Harvard University is an American private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature and soon thereafter named for its first benefactor, clergyman John Harvard, Harvard is the United States’ oldest institution of higher learning and one of the most prestigious in the world. The University today has more than 20,000 students across thirteen schools and institutes:
The Faculty of Arts and Sciences is the largest academic unit at Harvard with over 700 faculty members teaching about 3,800 undergraduates and nearly 13,000 graduate students. Other schools include the Schools of Business; Design; Education; Engineering and Applied Sciences; Government; Law; Medicine; Nursing; and Public Health. In addition to these traditional academic units, there are a number of cross-disciplinary centers and institutes that bring together scholars from multiple disciplines to focus on specific issues or problems such as climate change, environmental health, energy technology innovation, global conflict resolution—just to name a few.
Harvard’s endowment—the largest of any academic institution in the world—stands at $37.6 billion as of June 30, 2019. This figure includes both real estate holdings (including 5490 acres/2240 hectares) as well as financial assets (such as stocks, bonds etc.). The value of Harvard’s endowment has grown steadily over time thanks to strong investment performance and substantial donations from alumni/ae , foundations ,and other friends of the university . These resources allow Harvard to offer generous financial aid packages to its students: over 60% of undergraduates receive some form of need-based financial assistance while nearly all graduate and professional school students pay below market rates for tuition thanks to fellowships ,teaching assistantships ,and other forms support .
The history of Harvard University can be traced back to September 8, 1636 when “An Act for Liberty to Erect a Colledge” was passed by the Great & General Court Of The Massachusetts Bay Colony . The act authorized funds “for advancement learning” which led directly to the establishment America’s first college: Harvard College . Originally located just across from what is now Boston Common ,the school moved several times before settling into its current home on 86 acres (34 hectares) along the banks Charles River in Cambridge .
Over time ,the college grew steadily both reputation size : it awarded first Bachelor Degrees 1708 ; became home country’s first student newspaper ; began offering Master degrees 1754 ; produced nation’s presidents 1817 ; admitted women Radcliffe College 1879 ; spawned business leaders 1890s ; pioneered social studies field 1900s Today ,Harvard stands proud tradition excellence scholarship achievement : it consistently ranks among top universities world fields ranging medicine law business education public policy And with ever-growing endowments generous financial aid program ensures that talented students regardless background can afford attend learn succeed here