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Teaching & Advising

I have held several teaching and advising positions during my time at Harvard, giving me experience with administering both large and small courses, course design, and mentoring student projects, for which I have won numerous awards. I have experience teaching in person, remotely, and in a hybrid format. I also have 9 years experience as a primary academic advisor to students deciding on their concentration (major) and two years experience as the primary academic advisor to students concentrating in sociology. I summarize the range of my experiences below. Course feedback is posted at the bottom.

Courses Taught:

  • Head Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Psychological Science (Jason Mitchell, Spring 2022) ^
  • Head Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Psychological Science (Daniel Gilbert, Fall 2021) ^ *hybrid
  • Head Teaching Fellow, Remote Support Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Psychological Science (Steven Pinker, Spring 2021) *fully remote
  • Head Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Psychological Science (Daniel Gilbert, Fall 2020) *fully remote
  • Head Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Psychological Science (Jason Mitchell, Spring 2020) *pivot to online learning due to COVID-19, no teaching evaluations   
  • Head Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Psychological Science (Daniel Gilbert, Fall 2019) ^
  • Teaching Fellow, Introduction to Social Inequality (Ben Sosnaud, Spring 2017) ^
  • Head Teaching Fellow, Media and Popular Culture (Matt Kaliner, Fall 2016)

^Harvard Distinction in Teaching Award, Harvard Bok Center

For each semester I was Head Teaching Fellow (class sizes ranged from 100-450), my responsibiliites included assisting faculty with course administration (for example, coordinating student assignment to discussion sections, which involved developing the overall schedule accommodating both teaching fellow and student schedules, and logistics (e.g., room booking, ID card coding for rooms, course-wide communications); assisting with exam preparations, including special arrangements for students with academic accommodations; and so on). In addition, I also led multiple discussion sections each semester I held this role, including preparing weekly presentations to groups of 12-15 Harvard undergraduates and facilitating discussions; holding weekly office hours; grading papers and other short assignments.

As a teaching fellow at Harvard for courses on social stratification, inequality, I developed and taught sections, coached students on their writing, and assisted in course development. 

Advising & Mentoring:

  • Sophomore Academic Advisor, Harvard College (2014–2023) *Star Family Prize for Excellence in Advising (awarded 2022, nominee 2021)
  • Sociology Department Concentration Advisor (2015-2017)
  • Undergraduate Senior Thesis Advising (Department of Sociology, 2019-2020)
  • Undergraduate Senior Thesis Advising (Department of Social Studies, 2017–2018)  *student nominated for Hoopes Prize
  • Undergraduate Senior Thesis Advising (Department of Sociology, 2016–2017) *student nominated for Hoopes Prize
  • Independent research project mentoring through Lumiere (3 students, 2021-2022)

    Residential Teaching & Advising
  • Resident Tutor, Eliot House (Officer of Harvard College, 2014–2023)
  • Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging Advising (2016–2023)
    • I developed and facilitate the Class Diversity Seminar, which was awarded the Alan Heimert and Arline Grimes Award in 2021
  • Fellowships Advising (2014–2016)

Selected Qualitative Evaluations (complete evaluations available upon request):

“Siobhan is brilliant. Her previous experiences and general interest in the subject matter definitely contributes to her ability to teach section very effectively, and I feel lucky to have been able to learn from her this past semester. She is also great at facilitating discussion, and I always appreciate the thought-provoking questions she asks.”

“Siobhan is an amazing teaching fellow who creates an encouraging section environment that makes it comfortable and even enjoyable to participate. Beyond being a great listener and facilitator of discussion, she has a lot of knowledge on the subject matter that allows us to supplement what we've learned in class. She made section something we all actually looked forward to every Thursday evening. Furthermore, Siobhan is one of the most accessible TF's I've ever had––beyond scheduling many office hours ahead of papers, she even makes time in her busy schedule to meet with you separately if you need more guidance. Siobhan is one of the instructors I'll miss most at Harvard!”

“Siobhan was hands down the best TF I have had at this institution. I have never been a part of sections where there has been so much excitement to speak up and participate and this was a function of Siobhan's influence over the room. She authentically engaged and fostered a relationship with each student in our section by being available for meetings at any point throughout the semester and this was probably the reason why students always seemed to come to class having read the material and ready to discuss. Her knowledge of outside research on these topics was a tremendous help and never once did I hear Siobhan not able to provide some form of academic inquiry or research into a topic that a student brought up.”

“My section leader was truly AMAZING! She went above and beyond to craft presentations, find videos, facilitate discussions, etc to really consolidate the material covered in lecture as well as those touched upon the readings. She created an environment wherein we were able to critically engage with psychological theories and topics while applying them to real world challenges –––such as bias and the means to truly address it. And because of this the class was absolutely rewarding and intellectually stimulating. Really helped reshape the way I think about the world around me and the individuals with whom I interact with.”