Harvard vs Berkeley

Harvard University and University of California-Berkeley, two of the most prestigious universities in the world, offer students a wealth of opportunities and an exceptional education. While they share a commitment to academic excellence, these institutions differ in several key aspects. Harvard, a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, boasts a lower acceptance rate, a more diverse student body, and a higher graduation rate compared to Berkeley, a public university situated in Berkeley, California. Berkeley, on the other hand, offers a wider range of undergraduate majors, a larger student population, and a more affordable tuition for in-state students. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to delve into the specifics and discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Harvard University	University of California-Berkeley
Overview
Location	Cambridge, Massachusetts	Berkeley, California
Campus setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	96.0%	96.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	4.0%	14.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $105	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $120
SAT range	1480 - 1580	N/A
ACT range	33 - 36	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	54.0%
Students submitting ACT score	31.0%
Total number of applicants	57,786	112,843
Total number of admissions given out	2,318	16,295
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,951	6,931
Yield rate	84.2%	42.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$78,028	In state: $37,920 Out of state: $67,674
Average net price	$13,910	$17,652
Tuition	$51,143	In state: $11,442 Out of state: $41,196
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $11,705 Meal plan: $7,236	$20,236
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	56.0% Average amount $59,840	52.0% Average amount $21,406
Students receiving federal student loan	3.0% Average amount $5,180	15.0% Average amount $4,586
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $8,080	6.0% Average amount $7,122

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	9,579 Men 49.0% Women 51.0%	31,814 Men 45.4% Women 54.6%
Graduate students	21,766 Men 46.3% Women 53.7%	13,222 Men 51.7% Women 48.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	16.9%
International students	23.9%	18.0%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	12,874	9,630
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York California Texas Illinois New Jersey	California New Jersey Texas Virginia New York

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Social Sciences Education Legal Profession	Engineering Business Computer and Information Science Legal Profession Health Professions
Students to faculty ratio	7:1	20:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	96.7%	92.8%
Dropout rate	2.0%	6.3%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Statistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $78,193 Year 2: $128,716 Year 3: $240,408 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $184,307 Year 2: $165,340 Year 3: $199,043 Business Administration, Management and Operations (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $171,333 Year 2: $171,907 Year 3: $187,553 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $140,072 Year 2: $128,737 Year 3: $163,896 Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: $151,371 Year 2: $174,023 Year 3: $163,512 Public Health (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $123,508 Year 2: $117,916 Year 3: $129,281 Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $121,832 Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $102,707 Year 2: $90,856 Year 3: $121,771 Education, General (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $97,905 Year 2: $98,670 Year 3: $107,389 Dentistry (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $68,745 Year 2: $71,486 Year 3: $106,375	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $171,936 Year 3: $191,597 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $122,038 Year 3: $167,052 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $125,250 Year 2: $125,388 Year 3: $161,399 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $126,367 Year 2: $128,868 Year 3: $160,666 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $160,390 Year 2: $142,470 Year 3: $143,984 Information Science/Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $119,358 Year 3: $143,516 Chemistry (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $107,442 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $112,973 Optometry (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $74,750 Year 2: $91,363 Year 3: $104,601 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $95,600 Year 2: $85,760 Year 3: $103,738 Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,282 Year 2: $65,387 Year 3: $102,543

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.

Harvard

California Institute of Technology