Notable Alumni Of Harvard University

In this post Notable Alumni Of Harvard University, Any institution has a strong sense of school pride, but arguably no university has more to shout about than Harvard. In addition to being among the greatest universities in the world, the institution founded in 1936 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has produced a number of well-known graduates.

The school’s alumni have undoubtedly chalked up some astounding successes, including presidents, corporate titans, and famous performers. Numerous dropouts have also used what they learnt at Harvard to succeed as captains of industry.

Here are some of the most well-known individuals who have either an undergraduate or graduate degree from Harvard, along with a few who have succeeded without one.

Notable Alumni Of Harvard University

Barack Obama

The Harvard Law School has the 44th President of the United States of America as a student. Barack Obama received a magna cum laude degree from Harvard University in 1991, therefore making him one of the university’s most well-known alumni. He was the first Black President of the esteemed Harvard Law Review after being accepted at the conclusion of his first year. He was inaugurated as the country’s first African American president in 2008.

Al Gore

The 45th vice president of the United States is Albert Arnold Gore. He works as a politician, novelist, and environmentalist. In 1965, Al Gore enrolled at Harvard College. During his time at Harvard, Gore was heavily influenced by oceanographer and proponent of global warming theory, Roger Revelle. He worked tirelessly as an environmentalist later in life, which helped him win the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

Bill Gates

Business tycoon, software developer, investor, author, and philanthropist William Henry Gates III hails from the United States. Along with his late childhood friend Paul Allen, he co-founded Microsoft. Gates served as chairman, CEO, president, and chief software architect during his tenure at Microsoft. He also served as the company’s largest individual shareholder until May 2014. He played a significant role in the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s as an entrepreneur.

Bill Gates studied from 1973 to 1975 at Harvard University. However, during his brief time at the university, he developed a significant connection with Steve Ballmer. Ballmer in 1980 would work alongside Gates and Allen at the software startup. Harvard recognized its most well-known dropout in 2007 by awarding him an honorary law degree. He now serves as the chief technology officer for Microsoft, Satya Nadella, as well as a global philanthropist and co-director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Mark Zuckerberg

Famous creator of Facebook left Harvard during his senior year to concentrate on the rapidly expanding social network he created at Kirkland House room H33. When he was on campus in 2005, he made his decision public in an interview with The Harvard Crimson in an effort to get other students to join his business. Priscilla Chan, his future wife, was one of them. He gave her the job as she passed him while he was speaking with the newspaper’s reporter. The market value of Facebook was $368 billion as of publication.

Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman, the Oscar-winning actress from Black Swan, put acting on hold to complete a degree in psychology at Harvard. The Jerusalem-born actress famously declared during her time at the university that she’d “rather be smart than a movie star” despite receiving backlash for the statement. She even wrote a letter to the editors of the Crimson. Portman went on to star in a number of successful movies after graduation in 2003. Some of them include: Jackie, Thor: the Dark World, and Avengers: Endgame.

Soledad O’Brien

Soledad O’Brien studied at Harvard from 1984 to 1988, although she didn’t receive her degree until 2000. Nevertheless, the former Ivy League student has made good use of her BA in English and American Literature by producing popular TV shows like Black in America and Latino in America. The native of New York currently holds the position of host for the syndicated show Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien.

Conan O’Brien

Conan program host Conan O’Brien, unquestionably one of Harvard’s most well-known graduates, earned a degree in American history from the prestigious institution. The Boston native wasted no time in honing his skill while still in college. He held the position of president of the humour publication Harvard Lampoon. After Jay Leno left the show, he continued to write for Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons before hosting Late Night and The Tonight Show.

Neil deGrasse Tyson

One of the most well-known Harvard University graduates is Tyson. In 1980, he earned a bachelor’s degree in physics. With his books and appearances on television and radio, he rose to fame as a pop culture hero and helped make science more accessible. He is one of the most well-known and well-liked cosmologists, astrophysicists, and science communicators. Mr. Tyson, a superb scientist in his field, has worked very hard to make science approachable, intelligible, and appealing to the general public.

George W. Bush

The first president to hold an MBA degree, George Bush served as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The former President graduated from Harvard Business School in 1975, making him one of the university’s most well-known graduates. Students and professors at Harvard University characterize Bush as having unusual confidence, a laid-back demeanour. He had preference for listening to conversations rather than participating in them.

Steve Ballmer

Steve Ballmer was the former CEO of Microsoft. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Mathematics and Economics from Harvard University in 1977. Steve was Microsoft’s CEO from 2000 to 2014. He is an American businessman and investor. Currently, this well-known Harvard alumnus is the owner of the National Basketball Association’s Los Angeles Clippers.

John F. Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, also known as JFK, was an American politician. JFK was elected as the 35th President of the United States in 1961. He held the position until he was assassinated near the end of his third year in office. He proceeded to Harvard University to pursue a degree in international relations and government.

Matt Damon

Actor, producer, and screenwriter Matt Damon is from the United States. His films have grossed more than $3.88 billion in North America, making him one of the highest-paid actors of all time and one of Forbes’ most bankable celebrities. At the age of 18, he was cast in a supporting role in the 1988 film Mystic Pizza and enrolled at Harvard University to study English.

Tommy Lee Jones

Actor and filmmaker Tommy Lee Jones is well-known in the United States. He was nominated for four Academy Awards for his performance as US Marshal Samuel Gerard in the suspenseful movie The Fugitive, for which he won Best Supporting Actor in 1993. Jones completed his final thesis on “the mechanics of Catholicism” in Flannery O’Connor’s works, earning a Bachelor of Arts in English with honours in 1969. At Harvard, he studied dramatist Robert Chapman

William E. B. Du Bois

William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was a sociologist, socialist, historian, civil rights activist, pan-Africanist, author, writer, and editor who was born in the United States. Du Bois entered Harvard College as a junior and earned his second bachelor’s degree there in 1890. He became the first African American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1895.

Helen Keller

Hellen Adams Keller was an American author, educator, political activist, and supporter of disability rights. She was born in West Tuscumbia, Alabama, and following a health scare at the age of 19 months, she went blind and lost her hearing. Until she met her first teacher and lifelong friend Anne Sullivan when she was seven, she exclusively used house signals to communicate. Keller was taught language, including reading and writing, by this young woman. Keller attended Radcliffe College at Harvard University and became the first deafblind person to receive a Bachelor of Arts degree after receiving an education at both specialised and mainstream schools of Notable Alumni Of Harvard University

Ban Ki-moon

Between 2007 to 2016, South Korean politician and diplomat Ban Ki-moon held the position of eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations. Ban worked as a professional diplomat for the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UN. He was thereafter appointed secretary-general. When he finished from college, he joined the diplomatic service and took up his first assignment in New Delhi, India.

Sheryl Sandberg

Sheryl is a billionaire and serves as Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer. She received a summa cum laude in Economics from Harvard University in 1991. Sheryl went back to Harvard Business School and afterwards, graduated with the highest MBA honours in 1995. She had held vice president positions at Google and Mckinsey & Co. before joining Facebook. She founded the Lean In Foundation as well. Notable Alumni Of Harvard University

Frequently Asked Questions About Notable Alumni Of Harvard University

What GPA is needed to get into Harvard?

A GPA of at least 4.18 is required. You must make up the difference if your GPA is below this with a higher SAT/ACT score. You’ll also need to wow them with the rest of your application for a school like Harvard, which is extremely selective.

How old do you have to be to attend Harvard?

18 years of age.
When registering, students must be 18 years old or older. This applies to application for undergraduate degree programs.

How long do students at Harvard study?

Each student enrolls in four courses each semester (fall and spring), for a total of 32 courses over the course of four years. Harvard students attend classes for an average of 12 hours per week, and they have plenty of freedom to prioritize their studies and free time.

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