Harvard University

Overview

Harvard University is a private institution that was founded in 1636. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 7,240 (fall 2023), and the campus size is 5,076 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Harvard University's ranking in the 2024 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, #3. Its tuition and fees are $59,076.

Located outside Boston in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University is made up of 12 graduate and professional schools, an undergraduate college and the Harvard Radcliffe Institute. Its schools include the top-ranked Business School and Medical School and the highly ranked Graduate Education School, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Law School and John F. Kennedy School of Government. Harvard is a private, nonprofit institution that was founded in 1636 colonial America by the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The school was initially created to educate members of the clergy, according to the university’s archives. Harvard is named after a Puritan minister – John Harvard – who, in 1638, left his 400-book library and half of his estate to the young school. The first commencement ceremony at Harvard, held in 1642, had nine graduates.

Harvard's extensive library system houses the oldest collection in the U.S. and the largest academic library in the world. Beyond books, Harvard's athletic teams compete in the Ivy League, with an annual football match-up against rival Yale. On-campus residential housing is an integral part of student life, where freshmen live at the center of campus and upperclassmen live in 12 undergraduate houses. Eight U.S. presidents graduated from Harvard, including Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy. Other notable alumni include Henry David Thoreau and Helen Keller. Harvard also has the largest endowment of any school in the world.

Admissions

* These are the average scores of applications admitted to this school. Ranges represent admitted applicants who fell within the 25th and 75th percentile.

Harvard University has an acceptance rate of 3%. Half the applicants admitted to Harvard University who submitted test scores have an SAT score between 1490 and 1580 or an ACT score of 34 and 36. However, one quarter of admitted applicants achieved scores above these ranges and one quarter scored below these ranges. The application deadline at Harvard University is Jan. 1. Admissions officials at Harvard University consider a student's GPA an academic factor. An applicant's high school class rank is not considered but letters of recommendation are considered by admissions officials at Harvard University. 

Cost

International Student’s Requirements

●        Same application deadline as regular students - Fall - January 1

●        No separate application form required - $85

●        No conditional admissions offered

●        Only early action available - no early decision allowed

●        Both TOEFL and IELTS accepted

●        SAT or ACT required along with TOEFL or IELTS

Student Diversity

Academics