Registration Policies & more information

Fall 2026 Term Dates: August 31 - December 4, 2026

• Monday, June 22 at 10:00am until Sunday, July 12 at 11:59pm: Application period for scholarships for Fall 2026 courses.
• July 8: Summer 2026 Course Preview begins
• July 8 – July 12: Independent Study Program applications open
• July 21-24: Registration Lottery opens for in-person courses beginning at 10:00am on July 21, continuing through July 24 at 3:00pm. You have four days to rank your top 4 course choices. Note: If you select an Intermediate-Advanced class, please carefully review our Definitions of experience levels for courses to ensure that you are qualified to take the course. We reserve the right to drop participants who have registered for courses they do not have the skills to meaningfully participate in.
• Friday, July 24: Notification of Registration Lottery results emailed to all users by 4:00pm. Important: Those selected for registration through the lottery process must log into their account and submit payment before 4:00pm on July 30 to secure their enrollment. If you did not get the chance to register for a course via the lottery process, you will be added to the waitlist for the courses you ranked.
• Thursday, July 30 at 4:00pm: Deadline for registration lottery recipients to submit payment for course enrollment. If you do not complete your payment by this date, you will lose your spot in the course to someone from the waitlist. If any courses do not fill via the registration lottery process, registration will open on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Friday, July 31 at 10:00am: Registration opens for certain Fall workshops and Online Class.
• Sunday, August 16 by 11:59pm: Final day to request to drop a course for full refund; registration is closed.
• Wednesday, August 19 at 10:00am: registration opens for these Harvard College Undergraduate-only workshops
• Monday, August 24: Those who are enrolled in a course should expect to receive an email confirmation with detailed course information, syllabus, and studio guidelines. If you do not receive this email, please contact us.
• Wednesday, August 26 at 10am: those enrolled in a course may purchase a parking tag ($45 - while supplies last), optional shelf space (while supplies last), or tool kit; details are included in your email confirmation.
• September 9: registration opens for technical workshops for those enrolled in a Fall course.

Once you have decided which ceramics Course or Workshop you want to register for and have reviewed our Registration policies, you will use our online registration platform to enter our registration lottery OR register for a workshop. Courses and workshops will only appear on that registration platform when registration is open.

• Registration for our in-person courses will be by lottery; if any spaces remain after that, they will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Once the lottery results are finalized, registration is secured through receipt of payment via our online registration platform.
• Registration for Online course and Visiting Artist workshops will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Pay for classes using Visa or Mastercard. We no longer accept AMEX.
• Returning users of our Registration Platform: when logging in, you may be prompted to confirm your personal information. You must select the "Save Changes" button at the bottom of the page before the system allows you to proceed with registration.

NOTE: to enter the registration lottery, once logged into the registration platform, you must select "Lottery" from the top menu.

• Adult Community: 18+, the general public; Harvard alumni, fellows, faculty/staff, and post-docs who are not TAP-eligible; Harvard Extension School students; students from universities other than Harvard 
• Harvard Employees eligible for the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP): TAP regular (employees who worked fewer than 15 years) and TAP long service (employees who worked 15 or more years at Harvard). 
• Harvard College Undergraduate Students: Currently enrolled students at Harvard College. This does not include Harvard Extension School undergraduate students. You must register with your Harvard email – we can arrange for an alternative email to be used for class after registration is complete.
• Harvard Graduate Students: Currently enrolled students in a Harvard University Graduate Program. This does not include Harvard Extension School graduate students.

Harvard Employees who are eligible for the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) benefit: TAP is accepted for all courses offered through the Ceramics Program. If you would like to use TAP for your course enrollment, be sure to select the TAP option—either TAP Regular or TAP Long Service—on the “Cart” page during payment. Your TAP eligibility will be verified by our third-party vendor; if you are found to be ineligible, you will be responsible for the full course fee. Please note that you must be TAP-eligible at least through the first day of your class. If you are unsure about your TAP eligibility, please consult your HR representative.

Email Communication: registered participants receive weekly email updates from the Director communicating useful and important information about the studio beginning the first week of the term. Please make sure you are receiving these emails.

Access to facility and materials: For all in-person courses, your course fees cover instruction, 7-day access to the studio, use of equipment and all clays (terra cotta, midrange, and high fire stoneware, sculpture body, porcelain, and midrange casting slip), bisque firing, glazes, and glaze firing allotment up to 6,800 cubic inches of kiln space depending on your course selection. You may pay for additional cubic inches at 6 cents per cubic inch, billed  at the end of the semester.  For our online-only courses, your course fees cover instruction only and students are responsible for supplying their own materials and tools. 

Health and Safety Guidelines: To help protect other event participants and staff, we ask that you stay home if you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or if you are required to isolate or quarantine in accordance with University and CDC guidelines. Review the most current Harvard University policies and practices to Keep Harvard Healthy

Lockers, Class Shelves & Optional Shelf Rental: All registered participants are assigned a small locker, possibly shared with another participant. Each class has a designated set of shelves for student works in progress. Registered participants have the option to rent additional shelf space. Information about optional shelf rental will be sent to registered participants at the beginning of each term.

Online Class Access:  In order to participate in our online courses, you will need to have access to a computer (or tablet or smartphone) with a camera, and an internet connection. You will need to download Zoom before the first class. New to Zoom? Here are the specific system requirements needed to run Zoom. We are not responsible for the performance of your computer, tablet, phone or internet connection. 

Parking Permits: A limited number of parking permits for the 17 spaces in our back lot are available for purchase by registered participants every term; in Spring 2026, the cost is $45. Information about the purchase of parking tags will be emailed to registered participants before the term begins. Tags will be distributed on the first day of class. Note: These spaces are first-come, first-served. Parking in our area is extremely limited, and purchasing a parking tag for our back lot does not guarantee a parking spot. If you want to be assured of a nearby parking spot when you arrive, consider buying a daily pass from Harvard Parking Services for one of their managed lots; 230 Western Ave (Teele Hall) is the lot adjacent to ours. There is also a public parking garage at 280 Western Ave.

Missed Class Policy: The Ceramics Program will make every effort to provide make-up classes for those missed due to studio closings; however, we are not responsible for issuing reimbursements or providing make-up classes for those missed due to illnesses, substitute teachers, or other events beyond our control. We do not prorate for missed classes.

Class Cancellations: The Ceramics Program has the right to cancel classes with inadequate enrollment.  Students will be notified as soon as possible and given the opportunity to transfer to another class. In the event that an alternative class can not be chosen a refund will be issued.

The Ceramics Program is not liable for damage or loss of ceramic work or personal property.

Liability Release: Registered students will need to agree to the following, "I realize that my participation in the Ceramics Program may involve some risk of personal injury and damage to the studio property: therefore, I assume all risks related to these activities and release Harvard, its directors, officers and employees from all resulting liability from personal injury and property damage."

Studio Guidelines: A digital copy is provided to registered participants at the start of each term.

Request to drop a course or workshop by logging into your account on our registration platform and selecting "My Enrollments" and "Request to Drop."

Courses

Requests to Drop a course must be received at least two weeks prior to the first day of the term to be considered for a full refund minus $35 non-refundable application fee (if applicable). No refunds will be issued after this date.

Workshops

Requests to Drop a workshop must be received at least one week prior to the first day of the workshop to be considered for a full refund. No refunds will be issued after this date.

Email Ji-Eun Kim, Administrative Manager with any questions.