Harvard University Business School
Harvard Business School is indisputably the nation's most
famous business school, and it is also one of the most
selective. In 1994-95, a class of 900 students was admitted from
among over 6,900 applicants. With these numbers and a worldwide
reputation as the business school, HBS appears to be the envy of
almost everybody in graduate business education. Unsurprisingly,
the prevalent felling here is summed up by one student's
remarks: "If you're going to do an MBA, don't mess around. Come
to the best b-school in the world." Those who are fortunate
enough to be accepted usually do. More than 80 percent of last
year's "admits" chose to enroll. Indeed, the school's "yield"
(percentage of admitted candidates who choose to enroll) is the
highest of any b-school in the United States. How did Harvard
come to occupy such an august position? First, as one of the
oldest b-schools in the nation (founded in 1908), it got a head
start on all the other programs. Second, as the biggest
b-school- graduating roughly 800 MBAs per year - it's built a
network of more than 60,000 alumni worldwide. And these are
uncommonly loyal and generous alumni. Since 1980, the school's
endowment has grown from $100 million to approximately $545
million in 1995. HBS also boasts more CEO alums than any other
grogram, a nationally renowned faculty, and authorship of 90
percent of the case materials used worldwide. HBS is known
from coast to coast for its comprehensive coverage of the
functional areas of business and how well it integrates them.
General management is considered the cornerstone of the program,
but all of the departments are strong. In recent years, however
Harvard's programs have come under heavy criticism. The
complaints: HBS has not been responsive to changes in the
marketplace. Its right program has featured little of the
international perspectives, teamwork, student consulting, or
innovative learning experiences now characteristic of b-school
education in the United States. Surprisingly, the venerable HBS
has done what was considered unthinkable before and decided it's
time for change. Recently, HBS has undertaken a stem-to-term
program overhaul called the Leadership Learning Initiative. It
offers year-round classes (students can now enroll in September
or January), sections of eighty instead of ninety, and greater
emphasis on skill building and field-based learning delivered in
a much more cross-functional context. The school also has been
completely transformed by technology: relying heavily on the
Internet and Harvard's own Intranet for everything from course
materials to lecture examples. Ranking: Harvard University
| Top Business Schools |
|
| Score
|
100 |
| Peer assessment score (5.0
highest)
|
4.8 |
| Acceptance rate (full-time)
|
11.5% |
| Recruiter assessment score
(5.0 highest)
|
4.5 |
| Average starting salary and
bonus (full-time)
|
$144,261
|
| Average undergraduate GPA
(full-time)
|
3.66 |
| Average GMAT score (full-time)
|
720 |
|
Sample GMAT Practice Test (FREE) |
|
| Graduates employed at
graduation (full-time)
|
87.0% |
| Graduates employed three
months after graduation (full-time)
|
93.3% |
| Total graduate business
enrollment (full-time)
|
1,801 |

Tuition and Financial Aid: Harvard University
| Financial Aid Contact Information |
|
| Financial aid director
|
Susan Gilbert |
| Financial aid phone
|
(617) 495-6640 |
| Financial Aid Availability |
|
| Is college-funded aid
(fellowships, assistantships, grants, or
scholarships) available?
|
Yes
|
| Fellowships available
|
N/A |
| Teaching assistantships
available
|
N/A |
| Research assistantships
available
|
N/A |
| Are international students
eligible for college-funded aid?
|
Yes
|
| 2008-2009 Expenses |
|
| Tuition
|
Full-time: $43,800 per year |
| Required fees
|
$7,030 per year |
| Room and board, books, and
miscellaneous expenses
|
$26,320
|
| Average indebtedness of 2008
graduating class
|
$80,525
|
MBA Career and Salary Statistics: Harvard University
School has submitted its most recent career data in
accordance with the MBA Career Services Council
Standards for Reporting MBA Employment Statistics and
has granted permission to the Graduate Management
Admission Council to send an independent third party to
review for accuracy and compliance.
| Class of 2008 |
|
| Total full-time graduates
|
908 |
| Total full-time graduates
known to be seeking employment
|
756 |
|
Sample GMAT Practice Test (FREE) |
|
| Graduates employed at
graduation (full-time)
|
87.0% |
| Graduates employed three
months after graduation (full-time)
|
93.3% |
| Total Base Salary |
|
| Total reporting base salary
|
681 |
| Low base salary
|
$50,000
|
| Average base salary
|
$124,378
|
| High base salary
|
$500,000
|
| Base Salary: U.S. Citizens |
|
| Low base salary: U.S. citizens
|
$50,000
|
| Average base salary: U.S.
citizens
|
$122,818
|
| High base salary: U.S citizen
|
$500,000
|
| Base Salary: Foreign Nationals |
|
| Low base salary: Foreign
nationals
|
$50,000
|
| Average base salary: Foreign
nationals
|
$128,236
|
| High base salary: Foreign
nationals
|
$400,000
|
| Total Signing Bonus |
|
| Total reporting signing bonus
|
501 |
| Low signing bonus
|
$2,000
|
| Average signing bonus
|
$27,027
|
| High signing bonus
|
$200,000
|
| Signing Bonus: U.S. Citizens |
|
| Low signing bonus: U.S.
citizens
|
$2,000
|
| Average signing bonus: U.S.
citizens
|
$25,709
|
| High signing bonus: U.S.
citizens
|
$200,000
|
| Signing Bonus: Foreign Nationals |
|
| Low signing bonus: Foreign
nationals
|
$5,000
|
| Average signing bonus: Foreign
nationals
|
$30,199
|
| High signing bonus: Foreign
nationals
|
$60,000
|
| Total Other Compensation |
|
| Total reporting other
compensation
|
211 |
| Low other compensation
|
$5,000
|
| Average other compensation
|
$62,106
|
| High other compensation
|
$350,000
|
| Other Compensation: U.S. Citizens |
|
| Low other compensation: U.S.
citizens
|
$5,000
|
| Average other compensation:
U.S. citizens
|
$56,922
|
| High other compensation: U.S.
citizens
|
$325,000
|
| Other Compensation: Foreign Nationals |
|
| Low other compensation:
Foreign nationals
|
$5,000
|
| Average other compensation:
Foreign nationals
|
$75,782
|
| High other compensation:
Foreign nationals
|
$350,000
|
| Base Salary by Occupation |
|
|
Numbers for employment by occupation are based
on those graduates who reported base salary
information by three months after graduation. |
| Number reporting
marketing/sales jobs
|
88 |
| Marketing/sales low salary
|
$50,000
|
| Marketing/sales average salary
|
$107,399
|
| Marketing/sales high salary
|
$170,000
|
| Number reporting
operations/production jobs
|
N/A |
| Operations/production low
salary
|
N/A
|
| Operations/production average
salary
|
N/A
|
| Operations/production high
salary
|
N/A
|
| Number reporting general
management jobs
|
75 |
| General management low salary
|
$70,000
|
| General management average
salary
|
$113,880
|
| General management high salary
|
$215,000
|
| Number reporting
finance/accounting jobs
|
308 |
| Finance low salary
|
$60,000
|
| Finance average salary
|
$135,932
|
| Finance high salary
|
$500,000
|
| Number reporting management
information systems jobs
|
N/A |
| Management information systems
(MIS) low salary
|
N/A
|
| Management information systems
(MIS) average salary
|
N/A
|
| Management information systems
(MIS) high salary
|
N/A
|
| Number reporting consulting
jobs
|
166 |
| Consulting low salary
|
$50,000
|
| Consulting average salary
|
$121,222
|
| Consulting high salary
|
$186,000
|
| Number reporting human
resources jobs
|
N/A |
| Human resources low salary
|
N/A
|
| Human resources average salary
|
N/A
|
| Human resources high salary
|
N/A
|
| Number reporting having jobs
in other areas
|
50 |
| Other occupations low salary
|
$52,064
|
| Other occupations average
salary
|
$109,862
|
| Other occupations high salary
|
$170,000
|
| Base Salary by Industry |
|
|
Numbers for employment by industry are based on
those graduates who reported base salary
information by three months after graduation. |
| Number reporting manufacturing
industry jobs
|
29 |
| Manufacturing industry low
salary
|
$75,000
|
| Manufacturing industry average
salary
|
$113,310
|
| Manufacturing industry high
salary
|
$200,000
|
| Number reporting service
industry jobs
|
N/A |
| Service industry low salary
|
N/A
|
| Service industry average
salary
|
N/A
|
| Service industry high salary
|
N/A
|
| Number reporting non-profit
jobs
|
18 |
| Non-profit low salary
|
$50,000
|
| Non-profit average salary
|
$89,563
|
| Non-profit high salary
|
$143,000
|
| Number reporting government
jobs
|
4 |
| Government low salary
|
$60,000
|
| Government average salary
|
$78,200
|
| Government high salary
|
$90,000
|
| Base Salary by Geographic Region |
|
|
Numbers for employment by location are based on
those graduates who reported base salary
information by three months after graduation. |
| Number reporting jobs in the
Northeast (CT, MA, ME NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT)
|
278 |
| Northeast low salary
|
$50,000
|
| Northeast average salary
|
$121,749
|
| Northeast high salary
|
$400,000
|
| Number reporting jobs in the
Middle Atlantic (DC, DE, MD, PA, VA, WV)
|
40 |
| Middle Atlantic low salary
|
$75,000
|
| Middle Atlantic average salary
|
$111,608
|
| Middle Atlantic high salary
|
$150,000
|
| Number reporting jobs in the
South (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN)
|
31 |
| South low salary
|
$80,000
|
| South average salary
|
$108,655
|
| South high salary
|
$145,000
|
| Number reporting jobs in the
Midwest (IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, ND, NE, OH,
SD, WI)
|
46 |
| Midwest low salary
|
$70,000
|
| Midwest average salary
|
$121,826
|
| Midwest high salary
|
$300,000
|
| Number reporting jobs in the
Southwest (AZ, CO, NM, OK, TX)
|
29 |
| Southwest low salary
|
$90,000
|
| Southwest average salary
|
$116,466
|
| Southwest high salary
|
$170,000
|
| Number reporting jobs in the
West (AK, CA, HI, ID,MT, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY)
|
125 |
| West low salary
|
$80,000
|
| West average salary
|
$124,900
|
| West high salary
|
$225,000
|
| Number reporting jobs located
internationally
|
140 |
| International low salary
|
$50,000
|
| International average salary
|
$138,413
|
| International high salary
|
$500,000
|
|