TL;DR
- Harvard MBA students go on to work across a range of high-paying, competitive industries, including finance, consulting, and technology
- Harvard MBA graduates have a strong track record of landing roles in highly desirable areas of finance including private equity and venture capital
- Salaries earned by Harvard MBA graduates vary across industries, however on average they earn around $185,000 in base salary and $46,000 in bonuses
Since introducing the world's first MBA program, Harvard Business School (HBS) has established a reputation as one of the world's premier management instutions.
The school's pedigree means there's a wealth of notable HBS alumni working for the biggest companies in the world, from former Meta chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, to former US president, George W. Bush.
In the 2024-25 academic year, Harvard received 9,409 applications to its full-time MBA program. In total, 943 were accepted, giving the school an acceptance rate of around 10%.
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? We've broken down some of the key takeaways from the 2025 Harvard Business School MBA employment report to find out.
What is the HBS MBA class profile?
The current Harvard MBA class has 943 students made up of 44% women and 37% international representatives. With 10% of students being the first in their families to attend college, HBS continues to make forward steps in diversity on all levels. On average, 50% of students receive needs-based scholarships, receiving average financial aid packages of $100k over two years. In total, 10% of the class receive full tuition scholarships.
HBS MBAs arrive with a range of academic backgrounds, with 24% coming from engineering degrees. A further 22% studied business, while 19% graduated with economics and math/physical sciences degrees, respectively. In total, 11% 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 3.76.
Which companies hire Harvard MBA grads?
The latest employment report reveals HBS MBAs go on to launch careers with top companies worldwide. Hundreds of global organizations hired from the MBA Class of 2025 or for summer internships from the Class of 2026.
Apple, Microsoft, and Google are among the key recruiters of Harvard MBA grads, as are AI pioneers such as OpenAI and Anthropic. 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, McKinsey, and Boston Consulting Group (BCG), 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 and L’Oréal. Leading healthcare players such as Eli Lilly also hired HBS MBAs from the Class of 2025.
Add to that mix Deloitte and IBM, and HBS MBAs in 2025 found employment with some of the largest and most reputable organizations out there.
What are popular jobs for Harvard MBA graduates?
The most popular career direction for grads from the most recent class was finance, with a significant 34% of students entering the industry, across various areas including the highly competitive private equity and venture capital sectors.
Financial services has consistently been one of the most popular MBA grad routes. When delving deeper into the data, it's clear to see the popularity of private equity among HBS students. In total, 14% of students chose this highly competitive 'buy side' area of finance, while 7% chose hedge funds or investment management and 4% venture capital. Elsewhere, 6% of the class chose 'sell side' careers in investment banking, and a further 3% entered other areas of financial services.
The two other most popular graduate destinations—consulting and technology—saw 21% and 22% of Harvard MBAs move into each sector, respectively.
Smaller numbers of HBS grads started careers in healthcare (6%), manufacturing (5%), nonprofits (4%), consumer products (2%), media (3%), and general services (3%).
HBS has a strong entrepreneurial record, too: 17% of 2025 grads started their own business upon graduation.
What salaries do Harvard MBA graduates earn on average?
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 2025, the median base salary for HBS grads was $184,500—this is higher than the average US MBA salary of $125,000, according to our most recent Corporate Recruiters Survey.
On top of that, the median signing bonus was $30,000 and the median variable bonus was $46,125.
HBS MBAs who took up roles classed under 'Other Financial Services' earned higher median base salaries than their peers, with median salaries of $192,000. This was marginally more than those entering consulting firms ($190,000) and private equity companies ($188,000). Thoe taking up roles in consumer products earned comparatively smaller salaries of $146,000 on average, while HBS MBAs entering nonprofits earned $130,000.
For consulting, the median signing bonus was $30,000 and a huge 91% of MBAs entering consulting received a signing on bonus, while 91% received a performance bonus averaging at $40,000.
Grads entering private equity also had significant potential to earn above their starting salaries. Private equity recruits achieved an average variable bonus of $150,000, with 87% achieving a bonus of this type. That's alongside signing bonuses of $30,000.
Elsewhere, investment bankers earned median salaries of $175,000 with signing bonuses of $50,000 and variable bonuses of $83,000 on average. In total, 76% of HBS MBA investment bankers achieved variable bonuses.
Outside of finance, grads also entered the technology sector where they earned median starting salaries of $178,000 and a median signing bonus of $30,000. Among the 42% who received a variable bonus, the average was $33,000.
Healthcare professionals had a median starting salary of $160,000, signing bonus of $30,000, and variable bonus of $25,000. As many as 66% achieved performance or variable bonuses.
Manufacturing grads had a median salary of $162,000 and a median signing bonus of $15,000, which 54% of grads were awarded.
Where in the world do Harvard MBA graduates work?
In total 92% HBS MBA grads chose to stay in the US upon graduation, largely in the northeast (48%). The West was also a popular region (24%), while all other regions of the US attracted between 4% and 6% of graduates.
For those who chose to leave the US and seek opportunities further afield, Asia was the most popular destination, with 3% of the class taking up roles in the continent. A further 2% of grads sought roles in Europe.
Who is the HBS MBA for?
Harvard places a large proportion of its students into the traditional MBA sectors of finance, consulting, and technology. The school's track record of helping students land lucrative roles in private equity and venture capital is particularly of note.
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.
How do you get into Harvard Business School? You need to have a strong academic profile, a good GMAT score, and ambition in abundance.
*The data in this article is based on the Harvard MBA Class Profile and Harvard MBA Employment report