The Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute forms a vital component of Harvard University's international studies community. The Institute's mission is to advance knowledge about Ukraine in the United States through research and teaching in the fields of history, philology, literature, and the social sciences. HURI also fosters the study of all religious and ethnic groups that live in Ukraine, bridges between Ukrainian studies and the study of Russia, Poland, Turkey, Belarus, and Moldova, and maintains close relations with Ukraine's cultural and academic institutions.

The Institute's programs are supported by three endowed professors in Ukrainian history, philology, and literature, and associated faculty and students at Harvard and other academic institutions. HURI also publishes scholarly monographs and the journal Harvard Ukrainian Studies. The Institute maintains a reference library, archives, and a seminar series in Ukrainian Studies. The Institute organizes the Harvard Ukrainian Summer Institute, which is part of the Harvard Summer School.