Visiting Scholar Program

Research

Visiting Scholars are provided access to all of the libraries at Harvard University. The Law School library is the largest academic law library in the world and its highly skilled staff include two librarians specializing in East Asia. The intellectual richness of the Visiting Scholar experience is deepened through required participation in “roundtable” discussions, at which each Scholar shares works-in-progress and seeks feedback from the other Scholars. Roundtables are usually held once a week during the spring and fall semesters.

Auditing

Visiting Scholars may seek permission to audit one (or in exceptional cases, two) Law School courses per semester. Course descriptions are in the Law School Course Catalog (opens in new tab). The availability of a course for auditing is at the discretion of the instructor. Auditing is more likely to be permitted in large classes and less likely in smaller classes, such as seminars or reading groups. Auditing is typically not allowed in clinics or in first-year courses.

Duration

EALS offers appointments of maximum twelve months at a time. We highly recommend that Visiting Scholars come to Harvard for a full academic year, arriving by late August and staying at least through late May. Applications for only one semester, or periods less than twelve months, will also be considered. (The fall semester runs from late August to mid-December, and the spring semester from mid-January to mid-May.) With reasonable exceptions for brief trips consistent with visa and other legal requirements, Visiting Scholars are expected to remain in the Cambridge area during the term of their appointment.

Visiting Scholar Fee and Funding

The EALS Visiting Scholar fee is $750 per month of appointment.

This fee is reduced to $385 per month of appointment in the following cases:

• Visiting Scholars who received their highest law degree within the last ten years and who are pursuing a career in academe.
• Visiting Scholars who are currently completing a doctorate or other advanced law degree.

EALS has limited financial aid funding to cover the Visiting Scholar fee.

All applicants (whether seeking financial aid or not) are required to submit a complete and accurate listing of their sources of funding to support their visit – which is subject to verification. Inaccurate statements may lead to denial of one’s application or even revocation of an acceptance.

The U.S. Government and Harvard University require Visiting Scholars to show that they have funding available for their time here. In order to be eligible for a J-1 visa sponsored by Harvard, an individual must show they have available at least $2,917 per month ($35,000 per year), not including the Visiting Scholar fee. At least an additional $542 per month ($6,500 per year) must be available for each accompanying family member.

Housing and Living Expenses

Visiting Scholars are responsible for securing their own housing, and we suggest that Scholars start looking online a few months before they arrive. Useful information may be found on the Harvard International Office website’s Housing page (opens in new tab). Currently, Visiting Scholars are not eligible for Law School housing or Harvard University Housing.

The cost of living in the Cambridge area is high. The following resources may be useful to estimate living expenses:

• For the 2024-2025 academic year, Harvard Law School’s estimated budget for a single person living in the Cambridge area for 9 months includes housing ($18,000), food ($6,131), personal expenses ($5,550), books and supplies ($1,675), and travel ($1,750), totaling at least $33,106. For Visiting Scholars with families, their additional estimated living expenses are at least $16,000 for a spouse and at least $8,400 per child. (The estimated budget can be found on the Harvard Law School website’s Cost of Attendance page (opens in new tab). Please note that this page is intended for students, so it includes some information that does not apply to Visiting Scholars, such as the student health fee, the Harvard University student health insurance plan fee, and financial aid.)
• Visiting Scholars seeking a studio or 1-bedroom apartment in Cambridge will likely find that the cost is higher than the housing cost indicated in the Law School’s estimated budget.
• Visiting Scholars and their dependents are required to have health insurance. For more information, please see: Harvard International Office, Health Care for Scholars (opens in new tab). Visiting Scholars are not eligible for Harvard health insurance plans.

Note

The foregoing is contingent on public health guidance and accordingly is subject to alteration should circumstances warrant.

EALS is not able to provide office space or clerical services for Visiting Scholars.

Scholars interested in affiliation with another program at the Law School (such as the HLS Graduate Program, the Islamic Legal Studies Program, the HLS Human Rights Program, or the HLS Project on Disability) should contact them directly for information about their visitor programs. Opportunities are also available for conducting research on East Asia-related topics other than law at a number of other research centers at Harvard, including the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, the Program on U.S.-Japan Relations, the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies, the Korea Institute, and the Asia Center.