2023-Present College Academics & Activities

Harvard and Berklee

(As of December 2025), Sofia Detjen is a cross-registered student at Harvard University and Berklee College of Music, where she continues to distinguish herself at the intersection of music, scholarship, and leadership.

Entering her third year, Sofia serves as the resident drummer for The Hasty Pudding Theatricals—the third-oldest theater company in the world—with over 40 performances across Cambridge, New York City, and Bermuda. Her recent performances included sharing the stage with Jon Hamm and Academy Award-winner Cynthia Erivo during the Hasty Pudding’s annual Man and Woman of the Year celebrations, and she will return to the stage for the company’s upcoming 177th production, Salooney Tunes.

Sofia was recently accepted into the prestigious Berklee Global Jazz Institute (BGJI), under the direction of GRAMMY® Award-winner Danilo Pérez. Through BGJI, she is mentored by world-renowned jazz artists including Terri Lyne Carrington, John Patitucci, George Garzone, and Joe Lovano, and is given opportunities to deepen her creative expression, collaborate internationally, and perform at the highest levels of contemporary jazz.

She also brings original jazz, hip-hop, and R&B songs to life as the drummer for Boom Boom Sauce, and performs with Ibis, a genre-blending band influenced by folk, jazz, and indie traditions.

Her earlier performance credits at Harvard include Jekyll & Hyde, Little Shop of Horrors, Spring Awakening, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, First Year Musical: The Kids Are Alight, and The Hasty Pudding Theatricals’ 175th production HEIST, HEIST, BABY! and 176th production 101 Damnations.

Sofia’s recent experiences reflect her dual passions for music and public service. In the summer of 2024, she was selected for the Hudson Institute Political Studies Fellowship in Washington, D.C., where she studied political theory and policy alongside leading scholars and practitioners. Following that, she traveled to Shanghai and Beijing as a Harvard College representative, engaging in bilateral policy discussions on Data Regulation and Artificial Intelligence. In the summer of 2025, she interned with The Kurland Agency, the world’s premier representation firm for top-tier jazz artists, gaining professional insight into the global music industry.

Academically, Sofia’s interests span History and the great texts of literature, philosophy, government, and the arts, explored through coursework at Harvard College and the Harvard Kennedy School. She is currently learning Arabic, deepening her linguistic skills and cultural fluency.

In recognition of her academic promise and global engagement, Sofia was named a Kenneth I. Juster Fellow and selected as a 2026 Undergraduate Associate of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. In Winter 2026, she will conduct international research for her senior thesis with study placements at both the London School of Economics and the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the national library of France.

Sofia’s leadership shines across several extracurricular activities. She is a contributing member of The Hasty Pudding Institute of 1770, The IC final club, and the Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative (HUFPI), where she previously served as Deputy Director of Foreign Summits. She also successfully walked on to the Harvard-Radcliffe Women’s Heavyweight Rowing Team, competing at the NCAA Division I level.

With a unique blend of discipline, creativity, and global perspective, Sofia continues to be a strong voice on campus—driven by her enduring commitment to Global Music Diplomacy.

Last updated: December 2025