MBA: The Why, The Whats & The Hows

How Much Does The Harvard MBA Cost In 2024?

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Harvard Business School has one of the world's most popular MBA programs in the world. Harvard MBA alumni include former presidents and millionaire CEOs like Henry Paulson, Michael Bloomberg, Stephen Schwarzman, George W. Bush, and many more. Jobs and salary prospects for Harvard MBAs are quite promising. But how much does Harvard's MBA cost?

Harvard's two-year, full-time MBA program costs $149,820 (INR 1,24,95,430) in tuition. Moreover, Fortune ranks Harvard Business School as having the No. 1 full-time MBA program in the U.S. However, to calculate the total cost of the Harvard MBA in 2023, you need to look beyond Harvard’s MBA tuition fees and consider living expenses, healthcare coverage, and the cost of the materials and books you’ll need for the duration of the program.

If the cost is making you sweat, don’t worry; the investment is worth it! Scholarships are available to help you ease the financial burden. Scholarships are out there; you just have to find them. And that’s where Yocket Premium comes in. Yocket Premium gives you dedicated, unbiased counselling at every step of your study abroad journey. We have helped more than 200 students gain admission to IVY League universities like Harvard, Yale and Columbia. Reach out to us today!

Table of Contents

MBA at Harvard: Course Overview

Harvard Business School is every student's ambition to get an MBA in the United States. The school provides numerous executive education programs, a full-time MBA program, and doctorate programs. It is frequently listed as one of the top business schools in the world and the US. It provides over 80 executive education programs, eight full-time doctorate programs, and a two-year residential MBA program.

QS MBA Ranking 2024

3

Harvard University World Ranking 2024

4

Average Fees Per Year

USD 76,410 (INR 63,71,080)

Popular Programs

  • Full-Time MBA
  • Executive MBA

Why Study an MBA at Harvard?

Harvard Business School provides a two-year, full-time MBA program with a general management curriculum based on real-world experience. Gaining admission at HBS means joining a global community that promotes lifelong learning and career support, as well as peers, instructors, and staff that will both challenge and encourage you as you discover and accelerate your path.

Some of the reasons one should consider while choosing Harvard for an MBA are listed below.

Dynamic Learning Environments: Through case method classes, Field projects, tech simulations, introspective exercises, and other activities, you will find your full potential and emerge as a more inspiring leader than ever imagined.

Entrepreneurship: More than 50% of the graduates from Harvard start businesses to transform the world. Some examples are Microsoft, Facebook and Hulu.

An Inspiring & Collaborative Community: You'll learn as much from your classmates as you do from Harvard's world-class instructors—and they will learn from you! Each class consists of individuals who offer their various backgrounds and distinct perspectives to case discussions. The scale of HBS—from large-format classes to small sections and selected study groups—is purposefully structured to promote growth and learning.

Return on Investment: Harvard Business School is one of the most competitive MBA programs with a 13% acceptance rate. As per the report of Fortune, in 2022, HBS grads landed median starting base salaries of $175,000 (INR 1,45,95,510), an increase of more than 16% from 2021.

Suggested: How to Get Into Harvard University?

Cost of Studying MBA From Harvard

To determine the Harvard MBA cost estimate, we broke down the total cost, into tuition fees, living expenses, healthcare coverage, and other fees like books and materials. Any extra fees at Harvard are included in the cost of tuition. The total cost of pursuing an MBA at Harvard in 2024 is around $237,708 (INR 1,98,25,550).

Here's the cost breakdown for you:

Type of Cost

Amount

HARVARD TUITION FEES (2 Year)

$149,820 (INR 1,24,95,430)

HUHS STUDENT HEALTH FEE (SHF)

$1,592 (INR 1,32,780)

STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE PLAN (SHIP)

$4,202 (INR 3,50,460)

COURSE & PROGRAM MATERIALS FEE

$2,650 (INR 2,21,020)

HOUSING (10 months)

$19,200 (INR 16,01,330)

FOOD (10 MONTHS)

$6,800 (INR 5,67,140)

TRANSPORTATION (10 MONTHS)

$2,530 (INR 2,11,010)

OTHER LIVING EXPENSES (10 MONTHS)

$9,240 (INR 7,70,640)

TOTAL (1YEAR COST)

$134,086 (INR 1,11,83,170)

Living expenses

Harvard MBA students will be involved in extracurricular activities, international tours, and several MBA clubs offered at Harvard. A student club membership might cost up to $300 (INR 25,020) in annual registration costs.

However, the Harvard MBA living expenses vary on a single student's lifestyle, which includes on-campus housing and transportation but excludes these additional social events.

Harvard MBA students attending business school with families or partners will also have higher living expenses.

Healthcare cover

Harvard's healthcare costs include the Harvard University Student Health Fee of $1,592 (INR 1,32,780) and the Harvard Student Health Insurance Plan of $4,202 (INR 3,50,460).

Course Materials

Harvard charges a course and program materials fee of $2,650 (INR 2,21,020).

Harvard MBA cost comparison

As one of the world's best business schools, Harvard charges greater tuition for its MBA program. Tuition fees for most two-year MBA programs is from $40,000 to $140,000 per year, so Harvard's MBA fees of $134,086 (INR 1,11,83,170) is at the upper end of the range.

However, some of the top-ranked colleges offer more expensive MBA programs. The Harvard MBA is the seventh most expensive MBA program in the world in terms of overall cost, according to our Cost of MBA Report 2023.

MIT Sloan's tuition is $84,200 per year, over $10,000 more than Harvard's MBA. While Harvard is more expensive than Chicago Booth, Kellogg, and any non-US business school, Berkeley Haas, NYU Stern, Dartmouth Tuck, Wharton, and Stanford have high tuition fees.

Columbia, the world's most costly MBA school, costs $10,359 more than Harvard's total cost. Harvard has the lowest MBA tuition costs among the top M7 business schools. Cornell Johnson, Dartmouth Tuck, NYU Stern, and Yale all charge greater MBA tuition than Harvard.

Harvard MBA scholarships

Business school is a valuable investment in your future. HBS proudly supports this investment by offering need-based scholarships to both domestic and international students. HBS Scholarships are gifts that do not need to be paid back. Approximately 50 percent of students receive a need-based scholarship from HBS.The average scholarship offered is approximately $46,000 (INR 38,36,530) per year or $92,000 (INR 76,73,070) for 2 years.

Steps to Avail of Financial aid at Harvard

One should follow below mentioned steps to get financial aid at Harvard Business School:

  1. When admitted, you may get a financial assistance award letter along with your acceptance letter. It includes information about your merit-based scholarship. This depends on your academic performance and GMAT score.
  2. Following that, you can submit a financial aid request for a need-based scholarship.
  3. You'll be asked questions regarding your income, assets, and liabilities.
  4. You will then be told how much need-based financial aid you are qualified for, which is typically in the form of a tuition discount.

Let us look at some other scholarships which are offered to international students pursuing an MBA in the USA.

MBA Scholarships in USA for International Students 

There are many ways to fund your MBA US like federal student aid, state student aid, student loans, saving plans, scholarships, etc. To talk of scholarships to study MBA in the US, there are plenty of them, offered by schools, employers, individuals, private companies, communities, religious groups, and organizations(social and professional). They are mostly merit-based, need-based, or diversity-oriented. 

Some popular scholarships for MBA in the US are discussed below:

Scholarship Name 

About/ Awarded to

Social Impact Scholarship

Meritorious financially backward students at Boston University Questrom School of Business who seek to use core business management skills to address society’s most challenging humanitarian and social problems.

Amount/ Benefit: $10,000 (INR 8,33,800) to full tuition fees

J. N. Tata Endowment Awards 

One-time loan scholarship to Indians studying in the US offered at the beginning of an academic year for full-time postgraduate /PhD/ postdoctoral/ research fellowships studies, in all fields.

Amount/Benefit: $1,300 - $13,150 (INR 1,08,400-INR 10,96,450)

Wharton Academic Excellence Scholarship 

Domestic and international students who achieve the highest academic performance (GPA)  during their second and third semesters of the MBA program at Wharton Business School.

Amount/Benefit: $10,000 (INR 8,33,800)

Dr. Bruce I. Jacobs Scholars in Quantitative Finance

Second-year MBA students with high GPA majoring in Quantitative Finance at Wharton Business School. He/she must complete a total of 9 credits in the first year of their MBA. 

Amount/ Benefit: $25,000 (INR 20,84,510)

The International Peace Scholarship

Female international students looking to study any course including MBA at UCLA Anderson School of Management. It is a merit-based scholarship.

Amount/ Benefit: $10,000 (INR 8,33,800)

Dean’s Scholarship 

Candidates with outstanding professional, academic, and personal qualities pursuing an MBA from Boston University Questrom School of Business. Both domestic and international candidates will be considered for this scholarship.

Amount/ Benefit: $10,000 (INR 8,33,800) to full tuition fees

MBA aspirants are concerned about their finances and look for ways to reduce their financial burden. While scholarships happen to be the best option because there is no repayment required, it is practically not possible for all students to get one. Also, the remaining amount (or net cost of your MBA) after financial aid is what you’ll need to figure out how to pay yourself, using your savings or student loans.

Therefore, the next best option to finance your MBA abroad is to apply for a student loan for an MBA abroad.

Several banks as well as NBFCs in India offer education loans under specific conditions to students for pursuing MBA in India or abroad. Some of the most popular non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) include Avanse, Credila, Tata Capital, InCred, Global Student Loan Corporation, etc. that provide a student loan for MBA abroad. Most MBA students take out a loan, and the average loan amount borrowed per MBA student in the US is $60,000-$70,000 (INR 50,04,170 - INR 58,38,200).

You can explore Yocket Finance, to get complete assistance throughout the loan process!

From the Desk of Yocket

The ROI after an MBA from Harvard Business School is high. As per HBS, 86% of graduates who sought employment received an offer. The median base salary was $175,000 (INR 1,45,95,510), and 57% of alumni received an average signing bonus of $30,000 (INR 25,02,090). 70% of graduates received an average performance bonus of $40,000 (INR 33,36,120). The decision to choose between an MBA at Harvard and other similar programs depends on individual interests, goals, and financial conditions. Aspiring MBA candidates should carefully consider the unique offerings of each institution and align their goals with the school that best suits their aspirations and values. 

Are you worried about the financial aspects of an MBA at Harvard? Worry not! Talking with one of our knowledgeable Yocket counsellors can assist in streamlining this procedure. From a thorough profile evaluation and shortlisting universities to applying for scholarships and student visas, we got you. Schedule A Personalized Consultation Call Today!

Frequently Asked Questions About Harvard MBA Fees

What is the duration of Business Administration at Harvard University?

What is the annual tuition fee to pursue Business Administration at Harvard University?

What is the scope of an MBA for Indian/ international students?

How difficult is it to get into Harvard University to pursue Business Administration?

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