About Harvard
Those who join our community—to learn, research, teach, work, and grow—join nearly four centuries of students and scholars in the pursuit of truth, knowledge, and a better world.
The people of Harvard
Our people are what make Harvard special. Through continued efforts in inclusion and belonging, Harvard has built a community comprising many backgrounds, cultures, races, identities, life experiences, perspectives, beliefs, and values.
Explore data about our community with the Harvard Fact Book.
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24,596
undergraduate and graduate students
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20,667
faculty and staff
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400,000+
alumni worldwide
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35 million+
learners through Harvard Online
We believe in the value of knowledge, the power of teaching and research, and the ways that what we do here can benefit society.”President of Harvard University
Alan M. Garber
Harvard leadership and governance is composed of four components:
President
Alan M. Garber leads Harvard University as its 31st President.
Deans and Officers
Leading Harvard’s Schools and many offices
Harvard Corporation
The oldest corporation in the Western Hemisphere
Board of Overseers
Alumni committed to Harvard’s missions and interests
The history of Harvard
Explore the history of our founding, our Nobel Prize winners, the honorary degrees we’ve awarded, and how our iconic shield was created.
On October 28, 1636, Harvard, the first college in the American colonies, was founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard University was officially founded by a vote by the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Harvard’s endowment started with John Harvard’s initial donation of 400 books and half his estate, but in 1721, Thomas Hollis began the now standard practice of requiring that a donation be used for a specific purpose when he donated money for “a Divinity Professor, to read lectures in the Halls to the students.”
Women’s history at Harvard
As staff members, then as students and faculty, the women of Harvard paved the way for the next generation, and continue to carve new paths today.
Asian and Pacific American history at Harvard
We explore the histories, cultures, and contributions of Harvard’s Asian and Pacific Island communities throughout our history.
African American history at Harvard
A complete look at Harvard’s Black history includes the dual legacies of slavery and discrimination along with pioneering moments of inclusion, equity, and empowerment.
For more than 100 years the Harvard Gazette has covered campus life, University issues, innovations in science and scholarship, and broader global concerns.
The greater Harvard community
Harvard is dedicated to being a good neighbor to the communities we reside within, whether in Massachusetts our at our locations abroad.
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$5.35 million
for improvements to public parks and open spaces, neighborhood beautification, streetscape enhancements, public safety initiatives, and public art.
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650,000
visitors to Harvard museums each year
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20+
locations abroad that link Harvard faculty and students to local academic institutions, government organizations, businesses, and communities
Local commitment
Harvard is dedicated to giving back to the places we call home.
Global perspective
We invite the world to pursue scholarship on our campus and in our research centers around the globe.