College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

Harvard University

MAMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #32 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

The strongest at Harvard University is return, ranked #1 among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

Harvard University is a private nonprofit university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where the degree mix is led by Social Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Mathematics & Statistics. Return is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them, and the model attributes more of that to a remainder it does not explain than to the factors it measures. The typical graduate earns above the median at comparable schools, so the raw and adjusted pictures point the same way.

Pell recipients complete within a few points of the rate for the entering cohort as a whole, and mobility is well above average. Families at the bottom of the income scale pay well below the published cost, while those at the top pay closer to it.

The admission rate is below the median for comparable institutions, and most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study. A student drawn to the social sciences should know that the largest departments are not the best-paid ones.

Harvard University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
3.6%
Six-year completion[2]
97.6%
Four-year earnings[3]
$134,794

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$2,091
Median student debt[4]
$14,000
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$28,000

Harvard University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Harvard University is a private nonprofit university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, enrolling 7,601 undergraduates. It sits near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (in the 98th percentile).

Harvard University admits 3.6% of applicants, against a peer median of 71.2%, the middle value for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Of students who start full time, 98.3% return after the first year, against a peer median of 83.4%.

97.6% complete a degree within six years, against a peer median of 68.8%. An estimated 0.8% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year graduation rate, which counts only first-time full-time students, describes nearly the entire entering class.

Return is the strongest of the four pillars and affordability is the weakest, with mobility and access sitting between them. The four sit far apart from one another across the ranking, so the university's strength in graduate earnings and its position on affordability are not aligned.

Azimuth ranks Harvard University #32 among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions, with the return pillar in the 99th percentile. The mobility pillar sits in the 89th percentile, access in the 82nd percentile, and affordability in the 78th percentile. Return is the strongest pillar, while affordability is the weakest.

The middle 50% of submitted SAT scores at Harvard University fell between 1,510 and 1,580. 16.4% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants.

Azimuth ranks the university #258 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Pell recipients complete at 92.9%, 4.7 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate.

Azimuth ranks the university #155 for mobility. Graduates earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

Harvard University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#32
Massachusetts#1
Northeast#4

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 89
Access & reach
National percentile: 82
Affordability
National percentile: 78
Return on investment
National percentile: 99

Top-ranked majors

  1. Natural Sciences#1
  2. Social Sciences, General#3
  3. Economics#5

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / Harvard University briefing

Harvard University cost & financial aid[6][7]

Harvard University lists an annual published cost of attendance of $85,540. That total includes tuition and fees of $61,676 and room and board of $21,190.

Azimuth ranks the university #308 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. For first-time, full-time aid recipients, the average net price falls to $19,066, a reduction of $66,474 from the full sticker total.

Aid covers about 78% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. That is positioned below the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $8,305.

The published cost of attendance at Harvard University is $85,540. Azimuth ranks the university #308 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $8,697, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $2,091, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $53,337. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $44,640.

Aid covers about 78% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, bringing the overall average net price to $19,066. That is $8,305 below the $27,371 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $14,000 in federal student loans, which is $10,199 below the $24,199 peer median. About 42.1% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $28,000 in Parent PLUS loans. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $159 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$2,091

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Harvard University

Federal borrowers who complete a degree at Harvard University carry a median debt of $14,000. That median is below the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size), a gap of $10,199.

42.1% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. The median Parent PLUS debt, a separate parent-borrower population, is $28,000.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 16% of the bachelor's graduates in the cohort borrowed from any source, averaging $22,926 per borrower. 7% of graduates in the cohort carried federal loans, averaging $13,844, including 2% with private loans, averaging $77,146.

Graduates of Harvard University earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students, a result in the 99th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The median earnings four years after completion are $134,794, a level that sits in the 99th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios anchored on the university's program mix show a typical outcome of $134,794, a downside of $57,554, and an upside of $193,209. The median federal student debt for borrowers who complete is $14,000, which falls below the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $10,199.

For that median debt, the estimated monthly payment if repaid over ten years is $159.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $28,000. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $159.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$14,000
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$28,000

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$159/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$356/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / Harvard University briefing

Harvard University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Azimuth ranks Harvard University #1 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. That places the return pillar in the 99th percentile.

Graduates earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students, a result in the 99th percentile nationally. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $10,306.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $27,768. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $5,571.

The median earnings four years after completion reach $134,794, in the 99th percentile. That figure runs above the peer median of $68,250 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $66,544.

Graduates of Harvard University earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students, placing the outcome in the 99th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The median earnings four years after completion are $134,794, drawn from 2,259 federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled.

That level sits above the peer median of $68,250 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $66,544, and it falls in the 99th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios tied to the program mix range from a downside of $57,554 to an upside of $193,209, with a typical outcome of $134,794.

The program mix yields an estimate that 41.3% of graduates continue to graduate study, not an observed enrollment count.

Harvard University graduates record a median of $134,794 four years after completion, a level in the 99th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks the university #1 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Comparable institutions (same type and size) post a peer median of $68,250; the university's figure is above by $66,544. Graduates earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students, placing the outcome in the 99th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $10,306. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $27,768.

Inside the measured factors, the STEM component adds $5,571. Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix show a downside of $57,554 and an upside of $193,209.

Statistics records the highest program-level median, with 61 degrees awarded and earnings of $230,876 four years after completion, a level at 2.50x the national median for the field. Social Sciences, the largest program by degrees awarded, shows 195 degrees and a median of $78,996, or 1.48x the national median.

Computer Science awards 173 degrees at a median of $203,169, or 1.90x the national median.

The earnings scenarios at Harvard University show a wide range: a downside of $57,554 and an upside of $193,209. That gap reflects the variation in program-level outcomes four years after completion.

The highest-earning field, Statistics, reaches a median of $230,876. Computer Science, one of the largest programs by degrees awarded, follows at $203,169, while Economics completers earn a median of $155,592.

Graduates earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students. The median federal student debt for Harvard University borrowers who complete a degree is $14,000, which sits below the $24,199 median of comparable institutions (same type and size).

If repaid over ten years, the monthly obligation is $159. For aid recipients from families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $8,697; the spread between the lowest and highest income bands reaches $44,640.

Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate population from student borrowers, carries a median of $28,000. The combination of higher-than-expected earnings and a debt level well below the peer median means the monthly payment stays modest alongside the earnings outcomes the university's graduates reach.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$10,306
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$27,768
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$38,074

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / Harvard University briefing

Harvard University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Harvard University admits 3.6% of applicants, a figure far below the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size). In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 47,893 applicants, 2,003 admitted students, and 1,675 enrolled first-year students.

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
3.6%
Approximate lower endpoint
1510
Reported average
1553
Approximate upper endpoint
1580

Enrolled students who submitted scores. This range is not an admission cutoff. The endpoints add section percentiles; they are not verified composite-score percentiles. A separate SAT-equivalent average is not plotted as a median. Source: College Scorecard; sum of section 25th/75th percentiles; enrolled score-submitters.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / Harvard University briefing

What are the largest majors at Harvard University?[12]

The five largest programs at Harvard University span a wide earnings range four years after completion. Computer Science completers have median earnings of $203,169, while History completers have median earnings of $70,679.

Social Sciences awards the most degrees, at 195, with median earnings of $78,996. Azimuth ranks it #3 nationally in its field.

Economics is close behind in size, with 186 degrees awarded and median earnings of $155,592. Azimuth ranks it #5 nationally in its field.

Political Science, at 121 degrees, sits between the two extremes with median earnings of $95,838.

Harvard University has 4 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, and the earnings picture varies sharply by field. Social Sciences accounts for 29.9% of degrees awarded, with Biological Sciences second at 12.6% and Mathematics & Statistics third at 11.7%.

The largest single program is Social Sciences, at 195 degrees awarded. Azimuth ranks it #3 within its field, and graduates earn a median of $78,996 four years after completion.

Natural Sciences holds the strongest national rank, at #1, with 35 degrees awarded and median earnings of $95,507 four years after completion. Economics is both large and well-paid, with 186 degrees awarded, a national rank of #5, and median earnings of $155,592 four years after completion.

Social Sciences accounts for 29.9% of bachelor's degrees awarded at Harvard University, with Biological Sciences next at 12.6% and Mathematics & Statistics at 11.7%. The largest programs are Social Sciences (195 degrees awarded), Economics (186), and Computer Science (173).

The university has 4 programs with an Azimuth national rank and 11 with published four-year earnings data. Social Sciences, the largest program, ranks #3 nationally within its field and #1 in Massachusetts.

Its graduates earn a median of $78,996 four years after completion. Economics ranks #2 in Massachusetts within its field, and graduates earn a median of $155,592.

The highest-earning program is a smaller one. Statistics graduates earn a median of $230,876 four years after completion, from 61 degrees awarded a year.

Computer Science, the third-largest program, follows at $203,169. Strength is concentrated in the social sciences and quantitative fields.

Economics carries a benchmark ratio of 1.88x against the national median for its field. Across all fields, 43.7% of degrees awarded are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Social Sciences, General 195 degrees awarded
$78,996
Economics 186 degrees awarded
$155,592
Computer Science 173 degrees awarded
$203,169
History 139 degrees awarded
$70,679
Political Science and Government 121 degrees awarded
$95,838
Neurobiology and Neurosciences 86 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / Harvard University briefing

How does Harvard University serve students from different backgrounds?

The mobility pillar sits in the 89th percentile nationally. The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 97.6%, while Pell recipients complete at 92.9%, a figure that sits below the overall rate.

Graduates earn about $38,074 more than the model expects for similar students, a result that lands in the 99th percentile.

Azimuth places the access pillar for Harvard University in the 82nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The private nonprofit university admits 3.6% of applicants, a figure far below the peer median of 71.2%.

Pell Grant recipients make up 16.4% of the 7,601 undergraduates, and an estimated 0.8% of students enter as transfers or part-time students.

06 / Harvard University briefing

What colleges are similar to Harvard University?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with Harvard University.

Admissions peerBrown University5.4% admitted
Comparison with Harvard University
MeasureHarvard UniversityBrown University
Peer earnings · 4 years$134,794$94,678-$40,116 vs Harvard University
Average annual net price$19,066$25,184+$6,118 vs Harvard University · higher cost
Admission rate3.6%5.4%
Explore Brown University →
Higher-admission alternativeFranklin W Olin College of Engineering25.2% admitted
Comparison with Harvard University
MeasureHarvard UniversityFranklin W Olin College of Engineering
Peer earnings · 4 years$134,794$126,895-$7,899 vs Harvard University
Average annual net price$19,066$25,171+$6,105 vs Harvard University · higher cost
Admission rate3.6%25.2%
Explore Franklin W Olin College of Engineering →
Nearby alternativeFranklin W Olin College of EngineeringNearby option · MA
Comparison with Harvard University
MeasureHarvard UniversityFranklin W Olin College of Engineering
Peer earnings · 4 years$134,794$126,895-$7,899 vs Harvard University
Average annual net price$19,066$25,171+$6,105 vs Harvard University · higher cost
Admission rate3.6%25.2%
Explore Franklin W Olin College of Engineering →
Higher-earnings alternativeMassachusetts Institute of Technology$161,961 earnings
Comparison with Harvard University
MeasureHarvard UniversityMassachusetts Institute of Technology
Peer earnings · 4 years$134,794$161,961+$27,167 vs Harvard University
Average annual net price$19,066$20,111+$1,045 vs Harvard University · higher cost
Admission rate3.6%4.6%
Explore Massachusetts Institute of Technology →
Lower-cost alternativeStanford University$13,807 average net price
Comparison with Harvard University
MeasureHarvard UniversityStanford University
Peer earnings · 4 years$134,794$136,959+$2,165 vs Harvard University
Average annual net price$19,066$13,807-$5,259 vs Harvard University · lower cost
Admission rate3.6%3.6%
Explore Stanford University →
Similar profileCarnegie Mellon UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with Harvard University
MeasureHarvard UniversityCarnegie Mellon University
Peer earnings · 4 years$134,794$132,971-$1,823 vs Harvard University
Average annual net price$19,066$31,944+$12,878 vs Harvard University · higher cost
Admission rate3.6%11.7%
Explore Carnegie Mellon University →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings