Five Open Jobs at Harvard You’re Not Watching (But Should Be)

The job: These roles are responsible for turning high-level priorities into operational reality: developing and managing school budgets, ensuring compliance, maintaining financial reporting systems, assessing risk, and aligning resources with each school’s academic mission.

Why it matters: These are critical functions amidst Harvard’s current financial strain. The University faces an 8% annual tax on endowment returns (likely $300+ million annually), a changing relationship with the federal government, and uncertainty around future research funding. Layoffs and cuts have already begun at HKS, with more expected across University administration. FAS (and by extension, the College) has a $350 million annual structural deficit that has long predated federal actions. 

*FAS and College deans positions aren’t listed online as actively hiring, but they are currently filled by interim deans.

The job: The IOP director plays an important role in bringing diverse political views together on campus and shaping how students (especially undergraduates) engage with politics and public service. It’s one of Harvard’s most visible bridges between campus and national political figures.

Why it matters: The next director will not only shape programming and campus engagement, but will also likely need to defend the IOP’s non-partisan mission. Under the late Setti Warren, the IOP reaffirmed that commitment by launching a mentorship program for conservative undergraduates, welcoming speakers and study group leaders from across the spectrum (including Mike Pence and Joe Biden) and publicly upholding  its founding value of nonpartisanship after a student leader called that principle “no longer tenable” following President Trump’s re-election.

The job: The Dean for Students oversees HMS’s Office of Student Affairs, which manages key events like orientation and Match Day that shape the student experience and school culture. 

Why it matters: The University’s official report on Combating Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias highlighted that “many HMS faculty noted a significant shift towards a more politicized educational environment compared to their own training experiences.” One way that concern has played out publicly: during Admitted Students Week in 2024, students proposed making the official Admitted Student video a “protest against the Israeli occupation,” which the report notes took HMS administration “a long time” to shut down. 

The job: The Executive Dean for Administration oversees HBS’s $1.1 billion operating budget and nearly 2,000 staff, spanning academics, research, operations, and HBS’s revenue generating ventures like its publishing branch, Executive Education, and HBS Online.

Why it matters: HBS is Harvard’s most financially self-sustaining school, making effective management crucial as Harvard absorbs a new $300+ million annual endowment tax. This role could also play a role in potential reforms to Harvard’s faculty investigation process, which has drawn scrutiny following the University’s probe into HBS professor Francesca Gino. Law School professor Larry Lessig launched a widely discussed podcast criticizing aspects of the process as “outrageous” and “a violation of due process.” 

The job: This newly created role replaces the former HKS Associate Dean for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging. In July 2025, HKS restructured and rebranded the office with a revised mandate: to focus on pluralism, shared values, and constructive engagement across differences.

Why it matters: More than a quarter of speaker deplatformings on Harvard’s campus over the past decade tracked by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) have happened at the Kennedy School alone. The new director will shape whether HKS can meaningfully realign its culture with the University’s values of open inquiry and constructive dialogue. 

Virtual — January 14 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. PT: The Harvard Club of Seattle is hosting a conversation with Sarah Karmon, Associate Vice President and Executive Director of the Harvard Alumni Association, who will provide an update on current issues, challenges, and successes at Harvard. Register here.

Toronto, Canada — January 22 from 6:00-9:00 p.m. ET: Harvard Business School (HBS) and the HBS Club of Toronto are hosting an alumni gathering with Executive Dean for Administration Angela Crispi (MBA ‘90) and Executive Director of the MBA and Doctoral Programs and External Relations Jana Kierstead. Register here.

Virtual — January 26 from 7:00-8:00 p.m. ET: As part of Harvard’s Speakers Bureau Spotlight Series, hear from Computer Science professor of practice David Malan (AB ‘99, PhD ‘07) on how one of Harvard’s largest courses, Computer Science 50, has incorporated and is being impacted by AI. Register here.

On Thursday, the federal government appealed District Judge Allison Burroughs’s September ruling that restored Harvard’s frozen federal research funding. 

In her decision, Burroughs ruled the government had illegally cut off funding by retaliating against protected speech and failing to follow required procedures, violating Harvard’s rights under the First Amendment and the Administrative Procedure Act. (For a refresher on the ruling, check out our Special Edition breaking it down.) 

Most of Harvard’s frozen funding has since been restored. Though the government signaled its intent to appeal immediately in September, this marks its first concrete action.

As is the norm, the notice of appeal contains no substantive arguments. Both sides will submit briefs once the appeal is docketed by the First Circuit Court of Appeals, and the court is expected to set a briefing schedule in the coming weeks.

The government is also appealing Burroughs’s ruling partially in favor of several “organizational plaintiffs” — including the American Association of University Professors, its Harvard chapter, and Harvard’s academic worker unions — who argued the freeze chilled their speech and undermined their academic freedom, even if they weren’t direct grant recipients. 

According to the New York Times, Harvard has opened a disciplinary investigation into two students who filmed and posted video of former University president Larry Summers (AB ’75, PhD ’82) in his classroom addressing his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. 

The students were not enrolled in the class and later took credit for pressuring Summers to step away from teaching.

The inquiry centers on whether they violated University rules by attending a class they weren’t enrolled in and recording it without consent. Harvard College bars such recordings to “in the interest of cultivating an environment most conducive to the free and unencumbered exchange of ideas.”

After backlash online framed the probe as an effort to suppress scrutiny of Summers’s ties to Epstein, Harvard Kennedy School professor Maya Sen (AB ‘00, AM ‘11, PhD ‘12) defended the investigation: “Recording a class without permission is prohibited by university rules, and by Massachusetts state law in some cases. I’m no fan of Larry Summers but come on.”

On Thursday, Harvard released early action admissions decisions for the Class of 2030. As part of a policy change that began last year, the College will not release acceptance rates or demographic data until next October once students are on campus. 

A smaller group of students had already received offers earlier this month through QuestBridge, a national program matching high-achieving, low-income students with selective colleges. 

Twelve students at the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) staged a sit-in outside Dean Andrea Baccarelli’s office protesting the dismissal of Mary Bassett (AB ‘74) as the director of the François-Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Center. Her dismissal happened concurrently with the decision to narrow the FXB’s focus solely around children’s health. 

Bacarelli later met with the students, reiterating that the decision was “motivated by academic considerations” but offering no explanation beyond that of his community letter. 

He also said that the expert review of FXB commissioned by HSPH produced no written report, only a private verbal summary shared with Bassett. When announcing this panel’s review, Bacarelli had said their charge was to “rigorously evaluate” FXB’s status and potential and offer “candid, forthright, and thorough feedback.”

Baccarelli has faced criticism for offering little transparency or justification behind FXB’s refocusing. (Read 1636 Forum’s take on the decision here). 

There were three university-linked deaths this week between a mass shooting at Brown and the homicide of an MIT professor. On Saturday, a gunman opened fire during an exam review session at Brown, killing two students and injuring nine. On Monday, MIT professor Nuno Loureiro was fatally shot at his home in Brookline, Massachusetts. 

Law enforcement believe both attacks were carried out by the same suspect: a former Brown PhD student who had also been in the same physics program as Nuneiro in Portugal. He died by suicide Thursday; his motive remain unknown. 

The Brown victims were sophomore Ella Cook and freshman MukhammadAziz Umurzokov. Loureiro, an expert in theoretical physics, directed MIT’s Plasma Science Fusion Center, one of the school’s largest labs. 

In response to the Brown shooting, Harvard limited access to the Smith and Science Centers to ID holders. As the manhunt continued, out of precaution FAS then enacted its winter recess ID early across all buildings.

Department of Justice: “Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Agrees to Pay $15 Million to Settle Fraud Allegations Related to Scientific Research Grants”

Harvard Divinity School: “HDS Students Awarded Building Bridges Grant for Black-Jewish Pluralism Project”

The Crimson: “‘The Best Hanukkah or Christmas Present’: Faculty Applaud Garber’s Extended Presidency”

The Crimson: ”Garber’s Extension Leaves Harvard Facing Sustained Pressure from Washington”

The Crimson: “Black Student Enrollment More Than Doubles in Harvard Law’s Class of 2028”

Boston Globe: “‘Death by a thousand cuts’: Harvard isn’t just balancing negotiations with the White House”

Harvard Gazette: “Sam Liss named next chief technology development officer and associate provost” 

Harvard Gazette: “Research team awarded Schmidt Sciences grant for AI humanities project”

The Crimson: “DSO Issues Warnings to Student Groups Over Member Removal Policies”

Princeton Alumni Weekly: “Academic Freedom Undermined by Omission” — by Harvard Medical School Professors Richard Schwartzstein (MD ‘79) and Harold Bursztajn (MD ‘77)

Harvard Magazine: “For Campus Speech, Civility is a Cultural Practice” — review of Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber’s book by former Harvard College Dean Rakesh Kurana (PhD ‘98)

The Free Press: “Jews Are Being Sent Back Into Hiding” — by former visiting scholar at Harvard Divinity School Rabbi David Wolpe and former U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Deborah Lipstadt

The Crimson: “Garber Is the Right Choice for Turbulent Times” — editorial by The Crimson Editorial Board

The Crimson: “Alan Garber Has Met the Moment” — op-ed by Jeffrey Flier, HMS professor, former HMS Dean, and co-president of Harvard’s Council on Academic Freedom

The American Enterprise: “Cancel Culture Goes Back At Least 50 Years” — on former Harvard political science professor Edward Banfield

Brown Daily Herald: “Brown early applicants react to postponed decision notifications in wake of Saturday’s shooting”

MIT: “Important Community Update” — on two recent antisemitic incidents on MIT’s campus

Franklin’s Forum: “Protecting Trust Amid Scrutiny: Penn’s Battle with the EEOC”

The Atlantic: “Stop Trying to Make the Humanities ‘Relevant’” — by Bard College visiting professor of humanities,Thomas Chatterton Williams

Chronicle of Higher Education: “The Shakedown: How Trump’s Justice Department pressured lawyers to “find” evidence that UCLA had tolerated antisemitism.”

Inside Higher Ed: “Berkeley Suspends Lecturer for Pro-Palestinian Comments, Hunger Strike”

Inside Higher Ed: “UNC Professors Must Soon Post Syllabi Publicly”

Compact: “The Lost Generation” 

Wall Street Journal: “Why Workers in Their 40s Are Going Back to School” 

Inside Higher Ed: ““Merit” Was the Word of the Year in Admissions. But What Does It Mean?”

Cornell Daily Sun: “Cornell Announces New CALS School With Historic $55 Million Endowment”

Cornell Daily Sun: “Student Referendum to Overhaul University Disciplinary Process Passes Despite Issues at the Ballot Box”

Princetonians For Free Speech: “Hollow Rules: The Ivy League’s Mixed Messaging on Campus Disruption” — by Manhattan Institute Fellow and Princeton alum Tal Fortgang

Wall Street Journal: “College Board’s Defense Doesn’t Pass Muster” — letter by Jeremy Tate and Noah Tyler, CEO and CFO of the Classic Learning Test