The STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) journey at Harvard is unique to each student and can involve several different interests, concentrations, and pathways. Whether you are probing your interest in STEM for the first time or have already explored STEM deeply here or in high school, there are strategies you can implement to help you succeed in your courses.
What can be challenging about STEM courses at Harvard?
College STEM courses often cover a broader range of topics at an increased level of detail in comparison to many high school courses. Here are some of the challenges students may encounter as a result:
- STEM coursework requires the development of new study skills and course preparation techniques.
- Students are sometimes surprised by the amount of time needed to understand the material fully.
- Assignments often involve work beyond practicing what was explicitly taught in class, which means students must apply the material to less familiar contexts and combine ideas in novel ways.
- Assessments may be less frequent and cover a substantial amount of material.
One step towards overcoming these challenges is to adjust your approach to learning to reflect the differences between STEM coursework in college and STEM coursework in high school.
Learning approaches for STEM coursework:
How to work towards absorbing so much new information.
- Preview textbook readings or course slides before class to familiarize yourself with upcoming terms and topics.
- Previewing the material will help you stay engaged in lecture and engage in class by asking clarification questions.
- Review lecture slides or notes after class to practice recalling the big ideas and to guess what might be asked of you on a problem set or exam.
- Review or self-test in the hours after class or section to improve recall and prepare questions for office hours.
How to stay on top of homework due weekly or even less frequently.
- Create a list of tasks, steps or problems needed to complete the assignment.
- Starting early can help prevent memory loss from class and allow you to take advantage of all the resources available in your courses, such as question centers, instructor office hours, or ARC Peer Tutoring.
- Spread the work over multiple sessions to allow time for you to try different approaches and avoid burnout.
- Engaging with other learners is important, but do so after you have attempted the assigned problems to ensure that you fully understand the work you are submitting. Be sure to adhere to the course collaboration policies.
How to meet the challenge of solving problems that seem unfamiliar.
- Start early. Give yourself time to get help if the problems seem too unfamiliar. It will be helpful to prepare questions that focus on connections between problems.
- Sometimes the problems look different on the surface, so it’s important to practice identifying structural similarities between the problems you’ve seen so far and what’s being asked on a particular assignment.
- Course office hours and question centers are a great way to get help with finding these connections.
- Talking through practice problems with an ARC Peer Tutor can help you discover structural similarities.
How to study for exams that cover a lot of material and occur infrequently.
- Start studying for exams early – as early as the first homework assignment. By completing your homework in ways that help you construct robust memories of the concepts, you will already be studying for exams.
- When you complete an assignment, summarize the topics covered in each problem to synthesize the key takeaways.
- Review key topics regularly and continue to add to the list as the semester passes. Frequent review makes studying for exams easier because you will have thought about these big ideas relatively recently and you can then prioritize what you study based on your comfort with them.
- Experiment with self-testing and spaced repetition of various topics over multiple days to prevent yourself from cramming the night before the exam.
- Practice exactly what you’ll be asked to do. Many courses will offer practice exams with their solutions; however, you need to work out the answers to problems before you review the solutions. Experience generating your own solutions is what you need to succeed on exams. You can then prioritize your studying based on your performance on the practice exam.
Additional strategies to help tackle your STEM coursework:
Take an active learning approach.
- Recognize that success in STEM requires moving away from passive learning practices, where your instructor gives you information that you write down and then replicate on exams.
- By contrast, active learning means paying attention to points of confusion in lecture and following up with peers, tutors, teaching staff, and question centers to have them clarified.
- Start P-Set assignments early, so you have time to ask questions and to get help.
- Find a P-Set buddy or form a P-Set study group to review assignments after individual completion.
Identify your STEM support system.
- The key is not to struggle alone: reach out to get the support you need!
- Academic coaching at the ARC is one piece of your STEM support system. Academic coaching focuses on skills such as time management, reading and note-taking, exam preparation, and other study strategies. Use the ARC Scheduler to make an appointment with one of the Academic Coaches to learn more.
- Peer tutoring at the ARC provides course specific support. Students can schedule appointments with peer tutors on the ARC Scheduler, where they will find tutoring support for most introductory STEM courses (and many other courses). Students can also request to be matched with a tutor through the ARC Matcher.
- Accountability Hours at the ARC are a great way to get started on assignments in the company of your peers.
- The ARC also offers Workshops specifically geared towards STEM students, including topics like effective study strategies for math and science, note-taking and class preparedness, and course correcting after exam results.
- Students should reach out to their academic adviser or course faculty with questions about STEM courses, sequencing courses, and balancing workload.
- Departmental Directors of Undergraduate Studies (DUSs) and Assistant Directors of Undergraduate Studies (ADUSs) are excellent sources of information about specific concentrations and courses.