Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Its influence, wealth, and rankings have made it one of the most prestigious universities in the world.
A 1767 engraving of Harvard College by Paul Revere
The Statue of John Harvard on Harvard Yard
A 1906 watercolor painting of the campus, facing northeast
An aerial view of Harvard University at night in July 2017
The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference of eight private research universities in the Northeastern United States. The term Ivy League is used more broadly to refer to the eight schools that belong to the league, which are globally-renowned as elite colleges associated with academic excellence, highly selective admissions, and social elitism. The term was used as early as 1933, and it became official in 1954 following the formation of the Ivy League athletic conference.
The flags of all eight Ivy League universities fly over Columbia University's Wien Stadium in Manhattan
Soldiers Memorial Gate (1921) at Brown University
Low Memorial Library (1895) at Columbia University
Tjaden Hall (1883) at Cornell University