Korea Institute Undergraduate Research Assistantship

Applications due: February 28, 2027, 11:59 PM ET
The Korea Institute will offer Undergraduate Research Assistantships for Korea focused projects supervised by Harvard faculty for summer 2027. The RAships will be remote or hybrid. There will be a range of opportunities for Harvard undergraduates to work on faculty research projects in a variety of capacities. RAships are a great opportunity for students with little research experience to get hands-on exposure to the research world. Research Assistant positions offer unique possibilities for intellectual growth, while providing students with invaluable skills and experience. Work is arranged and directed by faculty members, who will directly supervise student RAs. The specifics of the intellectual goals for the student and the research tasks involved will vary. The student and faculty member will discuss and clarify in advance the research responsibilities and outcomes. Students may assist with data collection, data analysis, literature reviews, or other aspects of a faculty project. If awarded a KI Research Assistantship, the student will be paid $20 per hour (up to $2,000 total summer stipend per Assistantship via weekly payroll if all work is completed) over 5-10 weeks, based on the needs of the faculty project.

Faculty project listings for summer 2027 will be forthcoming in late January onward. Please continue to check back. Directions to apply are found towards the bottom of this page.

2026 Summer Faculty Projects as FYI:
Prof. Jungyoon Kim, Associate Professor in Practice of Landscape Architecture, Harvard GSD; and
Prof. Nicholas Harkness, Modern Korean Economy and Society Professor of Anthropology
Faculty Email: jungyoonkim@gsd.harvard.edu
Project Title: Book Project "Designers of Mountain and Water"
Project Description: We are looking for two RAs for the summer 2026, who can help us prepare a manuscript for a post-conference/exhibition publication, aiming to publish by the end of 2027.
RA's tasks will include:
• transcribe the recording of panel talks/ discussions
• refine the transcription to make it suitable for publication
• make a draft INDD file to communicate with a book designer/ publisher
Skills Needed: Adobe programs, such as InDesign (for book layout) and Photoshop (for very basic editing of photos/ project images). It will be helpful if the RA is fluent in Korean and Chinese, but it is not an absolute requirement. The RA must be someone who enjoys reading and literature research. At least 1-2 in-person meetings before summer with me on campus, then the work can be done between June and August remotely. Anticipated work hours: 100 hours
Compensation: $20/hour; start date early June 2026; a minimum of 10 hours/week; 10 weeks (maximum compensation is $2,000)
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Prof. Chan Yong Bu
Faculty Email: cbu@fas.harvard.edu
Project Title: "Korean film subtitling Project"
Project Description: This project aims to expand the range of Korean films accessible to students who do not speak or read Korean but are eager to explore works beyond those commonly known in the United States. Over the past two years of teaching multiple film courses, I’ve seen a strong student interest in discovering “hidden gems” of Korean cinema outside the canon of well-known directors. This summer presents an ideal opportunity to develop teaching materials that respond to that demand. A student assistant will subtitle 3–4 Korean films (each approximately two hours long) and convert them into digital formats for classroom use. All selected films have already received approval from their directors for educational use.
Skills Needed: Basic knowledge in video editing programs such as Final Cut Pro
Compensation: $20/hour; start date early June 2026; a minimum of 10 hours/week; 10 weeks (maximum compensation is $2,000)
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2025 Summer Faculty Projects as FYI:
Prof. Si Nae Park, Associate Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations
Faculty Email: sinaepark@fas.harvard.edu
Project Title: Literary History, Literary Information, and the Making of Korean Literature
Project Description: This project examines the intersection of literary historiography and the history of the book with a regional and temporal focus on Korea at the turn of the twentieth century. Research assistance is needed for compilation of bibliographies, generation of timelines, data visualization, and data collection.
Skills Needed: Reading ability in Korean is required. Reading ability in sinographs (Chinese characters, especially traditional characters), Japanese, and French are greatly welcome. Spreadsheet skills (data entry, formatting, filtering, etc.), basic Adobe Acrobat skills (OCR generation and text extraction, for example) are welcome.
Compensation: $20/hour; start date late May/early June 2025; a minimum of 10 hours/week; 10 weeks or less depending on the RA’s progress (maximum compensation is $2,000)
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Prof. Nicholas Harkness, Modern Korean Economy and Society Professor of Anthropology; Director, Korea Institute, Harvard University
Faculty Email: harkness@fas.harvard.edu
Project Title: Korean Natural Language Processing and AI Research
Project Description: Goal is to survey the published literature on Korean Natural Language Processing and AI research, to compare approaches across Korean and English language models, and to reanalyze exemplary studies in terms of Peircean semiotics, particularly focusing on the role (explicit or implicit) of indexicality (referential and non-referential) and abductive inference. The aim is (a) to identify and explain patterned differences in Large Language Models designed for Korean and English and (b) to differentiate the patterns in terms of the syntax-semantics interface, the semantics-pragmatics interface, the genre-register interface, and broader linguistic ideological inferences about interaction and social indexicality.
Skills Needed: Bilingual in Korean and English; Computer Science
Compensation: $20/hour; start date early June 2025; a minimum of 10 hours/week; 10 weeks or less depending on the RA’s progress (maximum compensation is $2,000)

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Students should reach out to individual faculty members to inquire about their RA opportunities, scope, and duties. Students may apply for only one KI research assistantship opportunity. For questions about specific projects, please contact the professor directly.

Email Applications to Faculty are due: February 28, 2027, 11:59 PM ET

Please note: You are ineligible to apply if you are on a Leave of Absence during Spring Term.

To Apply:

First, reach out to individual faculty to learn more about each faculty RAship.

To apply, email the following information to each faculty sponsor of an RAship before the deadline
(February 28, 2027, 11:59 PM ET)

Full name (first, LAST)
Harvard ID Number
Email Address/es
Current physical address and citizenship
Concentration; class year
Korean language proficiency level (if any)
Financial Aid status (recipient or not)
1-2 paragraphs explaining reasons for interest in the project; and
1-2 paragraphs describing relevant coursework (if any), relevant work/research experience (if any), or reasons for interest in learning more about research via this project.
Budget: Include the number of available work hours per week, the number of weeks available to work, the earliest beginning date and latest end date. Please note: Living/travel/equipment expenses may not be included.

Faculty will review applications and may invite final candidates to interview via Zoom.
Students should be notified sometime in March/April of the RAship award decision. Students must accept or decline the RAship offer via emailing cglover@fas.harvard.edu and include all RAship project/timeline details.
The KI will contact students to initiate weekly student payroll set-up for payment as work is completed.
KI Undergraduate Research Assistantship awardees will submit to the Korea Institute a 1-2-page written report detailing the RAship experience, along with a photo of yourself and/or your work, by August 31, 2027. Awardees will also be expected to give a presentation and speak with students on the RAship experience at an information session during the 2027-28 academic year and become an ambassador for this program.