Harvard University Extension School, designed for the commuter population, offers part-time and lower-cost education mostly during the evening. The Extension School is one of the twelve degree-granting schools of Harvard University, and was founded by university President A. Lawrence Lowell in 1910. The school was originally an academic program designed to serve the educational interests and needs of the greater Boston community. Harvard University's Extension School offers undergraduate and graduate liberal arts degree programs to nontraditional students while also offering open enrollment courses to the general population. The Extension School is part of the Division of Continuing Education, which itself is part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Undergraduate

The Harvard University Extension School offers two undergraduate degrees: the Associate in Arts (A.A.) in Extension Studies and the Bachelor of Liberal Arts (A.L.B.) in Extension Studies. Both undergraduate degree programs are aimed at nontraditional students. Harvard Extension students complete requirements in three areas: Natural Sciences, Social Sciences or Humanities There is also an option of adding a major, or a Field of Study, to one's transcripts, which includes his or her primary field. Up to half of the coursework (up to 64 units) for the A.L.B. may come in the form of transfer credits from other accredited institutions; mostly these must be Liberal Arts courses. Students may petition to transfer outside credits once fully enrolled as an Undergraduate Degree student, but can not exceed a maximum of 64 transfer credits, total. For graduation, 64 credits must be completed at Harvard University; 52 credits must come from courses taught by Harvard Instructors. Degree Candidates may apply for Special Student Status, which allows them to take up to two classes per semester at Harvard College or at Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Admission to this special program requires a formal application to FAS, two faculty recommendations, a third recommendation from Harvard Extension's Associate Dean, and at least a 3.33 GPA.

Graduate

Master of Liberal Arts (A.L.M.) in Extension Studies, offers concentrations in traditional arts and science fields such as government and biology, as well as relatively new fields such as information technology and general management. Most A.L.M. programs require a thesis, which must be written under the direction of a Harvard faculty member holding a teaching appointment in the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences at the rank of senior lecturer, assistant professor, associate professor, or full professor, or an appropriate teaching appointment in another Harvard professional school, such as the Law School, Graduate School of Education, or Medical School. While courses for the A.L.M. generally meet at a separate time, they are often exact replicas of courses taught in other Harvard schools. HES students with "Special Student Status" may exercise the option of taking courses in the GSAS for graduate credit. Admission to the program requires a ‘B' or better in graduate proseminars, as well as three regular courses, all of which must be in the student's proposed field of study. Other admission requirements include a formal application and two essays..