Activities, Athletics, and Museums - Harvard Summer School

Activities, Athletics, and Museums - Harvard Summer School
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Activities, Athletics, and Museums
Harvard Summer School students who attend in person will live and learn in beautiful Harvard Square in Cambridge, Mass. Located just outside Boston — and a destination in its own right — Cambridge and its surrounding areas have plenty to offer.
Whether you want to find ways to stay active in your down time or are looking to fill your weekend with sightseeing, here are some activities you may be able to participate in depending on your Harvard Summer School program and schedule.
Athletics
There are many ways to remain active around campus. Harvard offers extensive athletics facilities, including:
Gyms with cardiovascular equipment, weight rooms, and exercise classes
Free play opportunities for sports like soccer, basketball, and kickball
Swimming pools
Basketball, volleyball, tennis, and squash courts
Fields for soccer, softball, and touch football
Rowing through the Weld Boathouse on the Charles River
Visit the
Harvard Athletics website
or call (617) 495-3454 to learn more about athletic facilities and resources.
Music
Harvard Summer Chorus
The Harvard Summer Chorus, founded in 1936, will be led by Andrew Clark in Summer 2026. The ensemble is open by audition to Harvard Summer School students, Harvard affiliates (ID holders), and members of the community, including local high school and college students.
Summer School students will audition live in Sanders Theatre on June 23. High school students, college students, and community members will submit a video-recorded audition.
Visit the website for more information on auditions
.
Rehearsals:
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6 – 10 p.m., in Sanders Theatre, starting Tuesday, June 23.
Performance:
The culminating performance is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Friday, July 31, in Sanders Theatre, Memorial Hall. There will be a dress rehearsal on Thursday, July 30.
Please visit
SingAtHarvard.Com/HarvardSummerChorus
or email
HarvardChoruses@GMail.com
for more information.
Harvard Summer Pops Band
The Harvard Summer Pops Band, led by Director of Harvard University Band and Wind Ensemble Mark Olson, is open to brass, woodwind, string and percussion players who are part of the Harvard Summer School community. We also invite area woodwind, brass and percussion players to join us for the summer.
Auditions
: No formal audition is required. However, summer school students are welcome to meet the director on Monday, June 24 from 2–5 p.m. at the Office for the Arts to find out more about the ensemble. At the first rehearsal, musicians will have the opportunity to select the part they feel the most comfortable playing.
Students can submit an application for the Summer Pops Band using this link.
Rehearsals will be on Wednesday evenings
from 7:00 – 9:30 p.m., June 24 through July 29, in Sanders Theatre.
Performance:
The ensemble will hold a performance on Sunday, August 2 in Sanders Theatre at 3 p.m.
For questions or more information, please call
(617) 496-BAND
(2263) or email
MEOlson@fas.Harvard.edu
.
Museums
Enrich your summer experience by exploring the collections, exhibits, and history found inside Harvard’s many art, science, and cultural museums.
Most major
Harvard museums
are free for you and one guest with a valid
Harvard ID card
.
The
Harvard Art Museums
incorporate, under one roof, the collections of Harvard’s Fogg, Busch-Reisinger, and Arthur M. Sackler Museums. The galleries include art of many media, from around the world.
Harvard Museum of Natural History
, with its collection of glass flowers, dinosaurs fossils, and rare minerals and gemstones.
The
Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology
, where you can explore the history and culture of six continents.
The
Harvard Semitic Museum
, with its Near Eastern exhibitions.
A
collection of historic scientific instruments
at the Science Center.
Around Boston
In addition to
Harvard libraries and museum
s, the city of Boston, across the Charles River, has many cultural, historic, and scientific institutions to explore. Dance, music, and theater also flourish. The Boston Pops Orchestra gives free concerts each summer on the Esplanade along the Charles River, and there are a number of parks and trails in the city.
Museum of Fine Arts
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Museum of Science
Boston Public Library
Institute of Contemporary Art
Museum of Afro-American History
New England Aquarium
Freedom Trail
Fenway Park
Charles River Canoe & Kayak
Activities for High School Programs
If you’re a high school student admitted to either the Secondary School Program or the Pre-College Program, you’ll also be able to participate in activities with your cohort, organized by the Harvard Summer School team.
See what types of activities are offered during these programs:
See Secondary School Program Activities
See Pre-College Program Activities
Activities for Adult and College Students
Summer Servers
Summer Servers contacts area nonprofits to determine the number of volunteers needed at the organizations throughout the summer weeks. This collaboration provides opportunities for Summer School students to give back to the local community through time spent on activities like sorting food at the Greater Boston Food Bank, serving a hot meal at a soup kitchen, or helping to set up an arts and food festival.
Students sign up for volunteer expeditions with Summer Servers through the Student Activities office. Trips are scheduled throughout the summer and occur Thursday through Sunday.
Get Info
Harvard Division of Continuing Education
The Division of Continuing Education (DCE) at Harvard University is dedicated to bringing rigorous academics and innovative teaching capabilities to those seeking to improve their lives through education. We make Harvard education accessible to lifelong learners from high school to retirement.
Harvard Division of Continuing Education