The MBA Class of 2026 profile for Harvard Business School is out and the school has once again gathered a group of diverse and accomplished students.
HBS received 9,856 applications for the MBA Class of 2026 and 930 ultimately enrolled. The year prior, the MBA program received 8,149 applications and the class size landed at 938.
Diverse Representation in the Harvard MBA Class of 2026
Women make up 45 percent of the HBS Class of 2026 profile, which mirrors last year’s class. Thirty-five percent of new members are international, a slight dip from 39 percent last year.
In the Harvard MBA Class of 2026 profile, HBS is sharing the racial and ethnic identities of its domestic students in two ways. Federal reporting guidelines allow each individual student to be represented in a single race or ethnic group, whereas HBS also employs multidimensional reporting, allowing students to be counted in each group they identify with. Out of domestic students and permanent U.S. residents, when counted according to Federal guidelines, a quarter are Asian American, eight percent are Black or African American, 10 percent are Hispanic or Latino, and four percent identify as multiracial. Multi-dimensional reporting indicates that 29 percent of students identify as Asian American, 10 percent are Black or African American, and 10 percent identify as Hispanic or Latino. This method also reveals that 62 percent identify themselves as white as opposed to 49 percent under Federal reporting guidelines.
| Women | 45% |
| U.S. Minority Representation (Federal) | 47% |
| International Students | 35% |
| Average Work Experience | 5 years |
Academic and Professional Background
Eleven percent of the MBA Class of 2026 are first-generation college students, which matches last year’s class. Twenty-four percent of the new HBS class earned undergraduate degrees in business/commerce. Twenty-two percent hold degrees in engineering followed by 19 percent in economics. Eighteen percent had studied math/physical sciences during their undergraduate years. Twelve percent majored in social sciences and five percent in arts/humanities. Based on U.S. schools with a 4.0 scale, the students averaged a 3.69 GPA during undergrad.
| Average Undergraduate GPA | 3.69 |
| Percent majoring in arts, humanities, social sciences | 17% |
| Percent majoring in business/commerce | 24% |
| Percent majoring in economics | 19% |
| Percent majoring in engineering | 22% |
| Percent majoring in math/physical sciences | 18% |
When it came time to take the GMAT or GRE, 63 percent opted to take the GMAT and 41percent submitted GRE scores, with some submitting both scores. The HBS MBA Class of 2026 matches last year’s class, landing with a median GMAT score of 740. The median scores for the Quant and Verbal sections of the GRE came in at 163 each, also mirroring last year.
| Median GMAT Score | 740 |
| GMAT Score Range | 540-790 |
| GMAT Quant Median | 49 |
| GMAT Quant Range | 35-51 |
| GMAT Verbal Median | 42 |
| GMAT Verbal Range | 27-51 |
| GRE Quant Median | 163 |
| GRE Quant Range | 157-169 |
| GRE Verbal Median | 163 |
| GRE Verbal Range | 157-168 |
| Percent Submitting GRE Scores | 34% |
Prior to matriculating, the HBS MBA Class of 2026 averaged five years of professional experience. Eighteen percent of the class comes from a consulting background. Another 16 percent had worked in private equity/venture capital. Twelve percent came from the tech industry followed by 10 percent from financial services. Manufacturing/industrial/energy as well as consumer products/retail/e-commerce each cover nine percent of HBS students’ pre-MBA work experience.
