Master of Science in Data Science 

at Harvard University, Cambridge

The final answer to selecting a place to study MBA programme at INSEAD or Harvard depends on the students’ preference or the target location for career. However, according to the alumni of INSEAD Singapore, here are some of the few points that make INSEAD Singapore a great school:

• If students are looking for a career worldwide, then the applicants can choose INSEAD Singapore as it truly provides with a global network
• Also, students at INSEAD are quite diverse
• A lot of students’ friends who have passed from INSEAD have now positions like CEOs, major directors of NGOs, etc. In all, INSEAD’s alumni network is quite global

Getting into Harvard University is quite competitive but not impossible. Applicants can get into Harvard once they have outstanding academic grades. For the Class of 2028, 1,937 of the 54,008 applicants to class were granted admission, This is equivalent to 3.6%. Apart from the academic achievements, Harvard University also looks for these qualities in students:

• Growth & Potential
• Interests & Activities (Extracurricular)
• Personal Character
• Contribution to the Harvard Community

According to an unofficial ranking body, Harvard University acceptance rate is 3% for Indian students, and the early acceptance rate of 7.6%. This means that the students who apply early may have higher selection chances. The low acceptance percentage symbolizes that the university is too stringent not only for Indians but for each country. Along with fulfilling the basic eligibility criteria, students must provide relevant work experience or internships in some cases and submit the mandatory documents. The crucial list includes standardized test scores, essays, a resume, transcripts, English language requirements, a letter of recommendation, and more.

Let us compare the tuition fees range of Harvard University and the University of Oxford for UG and PG courses:

The starting range of the tuition fees at Oxford for UG course is less than Harvard, whereas, the upper range of the fees is roughly same. However, studying PG courses at Oxford University is costlier than Harvard University. 

Harvard and Oxford University are known to be some of the top ranked universities in the world. Some of the factors that help in comparing the two universities are given as follows:

International students can apply for a master's programme at Harvard till early December. The students must apply through the official portals of Harvard Kennedy School, John A. Paulson School of Engineering, or others. They must submit some mandatory documents, such as academic transcripts, a letter of recommendation, a resume, an essay, a GRE/GMAT score, and pay the application fee. Students can check the application deadlines below:

·       MS (John A. Paulson School of Engineering): Dec 1, 2025

·       MS (Harvard Kennedy School): Early Dec 2025 (Application available in September)

The University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University, both are the most reputed institutions in the USA. There is no comparison between them. However, students can decide where to go as both of them are extremely popular and can lead to a successful career. Students with extremely excellent performance can make a place in either of two as their acceptance rates are very low. The Harvard University acceptance rate is 3.41% which is the second the lowest in history and UPenn acceptance rate is 5.4%. Both universities provide a wide range of programs in over 100 specializations and their tuition costs are high. Students can check the below comparison table and decide where they must apply:

As per the QS World University Rankings - Best Global Universities 2025, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is the top ranking university in the US. Whereas, Harvard has been ranked #2 in the US top universities list. According to the Times Higher Education rankings, the top 3 universities in the US are Stanford University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Other top universities in the US include:

While both Columbia and Harvard, are part of the best universities in USA, they are also highly selective. The Columbia University acceptance rate is 4.9% for the Class of 2029, while the Harvard University acceptance rate is 3.6%. Thus, it can be said that Harvard is marginally tough to secure admissions at than Columbia, however, there is not much between them. 

The difference between Harvard and Yale is marginal and both the universities are consistently ranked among the top universities worldwide. A comparison between these universities is given below: