Why Harvard University Attracts Students in the World

Planning to apply at Harvard bit still want to be sure about your choice? Check out the article to understand what attracts applicants to Harvard from across the globe. Also understand how Harvard fares out among other Ivies in the country through this article.

International students aiming to study abroad, in the USA, usually aim for Ivy League universities as their priority options. One option that attracts the maximum number of international students across the globe is getting admitted to Harvard University. On average, Harvard University receives over 56,000+ admission applications each year for admission, out of which only a meagre 5-6% are accepted. 

Harvard University admissions are the toughest across the globe, yet students are still enthusiastic to give it a shot. Harvard programs, which are the most popular, include - Humanities, Social Sciences, Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, Engineering, etc.

What Attracts Students to Study at Harvard University

Apart from being one of the oldest universities in the USA and in the world, Harvard is a top-ranking Ivy League university. Education at Harvard University is highly regarded, ranking it in the top 10 positions globally and nationally. Other than these reasons, other reasons which attract students to study at Harvard University are as follows:

• Harvard University is the most undisputed leader in education, research, international outlook and teaching.
• Professors at Harvard are mostly scholars or Nobel Prize holders; thus, students willing to begin research early are advantageous.
• The extracurricular activities at Harvard are renowned. There are 500 student clubs and organisations. Also, students can create a club or organisation if they like.
• There are 3,700 courses offered at Harvard across 50 concentrations, allowing students to explore more options rather than choose from a limited set.
• Financial aid at Harvard University helps low-income students spend less than 10% of their total income to study at Harvard. In most cases, 20% of the students pay nothing to study at Harvard.
• As part of exchange programs, 70% of Harvard's students are exposed to studying internationally or working abroad.

In terms of endowment, Harvard invests the highest. Hence, it has the best infrastructure, resources for study plus research and an expansive campus with all possible amenities. The main feature that attracts researchers at Harvard is its 17 million volumes spread across 55 miles of shelving. In the following sections, let us dig deeper and understand why Harvard is so famous. 

Check out: List of Top 10 Famous Harvard Alumni

Harvard University Global Rankings: Five Year's Trend

Harvard University ranks within the top 10 universities globally annually as per QS World University Ranking and THE World Ranking. The following table shows a five-year ranking comparison for Harvard University as per QS, THE and US News & World Report:

International students aim to study in the best universities, and Harvard ranks consistently among the top 10 universities globally, another reason why students wish to study here. Regarding national rankings, as per US News & World - National University Ranking, Harvard University has consistently ranked #1 from 2021 to 2024, and the rankings for 2025 record a downfall by two positions.

Top Courses that Attract Students to Study at Harvard

Harvard is famous for its courses in Humanities, Social Sciences and Sciences. Every year, thousands of applications are received for admission to these courses. Popularly Harvard University courses that are opted widely can be assessed from the recent admission stats for the class of 2028:

• Humanities: 12%
• Social Sciences: 37%
• Natural Sciences: 26%
• Engineering: 23%
• Special Concentration: 1%
• Undecided: 2%

Harvard University Admissions

Admissions at Harvard University are known to be the toughest. From the admission process to the selection process, Harvard is known for its extreme selectivity, only to select the best of the best candidates for admission. This is another major factor that attracts students to study at Harvard because they would study with the best-selected candidates, and networking would be a major benefactor. Check out: How to Get Into Harvard from India?

The admission process at Harvard varies for undergraduate and postgraduate study levels. 

1. Undergraduate Admissions at Harvard University

To apply for admission to Harvard University for an undergraduate course, applicants are exempted from submitting ACT or SAT scores because the university chooses to be test-optional. Yet, those who still wish to submit can indicate their preference in the application. The admission application of either Common or Coalition Application is accepted along with the Harvard Supplement. Students can also apply for an application fee waiver if they are eligible.

2. Postgraduate Admissions at Harvard University

For PG admissions at Harvard University, international students are required to submit GRE or GMAT or LSAT, depending upon the choice of course opted. The university's designated course pages accept applications for postgraduate admissions at Harvard. 

3. Common Admission Requirements

International applicants applying for either UG or PG courses at Harvard University have to submit the following documents and English language proficiency test scores along with their applications:

• GPA
• Transcripts
• Admission essays
• Recommendation letters (LORs)
• Financial documents
• AP / IB test scores (optional)
• Resume / CV
• Scholarship if qualified for
• ELP test scores of either - TOEFL / IELTS / PTE / Duolingo are accepted

Note: Minimum scores for each English language proficiency test may vary depending on the application course at Harvard.

Get detailed information about application fees, deadlines, cost of attendance, types of aid available and other details at Harvard University admissions.

Harvard Acceptance Rate 2024

We cannot miss discussing the acceptance rate of Harvard admissions. Harvard’s acceptance rate fluctuated between 5.3% and 3.4% between 2020 and 2024. In the recent admission stats, it was noted that:

• A total of 56,937 applications were received for admission in 2024.
• Only 1,966 students were admitted.
• The acceptance rate for the class of 2028 was reportedly 3.4%.
• Harvard's acceptance rate of 3.4% implies that admissions at Harvard are highly selective.

If we draw a comparison of the past five years’ acceptance rate for Harvard University, this is how the table has been since 2020:

Harvard vs Other Ivy League Universities

Harvard is among the eight universities in the USA which are a part of the Ivy League. These are those sets of universities with athletic ties and are known to have the highest selectivity rate compared to other universities in the USA. Following are some briefly explained sections that illuminate how Harvard is better than other Ivy League universities.

Global Rankings: 

Talking about the comparison between Harvard and the other seven Ivy League universities, let's begin with the ranking comparison first, given in the table below:

Hands down, Harvard University's rankings are far higher than those of other well-known top-ranking Ivy League universities, consistently proving its mettle. 

Applications Received:

Harvard is one of the leading universities in terms of receiving the maximum number of applications, the following applications were received in 2022 in these top Ivy League universities in the order of chronology:

• Harvard University: 56,937
• Cornell University: 51,328
• University of Pennsylvania: 59,465
• Yale University: 50,060
• Columbia University: 60,248
• Brown University: 51,316

Acceptance Rate:

The following acceptance rates were recorded for 2024 admissions across these top five Ivy League universities along with Harvard:

Thus, Harvard recorded the lowest acceptance rate in 2024, compared to other Ivy League universities.

MBA at Ivy League Universities

In terms of difficulty of admission, and rankings, the following comparison has been drawn in the table below for Harvard and other Ivy League universities for reference:

There is a cut-to-cut competition between Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania regarding rankings and the average GMAT score required for admission. Still, the average salary for MBA graduates from UPenn is higher than that of Harvard. Admission to the MBA program at Harvard is harder any day than admission to any other university in the Ivy League. 

Overall, it can be concluded that Harvard has outperformed other Ivy League universities in three key areas of: rankings, applications received and acceptance rate. There is clear-cut head-to-head for MBA admissions at Harvard and UPenn, thus, more or less they are equal at that stage. Plus, all of these are some of the hardest universities to get into in USA.

Harvard however, is a dream come true for those who make it through, hence, these factors point towards the fact that though admissions at Harvard are tough, yet getting through the admissions is worth the effort. 

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