The Undergraduate

First-person essays and opinion pieces from Harvard College students.

A color illustration of students from a diversity of backgrounds eating and talking together at a long dining hall-type table

John Harvard's Journal | July-August 2025

Agree to Disagree

The Undergraduate asks if intellectualism is really on life support.

by Serena Jampel

Colorful Geometric Illustration

University People | September-October 2023

In Defense of Liberal Arts

A semester abroad clarifies the value of the curriculum back home.

by Sofia Andrade

An illustration of a young woman at an easel, holding a paintbrush and tracing a path while looking out across a landscape of other people following their own path

University People | July-August 2023

Uncharted Territory

A recent graduate thinks about what is means to take unconventional paths after Harvard.

by Josie Abugov

University People | May-June 2023

The Climate Connection between Campus and Home

An undergraduate perspective on the gathering crisis

by Sofia Andrade