UVA vs. Harvard vs. Columbia vs. Princeton

University of Virginia Main Campus vs. Harvard University vs. Columbia University in the City of New York vs. Princeton University comparison

	University of Virginia Main Campus	Harvard University	Columbia University in the City of New York	Princeton University
	Remove	Remove	Remove	Remove
Overview	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
Location	Charlottesville, VA	Cambridge, MA	New York, NY	Princeton, NJ
Setting	Small City	Midsize City	Large City	Large Suburban
Enrollment	25,924	30,386	35,279	8,922
Type	Public 4 Year	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year
National Ranking	#63	#4	#22	#1
Religious Affiliation	-	-	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	virginia.edu	harvard.edu	columbia.edu	princeton.edu
Team Colors

Costs	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
Tuition (In State)	$17,490	$54,269	$65,340	$59,710
Tuition (Out of State)	$53,836	$54,269	$65,340	$59,710
Room & Board	$13,940	$20,374	$16,800	$19,380
Avg Net Price	$17,831	$17,900	$20,869	$19,811
Avg Grant Aid	$29,675	$64,942	$65,173	$60,629
% Receiving Grant Aid	28%	57%	52%	60%

Admission	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
Applied	56,528	56,937	57,613	39,644
Admitted	9,533	1,965	2,439	1,782
Acceptance Rate	16.9%	3.5%	4.2%	3.1%
Enrolled %	41.6%	83.7%	63.1%	56%
Avg High School GPA	3.85	4.0	3.91	3.93
Typical High School Grades	A-	A/A+	A-	A-
Admissions Standards	Exceptional	Elite	Elite	Elite
Applicant Competition	Very High	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme
ACT Range	32/34	34/36	34/35	34/35
SAT Range	1410/1530	1500/1580	1490/1570	1500/1580
Submit Test Scores	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)
Application Deadline		Jan 1, 2026	Jan 1, 2026	Jan 1, 2026

Academics	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
Student to Faculty Ratio	15:1	7:1	6:1	5:1
Popular Majors	Social Sciences (23%) Engineering (10%) Liberal Arts and Humanities (8%) Business (8%) Psychology (7%)	Social Sciences (32%) Biology (12%) Liberal Arts and Humanities (9%) History (9%) Mathematics (6%)	Social Sciences (26%) Engineering (12%) English and Literature (7%) History (7%) Health Professions (7%)	Social Sciences (14%) Engineering (10%) Biology (6%) History (4%) Human Services (4%)
Outcomes	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
Graduation Rate	94%	97%	93%	96%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$77,200	$136,700	$107,600	$113,900
Making Student Loan Payments	86%	70%	76%	83%
Median Student Loan Debt	$19,500	$6,500	$21,500	$7,500
Median Loan Payment	$201	$67	$222	$77

Diversity	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
% Men	15%	32%	33%	21%
% Women	17%	38%	42%	16%
Racial Diversity	Medium	Very High	Very High	Very High
HBCU	No	No	No	No
% White	60%	44%	38%	45%
% Black	6%	6%	8%	8%
% Hispanic	6%	10%	13%	9%
% Native American	0%	0%	0%	0%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	5%	6%	5%	4%
% International	5%	11%	15%	11%
% Unknown Race	6%	3%	3%	2%

Students	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
% In-State	65%	15%	19%	16%
% Out-of-State	29%	70%	64%	71%
Campus	UVA	Harvard	Columbia	Princeton
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	No	No	No	No
Daycare Facility	Yes	Yes	No	No
Learn More	Details	Details	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Harvard University is larger than than UVA based on total student enrollment (30,386 students vs. 25,924 students)

UVA vs. Harvard Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, UVA or Harvard?

• Harvard University is 210.3% more expensive to attend than UVA for in-state tuition ($54,269.00 vs. $17,490.00)
• Out of state tuition is 0.8% higher at Harvard than University of Virginia Main Campus ($54,269.00 vs. $53,836.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at University of Virginia Main Campus than Harvard ($17,831 vs. $17,900)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at University of Virginia Main Campus are 46.2% lower than costs at Harvard University ($13,940 vs. $20,374)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Harvard University than University of Virginia Main Campus (57% vs. 28%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Harvard University students is 118.8% larger than aid received University of Virginia Main Campus ($64,942 vs. $29,675)

UVA vs. Harvard Admissions Difficulty Comparison

Which college is harder to get into, UVA or Harvard? Average SAT and ACT scores plus acceptance rates offer good insight into the difficulty of admission between Harvard or UVA .

• The average SAT score at Harvard University (1497) is 133 points higher than at UVA (1364)
• Incoming Harvard students have a 3 point higher average ACT score (34) than students at UVA (31)
• Accepted freshman Harvard students have a 0.15 point higher average high school GPA (4.0) than students at UVA (3.85)
• UVA has a higher acceptance rate (16.9%) than Harvard (3.5%)

UVA vs. Harvard Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, UVA or Harvard? Graduation rate, salary and amount of student loan debt are indicators of a college which offers better outcomes for its graduates. Compare the following outcomes facts between Harvard and UVA.

• The graduation rate at Harvard is higher than University of Virginia Main Campus (97% vs. 94%)
• Graduates from Harvard University earn on average $59,500 more per year than UVA graduates after ten years. ($136,700 vs. $77,200)
• Harvard University students graduate with a $13,000 lower median federal student loan debt than UVA graduates. ($6,500 vs. $19,500)
• Harvard graduates are paying $134 less per month on federal student loans than UVA graduates. ($67 vs. $201)
• More UVA graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former Harvard students, three years after graduation. (86% vs. 70%)

Sources: U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov IPEDS and College Scorecard https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/