What Harvard Wants

What Harvard wants in a college applicant is pretty simple really. They want what any good college would want in a student and in a student body. Harvard wants excellence:

Students arrive with a remarkable diversity of interests. They are scholars, community volunteers, journalists, artists, athletes, actors, musicians, and enthusiasts of many other kinds. What all Harvard students have in common is intellectual curiosity and energy. Harvard values excellence and diversity in the talents and aspirations of its students, and in the resources and opportunities the College offers them.

Ask yourself: How do you stand out? How would you contribute to the general wealth of knowledge and talent at such an institution? Having a good answer can only help guide your story as you apply.

Harvard Applicant Profile: Artistic Talent

Today's Harvard Applicant Profile is the artistic talent. If you are not a legacy or an athlete, perhaps you are a world-renowned artist. While the arts may not be the first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of Harvard, the University actually has a strong presence in many artistic fields. The Office for the Arts at Harvard documents the many arts-related events occurring at Harvard. Students can participate in many art-related projects inside their courses and out. These projects are often presented at the annual ARTS FIRST festival, held each spring.

Many talented artists are Harvard alumni, including various authors, artists, musicians, directors, and actors. Famous alumni include:

Mira Nair

John Lithgow



Jack Lemmon


Yo-Yo Ma



Matt Damon

and


Natalie Portman

What does all this mean to you as an applicant? Well, if you are a world-class talent, congratulations! You're in! But, even if you are not, that's okay. If you are a superlative talent in a particular well-known field (ex. playing the violin) or if you have a unique artistic talent (ex. playing the tabla), you will certainly stand out from the crowd. However, you will still require good academic credentials. Furthermore, if your main 'argument' for why Harvard should accept you is your artistic talent, it had better be something very noteworthy. This is not meant as discouragement, but rather merely a statement of fact. Many students at Harvard are artistically talent; it is the rare few who are there primarily because of that talent.

Next time, I will discuss the Leadership Potential / Underserved Minority profile.

Welcome to Getting Into Harvard

Welcome to Getting Into Harvard! The aim of this blog is to provide simple advice on how to get into Harvard University for college. The blog will detail different types of applicants, what one needs to do through high school to prepare for college, and how the application process works.



Harvard Applicants

The blog will describe different types of applicants, and how each type can best prepare their applications.

Harvard Application

The University uses the Common Application, but there are still many ways to make yours stand out.

Harvard Experience

So you're interested in being an undergraduate at Harvard University? The posts will cover a little bit about what to expect once you get in.

Good luck!