1.  Register for S996, submit petition, and once approved complete enrollment into the course by clicking enroll in my.harvard.edu. 

2.  Match with an internship site.   

3.  Complete the Field Experience Contract form (https://tiny.cc/fieldexperience).  

4.  Once you have successfully completed and submitted the contract form, it will generate: 

• An automatic email to you with personalized instructions letting you know a contract has been created 
• An email to you from Adobe Sign adobesign@adobesign.com to complete and sign the contract. You must complete your portion of the contract before it will be automatically sent to your supervising practitioner and the faculty advisor, Mary Grassa O’Neill. 

5.  After you complete and sign the contract, it will be sent to your supervising practitioner for their signature. 

6.  After the supervising practitioner signs, the contract will be emailed automatically to course instructor(s) for the final signature by Mary Grassa O’Neill. 

7.  After Mary signs, you will receive an email from Adobe Sign with a link to access and download the finalized contract for your records. The contract then will be filed automatically for course records as well. This contract is a legal document that is part of your permanent record and is subject to review by the state.   

*A new contract needs to be created for each new term, even if you are remaining at the same site. 

1.  Register for S997, submit petition, and once approved complete enrollment into the course by clicking enroll in my.harvard.edu.  

2.  Match with an internship site.  Additional details are available on the S997 Canvas page.  

3.  Complete the Field Experience Contract form (https://tiny.cc/fieldexperience). The form will ask you to provide information about your site, your supervising practitioner, and your faculty advisor. If you need support identifying your faculty advisor, please view these instructions.

4.  Once you have successfully completed and submitted the contract form, it will generate:  

- An automatic email to you with personalized instructions letting you know a contract has been created  

- An email to you from Adobe Sign adobesign@adobesign.com to complete and sign the contract. You must complete your portion of the contract before it will be automatically sent to your supervising practitioner and your faculty advisor.

5.  After you complete and sign the contract, it will be sent to your supervising practitioner for their signature.   

6.  After the supervising practitioner signs, the contract will be emailed automatically to your faculty advisor for the final signature.  Please be sure to email your faculty advisor directly ahead of time to let them know you have registered for S997 and they will receive your learning contract to sign. 

7.  After your faculty advisor signs, you will receive an email from Adobe Sign with a link to access and download the finalized contract for your records. The contract then will be sent automatically to the teaching team and filed for course records. This contract is a legal document that is part of your permanent record and is subject to review by the state.  

Important Notes: 

• *A new contract needs to be created for each new term, even if you are remaining at the same site.
• Students studying in the U.S. on an F-1 visa should check in with the Harvard International Office to ensure they have proper work authorization before beginning work (paid or unpaid) at any off-campus or non-Harvard affiliated sites. Students studying on a J-1 visa should also check-in with their sponsoring organization to ensure they have proper work authorization before beginning on-campus or off-campus work. 

Questions? Feel free to contact mary_oneill@gse.harvard.edu. 

1.  Register for S998, submit petition, and once approved complete enrollment into the course by clicking enroll in my.harvard.edu. 

2.  Match with a fellowship site.   

3.  Complete the Field Experience Contract form (https://tiny.cc/fieldexperience)  

4.  Once you have successfully completed and submitted the contract form, it will generate: 

• An automatic email to you with personalized instructions letting you know a contract has been created
• An email to you from Adobe Sign adobesign@adobesign.com to complete and sign the contract. You must complete your portion of the contract before it will be automatically sent to your supervising practitioner and the faculty advisor, Mary Grassa O’Neill. 

5.  After you complete and sign the contract, it will be sent to your supervising practitioner for their signature.  

6.  After the supervising practitioner signs, the contract will be emailed automatically to course instructor(s) for the final signature by Mary Grassa O’Neill. 

7.  After Mary signs, you will receive an email from Adobe Sign with a link to access and download the finalized contract for your records. The contract then will be filed automatically for course records as well. This contract is a legal document that is part of your permanent record and is subject to review by the state. 

*A new contract needs to be created for each new term, even if you are remaining at the same site. 

Independent Study Guidelines and Policies

Requirements for all independent studies: 

• A clearly defined project that is aligned with a faculty research area.
• A weekly time commitment to the project by the student.
  • At minimum, an average of 8 hours per week for 4 credits (semester-long)
  • At minimum, an average of 4 hours per week for 2 credits (semester-long)
  • At minimum, an average of 8 hours per week for 2 credits (half a semester)
• Regular meetings between the student and the faculty member (every other week is recommended)
• A mutually agreed-upon means of demonstrating acquired skills and knowledge to be assessed by the faculty member. (See examples below.)
• All research involving human subjects should be checked for adherence to IRB approval requirements.

The supervisor of an independent study or field experience is required to be an HGSE faculty member with the title “Adjunct Lecturer,” “Lecturer,” “Senior Lecturer,” “Member of the Faculty,” or any level of “Professor.” Students are limited to a maximum of 4 credits of Independent Study (S999) and/or Field Experience (S997) per semester. A maximum of 4 Independent Study credits may be taken with the same faculty member. No more than 8 credits (4 for part-time online students) of independent study, field experience, or combination thereof can count towards each degree. Independent studies and field experiences cannot be used to satisfy substantive program requirements.

Additional policy details are available in the HGSE Student Handbook.

Independent Study Enrollment Process

1. Find a faculty member who is willing to oversee your independent study.
2. Meet with faculty supervisor to create learning goals and S999 syllabus
3. Submit proposal through my.Harvard for S999
   1. The proposal will require you to submit a syllabus
   2. Once submitted, it will be routed to your faculty supervisor for approval, and then the program contact for approval.
4. Once approved, you will have permission in my.Harvard and will need to finalize your enrollment.  

Contact Information

• Residential Students (ELOE, EPA, HDE, LDIT)- Abbie Bloom (abbie_bloom@gse.harvard.edu)
• OEL Students- Nicole Barone (nicole_barone@gse.harvard.edu)  
• TTL Students- Emily Hess (emily_hess@gse.harvard.edu)
• Ed.L.D. Students- Clara Lau (clara_lau@gse.harvard.edu)

Independent Study Syllabus Template

You can use this template to create your syllabus. If you choose another syllabus format, please be sure all of the requested information is included.