Hailei Ge, a first-year graduate student in computer science at Harvard, died on Nov. 5 after falling from a fourth-floor window in Pierce Hall on Oxford Street. The state medical examiner's office has ruled the death an apparent suicide.

Ge, of Beijing, died at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center several hours after the fall.

"Students, faculty, and staff throughout the Division are shocked and saddened by the death of Hailei Ge, who began his graduate studies in computer science this fall," said Paul Martin, Dean of the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences. "Our hearts reach out to his family in their grief as we all search for any wisdom to be gained from this tragic event."

The Division held an open meeting the next day for students, faculty, and staff to discuss the incident and to remember Ge, one of 22 first-year Ph.D. candidates in the Division. Those attending shared their sorrow and disbelief about what had happened.

A meeting was also held in the dormitory where Ge lived to give fellow students a chance to express their grief and to talk with professional counselors.

Margot Gill, Administrative Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and Randy Catlin, Chief of Mental Health Services, were on hand last week to inform friends and colleagues about the ongoing counseling services available at Harvard.