Academic Advising Appointments for Students

On this page, students can find information for booking appointments with each of the HLS Offices that offer individual advising.

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Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs (OCP)

OCP oversees the academic clinical programs and the clinical registration process. Meet with an OCP advisor to learn more about clinic opportunities, brainstorm which clinic might be the right fit for you, or to ask questions about the clinical registration process. Appointments are available on Zoom or in person in WCC 3085.

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Registrar’s Office

Contact the RO to learn more about your degree requirements and degree audit, or to ask questions about the writing requirement.

To schedule an appointment, email registrar@law.harvard.edu.

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Writing Center

Located in WCC 3054, just across from the Office of the Dean of Students, the Writing Center offers real-time, one-to-one consulting sessions to all upper-level J.D. students. These sessions, led mainly by other upper-level J.D. students selected as Writing Fellows, are best suited to argumentative and analytical writing for courses, seminars, workshops, and writing groups as well as independent writing projects. Currently, the Center offers in-person sessions Mondays through Thursdays, 10am-4pm (by appointment or drop-in) as well as online sessions Sunday through Thursday nights (by appointment only).

To learn more, email hlswritingcenter@law.harvard.edu.

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Graduate Program (GP) – advising for LL.M. Students

The Graduate Program provides individualized advising to LL.M. students on courses, writing, academic skills, curricular problem solving, and other options through direct conversations, through LL.M. Advising Groups (each led by a dedicated S.J.D. advisor), specialized workshops, and regular presentations and programming.  The specialized workshops are led by S.J.D. candidates with prior experience in the LL.M. program who serve as Advisors and Coordinators.  Reach out to us any time at gpcourses@law.harvard.edu. 

Office of Career Services (OCS)

OCS advisors focus on private sector careers and judicial clerkships, and can help you decide what opportunities to pursue at HLS to help you further your post-graduate plans.

All advising appointments are scheduled in CSM/Symplicity. If you have not used CSM recently please see How to Use CSM for more information. Incoming transfer students, see Instructions to Access CSM if you are not able to login.

If you do not have a CSM account and would like to request one be created, email ocs@law.harvard.edu and include: your name (include name as a student if different), graduation year, email, and phone number.

Schedule an Appointment

To schedule an appointment with an OCS adviser,

  1. Login to CSM Symplicity.
  2. Select [Appointments] from the top nav.
  3. Select the type of appointment you want and any other filters, and then click the “check availability” button to see which advisers have open appointments.

Note: Appointments must be scheduled at least one day in advance. The system will not allow same-day appointments. If you have time-sensitive questions or concerns, see drop-in hours below.

Make an Appointment (login to CSM)

Access J.D. Drop-in Hours

More information about OCS Appts

Office of Public Interest Advising (OPIA)

OPIA advisers can speak with you about how curricular choices may help you clarify career goals and build relevant skills that public interest employers look for when making hiring decisions.

  1. Review OPIA’s adviser bios & areas of expertise or the 3 Day Wasserstein Fellow bios.
  2. Select the appropriate type of advising to make an appointment.
  3. Please remember that all appointments are scheduled for Eastern Standard Time.
  4. All appointments are conducted virtually, via Zoom, by phone, or in person in the OPIA suite.

If you have trouble scheduling an appointment, please email our team at opia@law.harvard.edu or call 617-495-3108.

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Academic Career Advising

Interested in pursuing a career in academia and becoming a law professor?  Contact Susannah Barton Tobin to make an appointment for academic career advising: stobin@law.harvard.edu. 

Dean of Students Office (DOS)

The Dean of Students Office is your primary advocate and resource for navigating life at Harvard Law School. We’re here to help every step of the way, whether you’re trying to navigate your coursework, a life event, or preparing for the bar.  Please contact us to learn more about our student support services. Make an appointment by emailing dos@law.harvard.edu.

Meet the team

International Legal Studies offers information and guidance about HLS’s many internationally-focused opportunities within the classroom and beyond.  We can also talk with you about study abroad, which includes both semester abroad and the JD/LLM joint degree program with the University of Cambridge.  ILS also administers the winter term international travel grant program which supports students doing independent clinicals or writing abroad over J-term.  You can schedule an appointment or drop in during our office hours.

Connect with ILS: https://hls.harvard.edu/ils/connect-with-ils/

Office of Academic Affairs (OAA) – Joint Degrees

Contact April Pettit to learn more about the joint degree options available at HLS: apettit@law.harvard.edu.