New Journal To Publish Short Student Research

Brevia, a new undergraduate research journal focusing on shorter-form articles, is set to publish its first issue next semester. The journal gives students the opportunity to showcase their new research in fields that range from hard sciences to the humanities in under 500 words.

“[We recognize] that people speak in the more biological and physical sciences sense when it comes to research, but we really want to expand that to other fields,” said Brevia co-chair Jennifer S. Chen ’15. “I think Brevia is pushing that idea.”

Chen, Ryan Lee ’15, and Josephine Volovetz ’14, all members of Harvard College Undergraduate Research Association’s Campus Projects Committee, serve as the co-chairs of Brevia.

In addition to covering a broad range of topics, the new journal aims to make research more accessible. Submissions must meet a 500-word limit to allow easy readability, according to those spearheading the effort.

“We really emphasize the short, to-the-point research,” Lee said. “Science Magazine also has a section called ‘Brevia,’ and it’s pretty much the same concept.... [The articles] will aim towards people who are not in the field. We don’t really want technical terms. We’re not looking for your typical research paper.”

In addition to short research summaries, the journal will also feature a “Brevia Spotlight” section that will allow undergraduates to interview peers involved in research and to submit highlights of those interviews to the journal.

“The ultimate goal is making awesome research more accessible,” Chen said. “The aim of the HCURA isn’t just to promote research on campus, but also to form a community of researchers, and we do that by learning what our peers are doing and by taking pride in all the research we’re doing here.”

Submissions for Brevia’s first issue are due by Dec. 7. The co-chairs said they hope to publish one issue per semester, but that the frequency will depend on the number of submissions they receive.

“I think just as much as [Brevia] is making the articles and what is published accessible to the campus community, it is also making a forum that isn’t too intimidating to submit to,” Chen said.

HCURA already has a presence on Harvard’s campus; the organization hosts a research conference and coordinates an advising program.

“One of the last frontiers that we didn’t have anything for was publications and showing the rest of the community what students are doing. I guess we wanted to dip into that,” Volovetz said.