Harvard University is one of the oldest and prestigious institutions of higher education in the United States. Part of the Ivy League, it is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was established in 1636 by a vote of the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It was named for its first benefactor, John Harvard. This institution has an enrollment of over 20,000 candidates, including undergraduates, graduates, and professional students. Harvard has more than 3,60,000 alumni around the world. The history, influence, wealth, and academic reputation of this institution have made it one of the eminent universities around the world.

English Proficiency Test Requirements

If your native language is not English, you have to make sure you’d be able to communicate your thoughts and opinions easily when you want to get admission to Harvard University. Although the college doesn’t mandate submitting English proficiency test scores, submitting them is optional.

Reference: https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/apply/international-applicants

ACT/SAT Requirements

Harvard University is very selective, meaning you’d have to have good ACT/SAT scores or something really impressive on your application to be considered for admission. Here are the average score ranges for getting into Harvard:

Please note: Harvard University has extended its standardized testing policy through the 2021-2022 application cycle; you may apply for admission without these standardized test scores.

Tuition Fee and Cost of Living

The cost of living in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts would depend on the student’s lifestyle and the average expenses are given below. Be sure to confirm the tuition fee from the University’s official website.

The conversion from USD to INR has been made with $1 = ₹70. The cost may vary with the varying exchange rate.

Application Portal

You can submit applications to Harvard University through the Coalition Application, Common Application, or Universal College Application, after which you would receive an email confirmation with a link to the Applicant Portal.

Essay Prompts

Harvard University lets you submit your applications through one of the three portals. Each of these application portals has its own set of essay prompts followed by Harvard University’s essay prompts.

In addition to the essay prompts of the common or coalition application, applicants must write supplemental essays on the following:

Harvard Essay Prompts:

Prompt 1 (Optional):

Word Limit: 150 Words

“Your intellectual life may extend beyond the academic requirements of your particular school. Please use the space below to list additional intellectual activities that you have not mentioned or detailed elsewhere in your application. These could include, but are not limited to, supervised or self-directed projects not done as school work, training experiences, online courses not run by your school, or summer academic or research programs not described elsewhere.”

Prompt 2 (Required):

Word Limit: 50 – 150 Words

“Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences.”

Prompt 3 (Optional):

Word Limit: None (but best to stick to around 500 words)

You may wish to include an additional essay if you feel that the college application forms do not provide sufficient opportunity to convey important information about yourself or your accomplishments. You may write on a topic of your choice, or you may choose from one of the following topics:

1. “Unusual circumstances in your life” 
2. “Travel, living, or working experiences in your own or other communities”
3. “What you would want your future college roommate to know about you”
4. “An intellectual experience (course, project, book, discussion, paper, poetry, or research topic in engineering, mathematics, science or other modes of inquiry) that has meant the most to you”
5. “How you hope to use your college education”
6. “A list of books you have read during the past twelve months”
7. “The Harvard College Honor code declares that we “hold honesty as the foundation of our community.” As you consider entering this community that is committed to honesty, please reflect on a time when you or someone you observed had to make a choice about whether to act with integrity and honesty.”
8. “The mission of Harvard College is to educate our students to be citizens and citizen-leaders for society. What would you do to contribute to the lives of your classmates in advancing this mission?”
9. “Each year a substantial number of students admitted to Harvard defer their admission for one year or take time off during college. If you decided in the future to choose either option, what would you like to do?”
10. “Harvard has long recognized the importance of student body diversity of all kinds. We welcome you to write about distinctive aspects of your background, personal development or the intellectual interests you might bring to your Harvard classmates.”

If none of the topics above interest you, you are free to write on a topic of your choice.

For International Students:

Word Limit: 50 words

“What specific plan do you have, if any, for using the education you hope to receive?”

College Application Deadlines

The application deadlines for Harvard University are below:

Reference: https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/apply/first-year-applicants

Conclusion

There are many reputed colleges in the US but Harvard stands highly notable among all the others around the world. With an acceptance rate of 5.4%, you can get into Harvard with the right guidance. UniRely’s student mentors studying there can help you out with their first-hand experience of what it’s like studying at Harvard. Sign up at UniRely and start your admission process right away!