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Would I be accepted at a Phd Program @Harvard when my '''education''' didn't go beyond high-school? I have however done lot of self-study after graduating from high-school by studying:

  • Electrodynamics.
  • General Relativity.
  • Quantum Mechanics ...

and all the maths that is related to those physics areas. So do I have any chance?

hééhéhéhéhéhhé
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    Why don't you just try? Or contact the admission office of Harvard? I doubt one can reasonably say whether you have a chance or not without knowing all the details. –  Jan 20 '14 at 19:03
  • Yes, this is a duplicate. Voting to close. – aeismail Jan 20 '14 at 23:02
  • I don't know if you'll get into Harvard but try the subject GRE for competitive admissions. – Wakem Mar 19 '20 at 22:07

2 Answers2

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You PROBABLY don't have any chance at the moment. Have you published in the field? Do you have any projects that you could show to a professor (outside Harvard first?) that might shed light on your exceptional ability? Without ever going to any college you would have to be extraordinary enough to be an exception to Harvard's admission criteria. Of course, alternatively you could try taking some graduate level classes somewhere else, build a relationship with a professor, and either join their program for a preparatory master's or get them to comment to Harvard on your abilities.

Wakem
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  • This is in no way a discouragement. The fear of inadequacy created by studying all of this on your own may have actually helped you to be better than the average admit at Harvard PhD. If this is so (which you would have a hard time evaluating by yourself), then the channels suggested could reveal this to Harvard. – Wakem Jan 21 '14 at 17:27
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It's definitely possible. What you need is: (1) someone the PhD program at Harvard acknowledges to vouch for your academic skills, and (2) show them you have those skills. (1) is normally accomplished by including letters of recommendation from your college professors. You need to be creative in choosing your recommenders. (2) is normally accomplished by including a writing sample in your application (this is normally required anyway).

And by the way, you're accepted to a program, not at a program. If your application contains grammatical mistakes like that, you're unlikely to be accepted. That's just the way it is.

Sverre
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    The person doesn't claim to have anything beyond a high school education. – aeismail Jan 20 '14 at 23:00
  • @aeismail Yes, I am aware ... ? – Sverre Jan 21 '14 at 13:04
  • So who should act as the recommenders. Saying "being creative" isn't exactly helpful here. . . . – aeismail Jan 21 '14 at 13:48
  • It's not definitely possible. It's definitely plausible. Getting into Harvard PhD is not a purely stochastic event. Certain (difficult) conditions have to be met by the OP as far as producing evidence of excellence, which might not be physically possible depending on his actual level of excellence. – Wakem Jan 21 '14 at 14:42