Where the Students Are

At each Commencement, Harvard confers 6,500 or so degrees, on everyone from College students who have navigated their undergraduate years to...

At each Commencement, Harvard confers 6,500 or so degrees, on everyone from College students who have navigated their undergraduate years to those who have mastered architecture, medicine, law, or business. But the Univeristy consists, famously, of separate “tubs” devoted to distinct kinds of teaching and research. As if one could not tell from the relative amount of noise the graduates make or the flurries of totems they wield in Tercentenary Theatre (toothbrushes, school books, sharks, condom balloons, currency), Harvard’s schools vary widely in enrollment. The Faculty of Arts and Sciences, acting as College and Graduate School, accounts for about half of the University’s student body. Dental Medicine is the smallest school. Taken as a whole, the Extension School ranks right in the middle.

Illustrated chart by Stephen Anderson

Most popular

Harvard Faculty Discuss Tenure Denials

New data show a shift in when, in the process, rejections occur

What Trump Means for John Roberts’s Legacy

Executive power is on the docket at the Supreme Court.

Japan As It Never Will Be Again

Harvard’s Stillman collection showcases glimpses of the Meiji era. 

Explore More From Current Issue

People gather near the John Harvard Statue in front of University Hall surrounded by autumn trees.

A Changed Harvard Faces the Future

After a tense summer—and with no Trump settlement in sight—the University continues to adapt. 

Two small cast iron pans with berry-topped desserts, dusted with powdered sugar, alongside lemon slices.

Shopping for New England-Made Gifts This Holiday Season

Ways to support regional artists, designers, and manufacturers 

A woman (Julia Child) struggles to carry a tall stack of books while approaching a building.

Highlights from Harvard’s Past

The rise of Cambridge cyclists, a lettuce boycott, and Julia Child’s cookbooks