MORE INFORMATION

CONTACT INFORMATION – prospective participants are welcome to contact the Faculty Chair or Program Director.

Faculty Chair:          Steve Peterson
                                 Stephen_peterson@harvard.edu
Program Director:   Katherine Calzada
                                 katherine_calzada@harvard.edu

Visa
What visa do I apply for?
Executive Education participants should apply for a B-1 non-immigrant visa for business/tourist purposes.  The only documentation Harvard provides is your admissions notification.  The Public Financial Management program is an executive education training program.  Do NOT apply for a student or scholar visa.

Accommodations
What are the accommodations for participants?
Participants are housed in graduate student housing at Soldiers Field Park Apartments , located across the Charles River, adjacent to the Harvard Business School.  These furnished apartments have two- or three- bedrooms with window air-conditioners.  You will have a private bedroom and share a bathroom and kitchenette with one or two other participants. For your convenience, clock radios are provided in each bedroom. A coffee maker, telephone, TV, iron, and ironing board are provided in each apartment. Bed linens and towels are also provided. 

Can members of my family join me for weekend visits?
Since you will be sharing an apartment with one or more program participants, there are no accommodations available for family members or guests.  We recommend the following local hotels for family members or friends who might visit you.

Harvard Square Hotel
Inn At Harvard
Charles Hotel
DoubleTree Guest Suites
Marriott Kendall Square
Residence Inn, Kendall Square
Irving and Harding Houses

Are participants required to live on campus?
Yes, this is a residential program.

How do I get to Soldiers Field Park?
Attached are detailed travel directions.  Most participants will fly into Boston’s Logan Airport and take a cab to Soldiers Field Park.  If you would like a map of the Kennedy School, or of Harvard, or of the Greater Cambridge area, go to:  http://ksgexecprogram.harvard.edu/life/directions.html.

Attire
What is the typical attire for this program?
For classes, casual dress is suggested.  You will be sitting in a classroom for long periods of time so you should dress comfortably.  For the final dinner (Thursday night of the final week) “business attire” is suggested.  It can be quite hot and humid in Cambridge in July but the classrooms are air-conditioned and can be chilly.  We suggest that you bring light clothes that you can wear in layers for comfort.  You should also bring comfortable walking shoes.

Currency
How much cash should I bring?
The tuition for Public Financial Management, $11,000.00US includes the following meals:  Opening Dinner on Monday, 9 July and Closing Dinner on Thursday 26 July, breakfast and lunch Monday through Friday of each week.  Participants are on their own for evening and weekend meals.  We suggest budgeting $35-$50US per day for dinner and incidentals.  Please note that the participant apartments contain fully furnished kitchens in which to cook. Grocery markets are within walking distance from the apartment complex.  All curriculum materials, lodging, athletic pass, and health insurance are included in the tuition fee.

Local Transportation
Will I need a car?
Boston and its adjacent communities are well served by public transport.  Cars are not only not needed; they are costly and difficult to park. 

Physical Fitness
Will I have time to workout?
Breakfast is from 7-8 AM and study groups convene at 8 AM (see attached sample daily schedule).  You will have time to work out either very early in the morning or after the third class which ends at 3:30 PM.

Will I have access to workout facilities?
Program participants are entitled to use certain University athletic facilities including tennis, basketball, volleyball, swimming, weight room, and outdoor track.

Registration
Registration will take place at the Soldiers Field Park Apartments on the First Sunday of the program (Sunday, 8 July).  Please go to the Common Room between 11:00 am and 4:00 pm.  The street address is:

            One Western Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts.

The opening session will be held on Sunday afternoon followed by the opening night dinner.  Your travel plans should allow you to arrive in Boston no later than mid-day on Sunday, July 8th. 

Many of the executives participating in Public Financial Management will arrive on Saturday 7 July due to extended travel periods.  Unfortunately, the participant apartments will not be available until Sunday 8 July. 

Those who plan to arrive in Cambridge before the program begins on Sunday, 8 July, or are staying in the area after the program ends (Friday, 27 July) could consider staying in one of the following nearby hotels:

Harvard Square Hotel
Inn At Harvard
Charles Hotel
DoubleTree Guest Suites
Marriott Kendall Square
Residence Inn, Kendall Square
Irving and Harding Houses

Schedule
When will I receive the schedule and course materials?
After you have been accepted, you will be provided with instructions for access to the program class page. The class page will contain information about everything from registration to advance reading instructions as well as the full schedule.

Can I arrive later in the week?
This is not a conference where you sample a little of this session and a little of that.  Immediately on Monday morning, we start laying out the intellectual base of the curriculum, with each subsequent session building on the previous ones.  If you show up late, it will take you several days to figure out what is going on.  That said, we certainly understand that traveling from afar is difficult so we will work with you and your schedule. Please keep the program staff informed of any delays in your arrival schedule.

Do I really have to participate in all of the sessions?
Yes.  The Kennedy School admits participants to Executive Education programs with the clear understanding that they will be free of all regular professional responsibilities throughout the program.  The faculty believes that attendance by each participant at every session is essential to ensuring that Public Financial Management makes the maximum contribution both to the individual and the entire group.  The sessions often build on materials presented in previous sessions so it is essential that participants stay current in the course.

When does the program end?
On Friday, 27 July, Public Financial Management will conclude by 1:00 pm.  Please do not make reservations on flights that depart Boston’s Logan Airport before 4:00 pm on Friday, 27 July.

Will I work at night during Public Financial Management?
Yes.  Each afternoon you will have additional reading to do.  And each evening, you and other members of your team will have to work through cases for the next day’s sessions.  These team discussions are a significant part of the learning process.

 

Sample Daily Schedule
7:00 am – 8:00 am                    Breakfast
8:00 am – 9:00 am                    Study groups meet to discuss case material and assigned        
                                                study questions
9:00 am – 10: 30 am                 First Session
10:30 am – 11: 00 am               Break
11:00 am – 12:30 pm               Second Session
12:30 pm – 2:00 pm                 Lunch with guest speaker
2:00 pm – 3:30 pm                   Third Session
3:30 pm – 6:00 pm                   Reading and preparation for the next day

Note:  there are no sessions scheduled on Saturday or Sunday

Here is the full program schedule from 2006