingly and submit their applications to comply with the five-year course expiration policy or they risk losing degree credit for completed course work. Additionally, admission eligibility will be jeopardized if, at the point of application to the program, the five-year degree completion policy cannot be satisfied (i.e., too many courses to complete in the time remaining).

When you have fulfilled all degree requirements, you will earn your Harvard University degree: Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in Extension Studies, Field: Systems Engineering. Degrees are awarded in November, February, and May, with the annual Harvard Commencement ceremony in May.

When you become an officially admitted degree candidate, you have access to a rich variety of exclusive benefits to support your academic journey. To learn more, visit degree candidate academic opportunities and privileges.