Bureau of Study Counsel

5 Linden Street
Phone: (617-495-2581); Fax: (617-495-7680)
bsc.harvard.edu

The Bureau of Study Counsel is a resource center for students’ academic and personal development. It was established to help students develop their intellectual and emotional potential, and to make the most of their time at college. Students come to the Bureau to improve their academic skills and strategies (such as reading, note-making, exam-taking, time management, procrastination, memory, public speaking, writing, etc.) and to talk about broader academic and personal concerns (such as relationships, motivation, adjusting to college, important life events, future direction, etc.).

The Bureau’s mission is based in an educational/developmental model. Through its various services, the Bureau helps students think with more complexity; develop a sense of voice and authority in their scholarship and in their lives generally; approach their work and lives with honesty, curiosity, creativity, and zest; learn to set limits with self and others; cultivate healthy relationships; survive, and even thrive, in a stressful, competitive academic environment; develop their capacity for critical discernment and judgment; and make meaning of their lives.

Services available to students include the following:

Academic and personal counseling. Counseling helps students understand their learning goals and styles, deal with the challenges of a demanding university environment, define their motivations and aspirations, and address the issues that interfere with their efforts to fully engage in their learning and their lives. Faculty members are invited to refer or recommend students to Bureau services, and a brochure called “How to Refer a Student” is available to aid with such conversations.
Self-help materials. The Self Help section of the Bureau website offers a wide range of information and materials on topics relevant to students’ academic and personal lives, such as study skills, peer relationships, and college adjustment issues. Self help materials are also available in the Cranium Corner, the Bureau’s reception area library.
Workshops and discussion groups. The Bureau offers workshops and discussion groups on many topics related to academics and student life, such as: procrastination, cultural transitions, studying for and taking exams, speaking up in class, perfectionism, senior thesis writing, and making good use of Reading Period.
Peer tutoring. The Bureau provides central coordination and training/supervision of academic peer tutors in Harvard courses. Academic peer tutoring is provided as a supplement, not a substitute, for course instruction. Academic peer tutoring is available in any subject; most tutors are undergraduates who have done honors work in the courses they tutor. Undergraduates may not accept compensation for peer tutoring in Harvard courses without the permission of the Dean of the College, who has designated the Bureau to select, hire, supervise, and employ undergraduate peer tutors (see the Handbook for Students).
The Harvard Course in Reading and Study Strategies. The Harvard Course in Reading and Study Strategies is a mini-course offered five times per year. FAS Faculty, teaching fellows, and residence staff may enroll in the course at no charge. The fee for FAS students is $25; all others $150 (subject to change). The course helps students developing a repertoire of strategies and approaches for improving the speed of reading comprehension, and also addresses study skills such as note-making, preparing for and taking exams, and time management.

In addition to direct services for students, consultation services are available to faculty, teaching fellows, administrators, residential staff, and student peer-service groups on issues related to student life and learning. Professionals who work with students in these capacities are invited to contact the Bureau regarding any concern they may have about a student’s academic performance, classroom, behavior, or personal difficulties.

Visit our website for information on services, staff, current events, confidentiality, and more at: www.bsc.harvard.edu.

Wheelchair accessible.