Then there's the wealth of HBS notable alumni working for the biggest companies in the world, from Sheryl Sandberg at Facebook to former president, George W. Bush.
The two-year, full-time MBA program offers students a general management education with a true focus on real-world business practices, with the opportunity to build their entrepreneurial mindset too.
So, what kind of return can you expect from the Harvard MBA?*
HBS Class profile
The current Harvard MBA class has 930 students made up of 45% women and 35% international. With 11% of students being the first in their families to attend college, HBS is making steps forward in diversity on all levels. On average, 50% of students receive needs-based scholarships, receiving average financial aid packages of $93k over two years.
HBS MBAs arrive with a range of academic backgrounds, with 24% coming from business undergraduate degrees. A further 22% studied engineering, 19% graduated with economics degrees, and 18% physical sciences or math. In total, 12% of HBS MBAs enrolled in the Class of 2026 studied social sciences, and 5% studied arts and humanities.
The average GPA for these students—based on the US 4.0 grading system—was 3.69.
HBS MBAs go on to launch careers with top companies worldwide. Hundreds of global organizations hired from the MBA class of 2024 or for summer internships from the class of 2025.
Apple, Microsoft, and Google are among the key recruiters of Harvard MBA grads. Tech is one of the dominant industries when it comes to MBA hiring so it's no surprise to see that leading firms snap up fresh HBS MBAs.
Traditionally popular routes such as finance and consulting are also key sectors where you can find HBS MBA recruiters. Grads go on to land jobs at the big three consulting firms, Bain & Company,...
), as well as firms like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase. Grads from HBS and other leading business schools are also among the few who tend to land highly competitive roles with venture capital and private equity firms.
Consumer goods is a popular route for HBS MBAs too, at the likes of Nike, Glossier, and L’Oréal. Leading healthcare players such as Johnson & Johnson also hired HBS MBAs from the class of 2024.
Add to that mix Tesla and The Walt Disney Company, and HBS MBAs in 2024 found employment with some of the largest and most reputable organizations out there.
HBS: Popular MBA jobs
The most popular career direction for grads from the most recent class was finance, with a significant 39% of students entering the sector.
Financial services has consistently been one of the most popular MBA grad routes. When delving deeper into the locational data, it's clear to see the popularity of private equity among students. In total, 19% of students chose this highly competitive 'buy side' area of finance, while 6% chose hedge funds or investment management and 5% venture capital. Elsewhere, 5% of the class chose 'sell side' careers in investment banking, and a further 4% entered other areas of financial services.
The two other most popular graduate destinations—consulting and technology—saw 18% and 16% of MBAs move into each sector, respectively.
Smaller numbers of grads started careers in healthcare (6%), manufacturing (5%), nonprofits (5%), consumer products (3%), media (3%), and general services (3%).
HBS has a strong entrepreneurial record, too: 14% of 2024 grads started their own business upon graduation.
Average MBA Salary
Making sure your salary offers a strong return on investment for the time and money put into studying the MBA is a huge factor behind many students’ decision to pursue a degree at business school.
If a high salary and bonuses are something you’re after, the HBS MBA delivers. In 2024, the median base salary for HBS grads was $175,000—this is higher than the average US MBA salary of $120,000, according to the GMAC Corporate Recruiters Survey.
On top of that, the median signing bonus was $30,000 and the median variable bonus was $47,500. As many as 53% of grads received a signing bonus, with 65% receiving a variable or performance bonus of some kind.
HBS MBAs who entered the consulting sector had a higher average median base salary than their peers entering other industries, with the consulting median salary coming in at $190,000. That’s compared to the median salary of $150,000 in an industry like consumer products—still not small.
For consulting, the median signing bonus was $30,000 and a huge 90% of MBAs entering consulting received a signing on bonus, while 83% received a performance bonus averaging at 30,000.
Grads entering private equity had marginally lower earning potential, with median salaries of $180,000. Evidence of the reason behind the popularity of this career path, private equity recruits achieved an average variable bonus of $155,000, with 79% achieving a bonus of this type. That's alongside signing bonuses of $31,000.
Elsewhere, investment bankers earned median salaries of $175,000 with signing bonuses of $50,000 and even higher variable bonuses of $175,000. In total 72% of HBS MBA investment bankers achieved variable bonuses.
Outside of finance, grads also entered the technology sector where they found a median starting salary of $165,000 and a median signing bonus of $25,000. Among the 35% who received a variable bonus, the average was $28,000.
Healthcare professionals had a median starting salary of $165,000, signing bonus of $30,000, and variable bonus of $29,000. As many as 71% achieved performance or variable bonuses.
Manufacturing grads had a median salary of $165,000 and a median signing bonus of $30,000, which 50% of grads were given.
For the 5% entering nonprofit and government industries, the median base salary was $120,000, with bonuses seldom given in this area.
Harvard MBA graduate job destination
In total 88% HBS MBA grads chose to stay in the US upon graduation, largely in the northeast (49%). Those working in the Northeast received an average base salary of $175,000. The West was also popular (17%) and had the highest median base salary of all US regions at $180,000.
While the median base salary for grads working in Asia, who made up 5% of grads, was slightly lower at $120,000. 63% received a performance bonus, with a median of $50,000 and the median signing bonus was $25,000, received by 38% of grads.
For the 5% of grads who launched careers in Europe, the median base salary was $135,500, with a median signing bonus of $25,000—received by 28%—and 60% received a performance bonus, with a median of $50,000.
In other locations, less than 1% of grads went to work in Canada, the Middle East, and North Africa, while just 1% of the class went to work in Latin America.
Who is the HBS MBA for?
Harvard places a large proportion of its students into the traditional MBA sectors of finance, consulting, and technology.
With some of the best minds having passed through Harvard’s doors, if you’re a budding startup founder the network and institutional support available from the HBS MBA should also stand out.
The MBA offers a demanding and fast-paced environment, where the classroom mirrors the global business landscape. Harvard wants future leaders, so make sure you are prepared to break away from the crowd.
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