People

Faculty from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD) and John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) lead and provide core instruction in the MDE program. Additional instructors and guest critics are routinely incorporated into MDE courses to provide area expertise and experience from professional practice.

Program Co-Directors

Four people investigating a red and white structure in the Hybrid Formations course.

Martin Bechthold

Kumagai Professor of Architectural Technology, GSD

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Joanna Aizenberg

Amy Smith Berylson Professor of Material Science; Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, SEAS

Program Faculty

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Kipp Bradford

Preceptor in Engineering Sciences, SEAS; Chief Technology Officer, Gradient

Headshot of Elizabeth Bowie Christoforetti.

Elizabeth Bowie Christoforetti

Assistant Professor in Practice of Architecture, GSD; Founding Principal, Supernormal

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Luba Greenwood

Visiting Lecturer in Engineering Sciences, SEAS; CEO at Kojin Therapeutics

Headshot of Jonathan Grinham.

Jonathan Grinham

Assistant Professor of Architecture, GSD

Headshot of Fawwaz Habbal.

Fawwaz Habbal

Senior Lecturer on Applied Physics, SEAS

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Jock Herron 

Design Critic in Design Engineering, GSD

Karen Korellis Reuther

Design Critic in Architecture, GSD; Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative

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Mary Tolikas

Lecturer on Engineering Sciences, SEAS; Chief Innovation Officer at Dana Farber Cancer Institute

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James Weaver

Senior Scientist, SEAS

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Andrew Witt

Associate Professor in Practice of Architecture, GSD; Co-Founder, Certain Measures

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Siqi Zhu

Preceptor in Engineering Sciences, SEAS; Director, Planning & Delivery, Google Sidewalk Labs

“I knew going into the program that our cohort would be made up of deeply talented individuals from a variety of backgrounds, and I anticipated that we would all have different skillsets and knowledge bases. What I did not anticipate was that our interests and ways of working would be so closely aligned: across the board, there’s a desire to think systematically, understand details, and make a positive contribution to society.”

-Brian Ho, MDE ’18-

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Gail Alderson

B.S. in Computer Science

Ghalya Alsanea

Bachelor of Architecture

Headshot of Marc A. Apicella.

Marc A. Apicella

B.A. in Economics; Postbaccalaureate in Experimental Psychology

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Sneha Arvind

B.Des in Industrial Design with a specialization in Furniture and Interior Design

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Rebecca Brand

B.A. in Art History, Art Studio

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Kedrick Brown

B.S., Rutgers University (Physics major), and M.B.A., The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

Kamila Czachorowski

B.A. in Anthropology, Secondary in Computer Science

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Riad El Soufi

B.Eng. Civil Engineering

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Caroline Fong

B.S. in Mechanical Engineering

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Kevin Gao

M.S. in Computer Science and Data Science

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Dishi Gautam

B.E. Engineering Product Development, Mechanical Engineering

Deepika Gopalakrishnan

Bachelor of Product Design

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Binita Gupta

B.S.E. in Computer Science

Headshot of Shangjun (Jenny) Jiang.

Shangjun (Jenny) Jiang

B.A. in Statistics and Media Studies

Headshot of Gavin Huanwen Jiao.

Huanwen (Gavin) Jiao

B.A. in Product Design

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Aqdas Kamal

B.Eng. Materials Science and Engineering, MSc Biomedical and Bioengineering

Allison Karp

B.S. Aerospace Engineering with Minor in Mathematics

Headshot of Mimi Kigawa.

Mimi Kigawa

M.A. in Geosciences and Business

Headshot of Jessica Kwon.

Jessica Kwon

B.S. Psychology & Human-Computer Interaction

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Ana Lucia Merla

B.A. in Design

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Felicia Liang

B.Com in Business Economics and Law

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Steven Morse

B.S. in Mechanical Engineering

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Lurein Perera

Computer Science and Economics

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Brandon Read

B.S. Computer Science

Headshot of Cedric-Pascal Sommer.

Cedric-Pascal Sommer

B.S. in International Business Administration

Shivesh Sood

B.Eng. in Electronics Engineering

Julius Stein

B.A. in Computer Science, MEd in Curriculum and Teaching

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Arthur van Havre

B.A. in Philosophy and Political Science

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Connie Wang

Bachelor of Architecture

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Yujie Wang (王宇杰)

B.A. in Architecture with Environment & Energy Engineering; Master in Computational Design

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Jiabin Wei

M.E. in Urban Planning and Policy Design

Headshot of Jiwon Woo.

Jiwon Woo

B.A. in Computer Science and Media Arts, M.F.A. in Biodesign

Headshot of Hana Yamaki.

Hana Yamaki

B.A. in Economics

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Daeun Yoo

B.A. in Fine Arts, Minor in Business Administration

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Wenbo Zhang

Master of Architecture, Cornell University

Aman Kaleem

Visiting Artist at Harvard University, M.A. Mass Communication with specialization in Film

MDE alumni take the skills, tools, and techniques developed during the program into a variety of fields, industries, and research institutions. Some MDE alumni work for large corporations, others for startups, non-profits, or in the academy. Their pursuits are as diverse as their backgrounds, and several have started ventures based on work in the MDE program.

Featured Alumni Stories

A watercolor portrait of Nupur Gurjar by Chidy Wayne.

Nupur Gurjar

Students in Dialogue: A conversation with MDE candidate Nupur Gurjar

Maximilian Mueller looking at camera

Maximilian Mueller

Students in Dialogue: A Conversation with Maximilian Mueller

Alumni Directory

The following listing includes a selection of MDE alumni.

Headshot of Taylor Greenberg Goldy.

Taylor Greenberg Goldy

Headshot of Mitsue Guerrero Monsalve.

Mitsue Guerrero Monsalve

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Erin McLean

Headshot of Arjun Menon.

Arjun Menon

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Terra Moran

Maximilian Mueller

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Elisa Ngan

Headshot of Elizabeth Price.

Elizabeth Price

A black and white headshot of Michael Raspuzzi (MDE '18)

Michael Raspuzzi

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Kenneth So

Headshot of Vish Srivastava.

Vish Srivastava

Headshot of Karen Su.

Karen Su

The MDE Industry Advisors are a group of industry experts from diverse fields—design, engineering, education, consulting, technology, and more. They are regularly invited to join reviews of student work and provide career advice, or might advise a second year ‘Independent Design Engineering Project’ (IDEP). The interdisciplinary expertise of our industry advisors reflects the innovation, ingenuity, goals, and values of the program, and provides invaluable support to the collaborative nature of MDE.

Headshot of Sean Chiao.

Sean Chiao

Global Business Line Chief Executive, Buildings + Places, AECOM

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Dana Cho

Chief Design Officer, Verily Life Sciences

Headshot of Andrew B. Cogan.

Andrew B. Cogan

CEO, Sonneman, Inc.

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Fiona Cousins

PE, LEED AP BD+C, Arup

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Karen Harris

Managing Director of Macro Trends Group, Bain & Company

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Jonathan Hursh

Founding Partner, Utopia

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Ana Pinto da Silva

CEO, 2G3R Inc.

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David Radcliffe

VP of Real Estate and Workplace Services, Google

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Wolfgang Rieder

Entrepreneur

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Randy Swearer

Vice President, Learning Futures, Autodesk

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Harry West

Professor of Practice, Columbia University; Principal at Invisible Design

“I remember in the first advisory board meeting that we, as advisors, looked at each other and said we would love to be students in the program ourselves. It was remarkable to see leaders of IDEO, frog, and AECOM be provoked with a childlike curiosity to learn again. The ambition and audacity of the program drew this out in them. I know we shared a keen sense that it is critical for the world that we produce designers who can handle the complexity that is rushing our way.”

-Jonathan Hursh, Founder of Utopia-