#  MBB Seminars Lottery, Spring 2023 

 



 Although the lottery process is not complicated, it is important to understand, and failure to do so might disadvantage your chances to get into a seminar.  
  
The MBB seminars lottery is a weighted rather than a random lottery. Lottery matches will be made based on student and instructor preferences and on enrollment priorities. MBB track and secondary juniors and seniors who have not yet taken an MBB seminar will receive top lottery priority. If you are in a priority group, we will try very hard to place you. However, in some semesters we have twice as many students in the lottery as we do spaces to allocate, so we cannot guarantee a placement.  
  
Because the course selection period is a brief one, we need to keep on schedule and meet deadlines. If you will be unable to follow the schedule below (for example, if you will be travelling without reliable internet connectivity for a period), please contact Shawn Harriman ([shawn\_harriman@harvard.edu](mailto:shawn_harriman@harvard.edu)) no later than 5 p.m. on Monday 16 January 2023.  
  
  
**Phase One: Course Exploration (Wednesday 11 January 2023 – Monday 16 January)**  
  
Use this time to explore seminar options. MBB seminar canvas sites will include syllabi and sometimes an introductory video. Some seminars also have an informational event during this period, and others have a form for interested students to complete. Events and forms will be noted toward the top of the MBB seminar page, [https://mbb.harvard.edu/seminars](/seminars). This course informational material will be online by the end of Tuesday 10 January.  
  
You may add seminars you are considering to your my.harvard crimson cart. At this stage, however, do not submit an enrollment petition to the instructor.  
  
  
**Phase Two: Lottery Day (Tuesday 17 January)**  
  
If you are interested in any seminar that has an informational form, please complete that informational form by 9 a.m. ET today. Instructors use this information to create their list of preferred students.  
  
The lottery will open at 9 a.m.**LIVE LOTTERY FORM IS AT** [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/169VuTc7HYsqXWisBM\_D5xnWvPRYkavgLbh3NgK3dlL4/](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/169VuTc7HYsqXWisBM_D5xnWvPRYkavgLbh3NgK3dlL4/)  
  
The seminar lottery is not a shopping tool – only list seminars you will definitely enroll in if selected. We know some people are still shopping, but our process needs to advantage people who are clear in their seminar enrollment intentions at this point. If you are selected and decline a spot in a seminar, you may not be allowed to lottery in future semesters. If you can make a commitment to enroll, be sure to complete the lottery form by 5:30 p.m.today.  
  
  
**Phase Three: Enrollment (Wednesday 18 January – Thursday 19 January)**  
  
You will be emailed the results of the lottery by 10 a.m. on Wednesday.  
  
If you are admitted to a seminar, email Shawn Harriman ([shawn\_harriman@harvard.edu](mailto:shawn_harriman@harvard.edu)) by 2 p.m. on Wednesday to confirm that you will enroll in the course. Also by 2 p.m., add the course to your crimson cart in my.harvard and add an enrollment request petition.  
  
If you are not admitted to a seminar, you will automatically be put on the waiting list, which is managed centrally rather than by individual instructors. It is unlikely that space will become available. If, however, a space does become available for you, you will be informed via email between 2 p.m. on Wednesday and 12 noon on Thursday. Waiting list students offered a space in a seminar must confirm their space by emailing Shawn Harriman ([shawn\_harriman@harvard.edu](mailto:shawn_harriman@harvard.edu)) by 2 p.m. on Thursday.  
  
Instructors will approve student enrollment petitions in my.harvard by the 11:59 p.m. deadline Thursday night.