Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is located in Boston, Massachusetts, just a short trip away from the University’s main campus in Cambridge. The first school in the world to offer the Master’s of Business Administration degree, HBS has a full-time MBA program known for pioneering the case method of business instruction. The case method continues to be one of the hallmarks of the HBS MBA program today, in addition to the school’s highly structured Required Curriculum and emphasis on cultivating young leaders.
FAQ
What is the tuition for Harvard’s MBA program?
The tuition for Harvard’s MBA program is $73,440 per year. The total cost of the Harvard MBA program is $112,764 per year; this includes budgeted living expenses.
How hard is it to get into Harvard’s MBA program?
The acceptance rate for Harvard is 10%. It is important to consider the acceptance rate in the context of the student profile of those who are admitted. For example the median GMAT score is 730.
What is the median GMAT score for admission to Harvard’s MBA program?
The median GMAT score for the incoming class at Harvard is 730. The full range of GMAT scores is 540 – 790.
Does the Harvard MBA program accept the GRE?
Yes. The Harvard MBA program has accepted the GRE for a few years now.
What are the median GRE scores for admission to Harvard’s MBA program?
The median GRE scores for the incoming class at Harvard are Verbal 163 and Quantitative 163.
What is the minimum number of years of work experience required for admission to Harvard’s MBA program?
Harvard does not state a minimum requirement for years of work experience. However, it is important for candidates to be aware that they are being considered against other candidates with an average of 5 years of experience.
What is the average number of years of work experience for admission to Harvard’s MBA program? (or, What is the average age of a Harvard student?)
The average number of years of work experience among students in Harvard’s MBA program is 5.
What is the median starting salary for graduates of the Harvard MBA program?
The median starting salary for Harvard MBA graduates is $175,000, with a median signing bonus of $30,000.
How long is Harvard’s full-time MBA program?
Harvard offers a traditional 2 year MBA program.
What are the application deadlines for Harvard’s MBA program?
The Round 1 MBA application deadline is September 6, 2023. The Round 2 application deadline is January 3, 2024. Application materials are due by noon EST on the day of the deadline.
What percent of Harvard MBA students are women?
The percentage of the class at Harvard that are women is 46%.
What type of interview does Harvard use for MBA admissions?
Harvard offers interviews by invitation, once the initial application is reviewed. The interviews are application-based, meaning the interviewer will have read your application or reviews of your application.
VIDEOS
Getting to Know 2020 Class Day Student Speaker Claire Wagner
Claire Wagner is graduating with an MD/MBA from HBS and Harvard Medical School. Inspired early by her father to work internationally, Wagner spent the last decade working on access to healthcare services and technologies around the world. After graduation, she will be joining the Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute in Cambridge, MA. She is the first Class Day speaker to become a mother while at HBS.
Students Strive to Solve Climate Change
As part of the Business & Environment Initiative’s “Accelerating Climate Solutions” conference on May 10, 2023, four MBA Class of 2023 students discuss their efforts toward solving climate challenges: Chidalu Onyenso founded EarthBond to link Nigerians with financing for solar solutions, and she plans to expand the company to other African nations; Angela Son will focus on what the clean economy transition means for the future of work; Karan Khimji co-founded 44.01, which permanently eliminates CO2 from the atmosphere by converting it into inert rock; and Dylan Small will work to decarbonize commercial buildings and building materials.
Admissions
Class Profile
Admission to HBS is highly competitive, as the school typically accepts around 10% of applicants to target a class size of approximately 930 students. HBS received 8,264 applications for the Class of 2024 and 1,015 ultimately enrolled. The year prior, the MBA program received 9,773 applications and landed at a class size of 1,010.
The median GMAT score of first-year entrants was 730, and scores ranged from 540 to 790. Thirty percent of first-year applicants submitted GRE scores. The median Verbal and Quant scores both landed at 163.
Engineering was the most popular undergraduate major, as 28% had studied it. Twenty-four percent had a background in business/commerce and another 19% had majored in economics. Fourteen percent pursued math/physical science during their undergraduate years. Ten percent of the new class had majored in the social sciences. Of the students who attended undergraduate institutions that graded on a 4.0 scale, the average GPA was 3.70.
The HBS Class of 2024 averaged 5 years of work experience. Prior to attending HBS, 16% worked in consulting, 16% worked in venture capital/private equity, and 14% in tech. Ten percent worked in financial services. Nine percent each came from manufacturing/industrial/energy or consumer products/retail/E-commerce. Another 8% came from healthcare/biotech; 6% had worked in nonprofit/government/education and 4% in military.
Thirty-eight percent of the Class of 2024 claims international citizenship. In addition, women comprise 46% of the first-year class, and 51% identify as members of a U.S. minority group.
Application Procedures
Applicants can apply to HBS during one of two admissions rounds; these deadlines are typically in early September and early January. In addition to filling out an online application regarding their biographical information and career history, applicants must submit an essay, a résumé, two letters of recommendation, and transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate academic institutions attended. The school also requires applicants to submit GMAT or GRE scores and a TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE score if needed, as well as a $250 application fee and a signed acceptance of the school’s admissions policies. Harvard’s MBA Admissions Board conducts interviews on an invitation-only basis, and interviews are required for admission to the program. HBS also requires a post-interview reflection exercise.
Application Checklist
- Data Forms
- Acceptance of HBS Admissions Policies
- GMAT/GRE and TOEFL/IELTS/ PTE Score(s)
- Résumé
- Application Fee
- Recommendation Letters
- Academic transcripts
- Essay
Essay Topic Analysis
HBS Essay & Analysis 2023-2024
The following essay topic analysis examines Harvard Business School’s (HBS) MBA admissions essays for the 2023-2024 admissions season. You can also review essay topic analyses for all other leading MBA programs as well as general Essay Tips to further aid you in developing your admissions essays. 2023-2024 Harvard Business School Essay Topic Analysis HBS Essay 1 As we […]
Recommendation Questions
Harvard Business School MBA Recommendation Questions
The Harvard Business School MBA Class of 2025 application is now live, which means that the HBS MBA recommendation questions are available to recommenders. HBS requires two recommendations, and suggests (but does not require) that one be from a direct supervisor. The other should be from who can speak about your professional performance, leadership skills, […]
Interview Reports
HBS MBA Interview Questions & Report: Round 2 / Adcom / Off-Campus Hub
Much warmer and conversational than I expected! Interviewer started off by telling me she thought my essay was amazing, which instantly put me at ease. She asked me a great deal of follow-up questions about that, as well as dove into one of the extracurriculars I had briefly mentioned in the app (surprised me!). Only […]
Interview Report Round-Up: HBS, INSEAD, MIT Sloan
Welcome to another edition of Interview Report Roundup. This week, we’re taking a closer look at MBA admissions interview reports that HBS, INSEAD and MIT Sloan applicants have recently shared to the Clear Admit Interview Archive. A Round 1 MBA hopeful for Harvard Business School faced an adcom member very familiar with their application, as […]
HBS MBA Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / Zoom
My AdCom interviewer was very nice and started the interview in a relaxed, conversational way. There was not much back and forth as it was the interviewer asking questions with me answering. Some of the questions were based off my answer to the previous question. We ended the interview right on the 30min mark. It […]
HBS MBA Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / Zoom
The interviewer had read the entire application in detail (including details I had mentioned only in the application form) and had done basic research on some of the niche parts of my work. The questions were not technical, but did try to gauge basic understanding of the industry. I felt the interviewer was mostly just […]
HBS Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / Zoom
I was interviewed by an Adcom member at HBS. The Adcom member was very warm and welcoming and started off by warning me about some internet connectivity issues they were having. The interview went mostly smoothly with a few spikes in the internet so we had to turn off the video feed for a minute […]
HBS Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / Zoom
The interview was conversational, with a member of the admissions committee who had read my entire application and was eager to know about the motivations behind my life’s transitions (primarily professional) and about my industry of work. It was a 30min interview, which maybe went ~1-2min over the mark. The questions she asked were specific […]
HBS Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / On-Campus
I interviewed with an Adcom and had an observer present. The tone of the interview was conversational, mostly resume-based to begin with and a couple of deeper follow-ups on resume as per HBS’s typical interview style. Nothing was very surprising, although there were two questions that made me think a bit more before I responded. […]
HBS Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / On-Campus
The interviewer had no time to spare, and she jumped right into asking me about a failure that I wrote about in my essay. Her questions made it clear that she was well-informed on my entire application, but she had my resume pulled up for reference and asked me specific questions about lines from my […]
HBS Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / On-Campus
Adcom led interview with no observer. It was completely resume based and focused on my current work experience. No questions like why an MBA or why HBS. The interviewer did research before the interview and asked me very pointed questions about my company. Overall, it’s hard to prepare for this interview with canned answers, so […]
HBS Interview Questions & Report: Round 1 / Adcom / On-Campus
Had one interviewer and an observer. Interview was very fast-paced — there were maybe 20 questions that touched on every aspect of my work experience, 2 questions on my ECs that were very general, and 2 questions on my interests included on my resume. Observer did not ask questions, but verbally reacted throughout the interview, […]
Harvard Q&As
Admissions Director Q&A: Chad Losee of Harvard Business School
Chad Losee is back for this Admissions Director Q&A to tell you all about Harvard Business School (HBS) admissions, the entrepreneurial might of the MBA program, what to expect in your interview and more. Losee joined the HBS MBA Admissions and Financial Aid team as Managing Director in 2016. After graduating from HBS as a […]
Admissions Director Q&A: Chad Losee of Harvard Business School
Are you applying to Harvard Business School (HBS) this year? Then you won’t want to miss this latest installment of our Admissions Director Q&A series as we welcome Chad Losee, the Managing Director of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid at HBS. His team is responsible for recruiting, evaluating, and yielding a class of about 930 […]
Admissions Director Q&A: Chad Losee of Harvard Business School
When it comes to community, Harvard Business School’s Chad Losee, current Managing Director of MBA Admissions and HBS MBA ’13, can attest: Business school classmates transcend campus relations and become lifelong friends. As we all continue to adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic, Losee cites the support of his HBS sectionmates in these trying times—and he […]
Harvard Business School LiveWire and DecisionWire
Academics
Faculty
A total of 244 full-time faculty members at Harvard Business School work across the school’s 10 academic units. These scholars and practitioners teach courses and staff the school’s ten global research centers and 21 initiatives, which cover topics from business history to U.S. competitiveness.
Curriculum
One of the hallmarks of HBS’s MBA program is its extensive use of the case method, in which class discussions revolve around assigned readings based on real-world business problems. Professors also use computer simulations, problem sets, and group assignments to help convey course material.
HBS divides its first-year class into 10 sections of roughly 90 students apiece, with each section constructed to mirror the class’s diversity; the students in each section take all of their first-year classes together. To allow students to collaborate with classmates from outside their section, every incoming student is also assigned to a learning team of six to seven people from different sections. Throughout the first year, these learning teams meet regularly to prepare for in-class case discussions and collaborate on graded projects.
Harvard’s MBA curriculum takes place across four semesters of 15 to 18 weeks each, referred to as Fall and Winter Terms. All students spend the first two semesters of the MBA program taking 11 courses, known as the Required Curriculum or “RC” for short. Following a three-day orientation period, Fall Term of RC classes begins in early September, featuring five semester-long courses that focus on issues businesses face internally. Fall Term ends in mid-December. Spring Term, which lasts from the end of January through late May, is comprised of five semester-long courses that examine how an organization interacts with external groups in a variety of social and economic contexts. Since 2011, an additional part of the RC has been a yearlong course called Field Immersion Experiences for Leadership Development (FIELD). FIELD is made up of three modules on leadership development and globalization.
In the second year, known as the Elective Curriculum (EC), students may take up to five full-term courses per semester. EC students choose from over 100 full-time electives across 10 subject areas in addition to over 25 field learning opportunities. Unlike most MBA programs, HBS does not offer any formal majors or concentrations, instead allowing students to shape their second-year curriculum however they see fit. Though HBS students may not study abroad, EC students can cross-register for up to two courses at Harvard University graduate schools or at several other institutions in the Boston area. In addition, HBS’s required Immersion Experience Program allows students to gain global exposure through short-term experiential learning opportunities in countries such as China, Peru and South Africa.
Other MBA Degree Options
In addition to its 22-month full-time MBA program, HBS offers a joint JD/MBA program with Harvard Law School, an MD/MBA and an MS/MBA Biotechnology: Life Sciences with program with Harvard Medical School, a DMD/MBA with Harvard School of Dental Medicine, and a MBA/MS with the Harvard School of Engineering & Applied Sciences. HBS also offers an MBA/Master of Public Policy and an MBA/Master of Public Administration in International Development in conjunction with the Harvard Kennedy School.
College students hoping to attend HBS in the near future can apply during their senior year via the 2+2 Program. Students accepted through 2+2 are granted advanced admission to the full-time MBA program upon completing two years of professional work experience in an HBS-approved position.
Required Courses at HBS
Term I
- Finance I
- Financial Reporting and Control
- Leadership and Organizational Behavior
- Marketing
- Technology and Operations Management
- FIELD Foundations
- FIELD 2
Term II
- Business, Government, and the International Economy Strategy
- The Entrepreneurial Manager
- Finance II
- Leadership and Corporate Accountability
- FIELD 3
Degree Offerings at HBS
Full-time MBA Program
Joint Degree Programs
MBA/MPP, MBA/MPP-ID, JD/MBA, MD/MBA, DMD/MBA, MBA/MS
http://www.hbs.edu/mba/academic-experience/joint-degree-programs/Pages/default.aspx
Doctoral Programs
Doctorate of Business Administration: Accounting & Management, Management, Marketing, Strategy, Technology and Operations Management
Ph.D.: Business Administration, Business Economics, Health Policy (Management), Organizational Behavior
http://www.hbs.edu/doctoral/
Campus Life
Clubs, Conferences & Competitions
HBS students are provided with many opportunities for extracurricular involvement. Full-time MBA students can choose from more than 95 student-run clubs, which cover a variety of industry, regional, social, and sports interests. For example, the Outdoors Club organizes outdoor treks during the winter and spring breaks, in addition to skiing, hiking and rafting trips throughout New England. Meanwhile, members of the TechMedia Club host industry speaker series, an annual alumni panel and dinner, and visits to leading high tech and media companies. The Student Association, of which all HBS students are members, represents the school’s student body as a whole.
HBS’s clubs organize a number of conferences on campus annually. These span industry-related events, such as the Healthcare Club’s annual Healthcare Conference, as well as affinity-related events including the Women’s Student Association’s annual Dynamic Women in Business Conference. Students can also participate in a variety of business competitions. One of the most popular is the New Venture Competition, in which teams of students pitch business ideas to a panel of judges and compete for over $300,000 in prizes.
Campus Space
The HBS campus is located in the Allston neighborhood of Boston, just across the river from Harvard University’s main campus in Cambridge. HBS’s campus encompasses 34 buildings in total, with the majority of classes held in Aldrich Hall and Hawes Hall. In December 2013 the school unveiled Tata Hall, a new Executive Education building located on the Northwest corner of the campus. This seven-story glass and brick building includes residential space, classrooms, and common areas for Executive Education participants. Meanwhile, the Spangler Center is the hub of student social activity, featuring 29 project rooms, a 350-seat auditorium, and the school’s main dining facilities. Two-thirds of HBS students live on campus, with over one-third choosing to live in the school’s five residence halls, and there is a large selection of other housing options available through Harvard University Housing and private listings.
MBA Careers
Career Services
The MBA Career & Professional Development program provides HBS students with a range of services to help them clarify and achieve their career goals.
The school’s dedicated on-campus interview period for first-year students takes place for four days in late January. In advance of the first-year recruitment period, HBS holds Industry Weeks, a series of presentations and panels that help students learn more about different job sectors. First-year students can also join Career Teams, in which they are guided through the job search process by a trained second-year leader. In addition, the school has over 60 trained career coaches on staff to offer students individual advice throughout their entire time at HBS. MBA Career & Professional Development also helps recruiting companies develop a presence on campus through events such as Company Information Days.
Career Statistics
Of the 732 students who matriculated for the Class of 2022, 71 percent were seeking employment post-MBA. Of those, 95 percent secured offers and 90 percent accepted offers within three months of graduation. Twenty-nine percent of the MBA Class of 2022 did not seek employment. Thirteen percent started their own business and 12 percent were company sponsored or already employed. The median base salary of all graduates was $175,000, with a median signing bonus of $30,000.
In terms of industry, a total of 34% joined financial services, which is broken down into several branches. Fifteen percent headed into private equity followed by 8% in investment management / hedge funds. Seven percent pursued venture capital and three percent investment banking.
Consulting claimed 26% of the HBS Class of 2022. Nineteen percent entered the technology industry, and 5% went into healthcare. Graduates also took jobs in consumer products, non-profit/government, retail, and entertainment/media, albeit in fewer numbers.
As is often the case at business schools, HBS placed a large number of graduates, 47%, in the region where it is located: the Northeastern U.S. Twenty-four percent of the Class of 2022 headed to the Western U.S., while 6% moved to the South. Five percent each landed in the Midwest and Southwest. Nine percent of the class took jobs outside of the United States, with the most popular areas being Asia and Europe.
Financing
The tuition for students entering in 2022 is $73,440. HBS estimates, though, that with additional expenses such as course materials, student fees and cost of living, single students will pay approximately $112,764 for the year. The school offers need-based fellowships to help students fund their education. To be considered for these awards, students must fill out the FAFSA and a financial aid application that is made available on the HBS Intranet after admission to the program. HBS students can also finance their studies through a variety of loan options, such as federal programs for U.S. citizens and private loans for domestic and international students. The Harvard University Employees Credit Union allows international students at HBS to take out loans without a U.S. co-signer.
Program Tuition (per year)
- Tuition $73,440
- Student Health Fee $1,304
- Student Health Insurance Plan $4,040
- Course & Program Materials $2,550
- Room & Utilities (9 months, single) $14,850
- Living Expenses (9 months, single) $16,540
- Total $112,764
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How to Get into Harvard Business School
Let’s delve into how to get into Harvard Business School (HBS), one of the most prestigious business schools in the world that offers a rigorous MBA program and international opportunities for i
