Economic diversity and student outcomes at Harvard

School type
Ivy Plus
Class size*
1,484
Athletic Conference
The Ivy League
Note: because of the way some colleges report tax data, this page includes data from 2 colleges. A full list is below.
Economic diversity and student outcomes at

Harvard University

Massachusetts

The median family income of a student from Harvard is $168,800, and 67% come from the top 20 percent. About 1.8% of students at Harvard came from a poor family but became a rich adult.

A new study, based on millions of anonymous tax records, shows that some colleges are even more economically segregated than previously understood, while others are associated with income mobility.

Below, estimates of how Harvard compares with its peer schools in economic diversity and student outcomes.

AccessWhat kind of students attend Harvard

Among the lowest About typical Among the highest
In the Ivy League In Massachusetts Among Ivy Plus colleges
Median family income $168,800
Average income percentile 79th
Share of students from top 0.1% 3%
   ...from top 1% 15%
   ...from top 5% 39%
   ...from top 10% 53%
   ...from top 20% 67%
   ...from bottom 20% 4.5%

OutcomesHow Harvard students fare later in life

Among the lowest About typical Among the highest
In the Ivy League In Massachusetts Among Ivy Plus colleges
Median individual income at age 34 $81,500
   ...for men $96,000
   ...for women $70,200
Average income percentile 77th
Share who end up in the top 1% 21%
   ...in the top 5% 42%
   ...in the top 10% 52%
   ...in the top 20% 65%
   ...in the bottom 20% 9.2%
Avg. income percentile of a poor student 71st
   ...of a rich student 78th
Pct. married in 2014 53%

MobilityShare of students at Harvard who ...

Among the lowest About typical Among the highest
In the Ivy League In Massachusetts Among Ivy Plus colleges
Moved up two or more income quintiles 11%
Moved from the bottom to top income quintile 1.8%

College by collegeComparing Harvard with its peers

Compare to:

Median parent income

For students born in 1991, approximately the class of 2013, in 2015 dollars.

7th out of 12 Ivy League and selected elite colleges
No data available for Harvard.
No. 1
Brown
$204,200
No. 2
Dartmouth
$200,400
No. 3
Penn
$195,500
No. 4
Yale
$192,600
No. 5
Duke
$186,700
No. 6
Princeton
$186,100
No. 7
Harvard
$168,800
No. 8
Stanford
$167,500
No. 9
Cornell
$151,600
No. 10
Columbia
$150,900
No. 11
M.I.T.
$137,400
No. 12
University of Chicago
$134,500
Highest
Brown $204,200
Lowest (No. 12)
University of Chicago $134,500
Compare to:

Chance a poor student has to become a rich adult

The share of children who were from the bottom fifth of incomes as students and moved to the top fifth as adults.

7th out of 12 Ivy League and selected elite colleges
No data available for Harvard.
No. 1
M.I.T.
67%
No. 2
Princeton
66%
No. 3
Stanford
63%
No. 4
Columbia
61%
No. 5
Cornell
59%
No. 6
Penn
58%
No. 7
Harvard
58%
No. 8
Yale
57%
No. 9
Brown
53%
No. 10
Duke
50%
No. 11
Dartmouth
50%
No. 12
University of Chicago
45%
Highest
M.I.T. 67%
Lowest (No. 12)
University of Chicago 45%
Compare to:

Median student income at age 34

Incomes continue to grow, but the relative ranks remain roughly stable after this age.

6th out of 12 Ivy League and selected elite colleges
No data available for Harvard.
No. 1
M.I.T.
$98,500
No. 2
Penn
$91,800
No. 3
Princeton
$90,700
No. 4
Duke
$87,500
No. 5
Stanford
$84,800
No. 6
Harvard
$81,500
No. 7
Cornell
$79,800
No. 8
Dartmouth
$76,600
No. 9
Yale
$76,000
No. 10
Columbia
$75,300
No. 11
Brown
$66,900
No. 12
University of Chicago
$61,700
Highest
M.I.T. $98,500
Lowest (No. 12)
University of Chicago $61,700
Compare to:

Overall mobility index

This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at Harvard moved up two or more income quintiles.

7th out of 12 Ivy League and selected elite colleges
No data available for Harvard.
No. 1
M.I.T.
16%
No. 2
Cornell
16%
No. 3
University of Chicago
14%
No. 4
Columbia
14%
No. 5
Penn
13%
No. 6
Stanford
12%
No. 7
Harvard
11%
No. 8
Dartmouth
11%
No. 9
Duke
11%
No. 10
Yale
10%
No. 11
Brown
9.4%
No. 12
Princeton
8.7%
Highest
M.I.T. 16%
Lowest (No. 12)
Princeton 8.7%
Compare to:

Married in 2014

For students born between 1980-82, roughly the college class of 2002.

9th out of 12 Ivy League and selected elite colleges
No data available for Harvard.
No. 1
Duke
60%
No. 2
Princeton
59%
No. 3
Penn
59%
No. 4
Cornell
58%
No. 5
Dartmouth
57%
No. 6
M.I.T.
56%
No. 7
Yale
55%
No. 8
Stanford
55%
No. 9
Harvard
53%
No. 10
Brown
53%
No. 11
Columbia
52%
No. 12
University of Chicago
51%
Highest
Duke 60%
Lowest (No. 12)
University of Chicago 51%

Family income vs. student income at age 34

The chart below shows how Harvard and its peer schools are comparing with the remaining schools analyzed in the study. You can click on any point in the chart to navigate to that school.

How access at Harvard has changed

Peer schools are shown in yellow

Students from...
Bottom 60%
Top 20%
Top 10%
Top 1%
Note: Harvard University includes data for the following colleges: Harvard University Radcliffe College
The estimates presented here are based on millions of anonymous tax filings and tuition records. These statistics cover only schools that participate in Title IV federal funding, which excludes the military academies and certain other colleges.
Measures of access are for students born in 1991, roughly the class of 2013; measures of outcomes and mobility are for students born between 1980 and 1982, who are around age 35, when relative income ranks stabilizes.
Class size figures represent the number of students in the study who were born in 1991: approximately the class of 2013 or today's 25-year-olds. This measure does not include international students or students who could not be linked to their parents' tax returns.
The athletic conferences listed here are meant to be a helpful way to compare colleges with their peers. They are incomplete for some conferences. Only one conference is displayed for each college.
Source: “Mobility Report Cards: The Role of Colleges in Intergenerational Mobility”, by Raj Chetty, John Friedman, Emmanuel Saez, Nicholas Turner and Danny Yagan, The Equality of Opportunity Project