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University · Cambridge · United States

Harvard University

In research, Harvard University stands highest in Health Sciences (#1 of 9,902 worldwide), Medicine (#1 of 8,541 worldwide) and Life Sciences (#2 of 6,403 worldwide), 2022-now. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Instrumentation, Transplantation and Family Practice (Instrumentation is 18.5× its share of world research).

harvard.eduROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022-now
#1
of 22,385 · #1 all time
Rank in United States
#1
of 3,332
Research works
495k
◆ 2% vs 2018-21
Citations
31.3M
63.2 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
16.0%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.48×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
41%
world 40%
International
20%
world 18%
Harvard University

What is Harvard University known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022-now, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Health SciencesDomain #1 of 9,902 16.5%37,731 #1
MedicineField #1 of 8,541 16.5%34,433 #1
Life SciencesDomain #2 of 6,403 17.5%13,109 #1
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular BiologyField #1 of 2,964 17.9%7,679 #1
Social SciencesDomain #4 of 9,585 16.9%7,214 #1
PsychologyField #1 of 2,121 16.2%2,776 #1
Health ProfessionsField #1 of 1,895 16.7%2,645 #1
Molecular BiologySubfield #1 of 1,880 18.1%4,334 #1
Economics, Econometrics and FinanceField #1 of 1,798 18.2%1,136 #1
SurgerySubfield #1 of 1,532 15.8%4,008 #1

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Harvard University sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no average mark, because the average differs by field (from about 6% in Dentistry to 21% in Economics).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022-now. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Health Sciences#1 #1
  2. Medicine#1 #1
  3. Life Sciences#1 #2
  4. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology#1 #1
  5. Social Sciences#1 #4
  6. Psychology#1 #1
  7. Health Professions#1 #1
  8. Molecular Biology#1 #1
  9. Economics, Econometrics and Finance#1 #1
  10. Surgery#1 #1
all time2022-now, better2022-now, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

Which fields of science does Harvard University work in?

In 2022-now, 56% of research at Harvard University is in Health Sciences, 20% in Life Sciences. Its largest fields are Medicine (51%), Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (12%), Neuroscience (4%). It does 2.4× the world's share of Health Sciences.

Health Sciences: 43k fractional works · 55.8% of its workMedicine: 39k fractional works · 51.0% of its workSurgery: 4,571 fractional works · 6.0% of its workPulmonary and Respiratory Medicine: 3,422 fractional works · 4.5% of its workOncology: 2,997 fractional works · 3.9% of its workEpidemiology: 2,652 fractional works · 3.5% of its workCardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine: 2,597 fractional works · 3.4% of its workPublic Health, Environmental and Occupational Health: 2,442 fractional works · 3.2% of its workRadiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging: 2,058 fractional works · 2.7% of its workPhysiology: 1,803 fractional works · 2.4% of its workNeurology: 1,373 fractional works · 1.8% of its workPsychiatry and Mental health: 1,362 fractional works · 1.8% of its workPediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health: 1,235 fractional works · 1.6% of its workEndocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism: 1,009 fractional works · 1.3% of its workInfectious Diseases: 996 fractional works · 1.3% of its workPathology and Forensic Medicine: 985 fractional works · 1.3% of its workRheumatology: 856 fractional works · 1.1% of its workHematology: 782 fractional works · 1.0% of its workGenetics: 762 fractional works · 1.0% of its workEmergency Medicine: 664 fractional works · 0.9% of its workOphthalmology: 545 fractional works · 0.7% of its workPharmacology: 515 fractional works · 0.7% of its workObstetrics and Gynecology: 502 fractional works · 0.7% of its workDermatology: 497 fractional works · 0.7% of its workReproductive Medicine: 407 fractional works · 0.5% of its workNephrology: 367 fractional works · 0.5% of its workCritical Care and Intensive Care Medicine: 360 fractional works · 0.5% of its workOrthopedics and Sports Medicine: 322 fractional works · 0.4% of its workAnesthesiology and Pain Medicine: 316 fractional works · 0.4% of its workHealth Informatics: 285 fractional works · 0.4% of its workHepatology: 282 fractional works · 0.4% of its workRehabilitation: 275 fractional works · 0.4% of its workGastroenterology: 257 fractional works · 0.3% of its workGeriatrics and Gerontology: 223 fractional works · 0.3% of its workInternal Medicine: 183 fractional works · 0.2% of its workOtorhinolaryngology: 181 fractional works · 0.2% of its workTransplantation: 169 fractional works · 0.2% of its workFamily Practice: 167 fractional works · 0.2% of its workImmunology and Allergy: 164 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 365 fractional works · 0.5% of its workHealth Professions: 2,936 fractional works · 3.8% of its workGeneral Health Professions: 1,697 fractional works · 2.2% of its workEmergency Medical Services: 378 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSpeech and Hearing: 233 fractional works · 0.3% of its workHealth Information Management: 182 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPharmacy: 153 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 292 fractional works · 0.4% of its workNursing: 413 fractional works · 0.5% of its workNutrition and Dietetics: 363 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 50 fractional works · 0.1% of its workDentistry: 275 fractional works · 0.4% of its workVeterinary: 47 fractional works · 0.1% of its workLife Sciences: 15k fractional works · 19.6% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 8,832 fractional works · 11.6% of its workMolecular Biology: 4,956 fractional works · 6.5% of its workGenetics: 1,689 fractional works · 2.2% of its workCancer Research: 945 fractional works · 1.2% of its workCell Biology: 431 fractional works · 0.6% of its workBiophysics: 213 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 599 fractional works · 0.8% of its workNeuroscience: 3,424 fractional works · 4.5% of its workCognitive Neuroscience: 1,467 fractional works · 1.9% of its workCellular and Molecular Neuroscience: 644 fractional works · 0.8% of its workNeurology: 570 fractional works · 0.7% of its workEndocrine and Autonomic Systems: 236 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 507 fractional works · 0.7% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 2,033 fractional works · 2.7% of its workImmunology: 1,716 fractional works · 2.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 318 fractional works · 0.4% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 473 fractional works · 0.6% of its workPlant Science: 185 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 287 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 230 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPhysical Sciences: 11k fractional works · 14.1% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 3,374 fractional works · 4.4% of its workAstronomy and Astrophysics: 1,823 fractional works · 2.4% of its workInstrumentation: 706 fractional works · 0.9% of its workAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics: 361 fractional works · 0.5% of its workNuclear and High Energy Physics: 183 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 301 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEngineering: 3,006 fractional works · 3.9% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 1,351 fractional works · 1.8% of its workComputational Mechanics: 859 fractional works · 1.1% of its workElectrical and Electronic Engineering: 307 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 490 fractional works · 0.6% of its workComputer Science: 1,385 fractional works · 1.8% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 758 fractional works · 1.0% of its workComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition: 232 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 394 fractional works · 0.5% of its workEnvironmental Science: 1,232 fractional works · 1.6% of its workHealth, Toxicology and Mutagenesis: 607 fractional works · 0.8% of its workEcology: 178 fractional works · 0.2% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 154 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 293 fractional works · 0.4% of its workMathematics: 560 fractional works · 0.7% of its workStatistics and Probability: 305 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 255 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMaterials Science: 470 fractional works · 0.6% of its workMaterials Chemistry: 236 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 233 fractional works · 0.3% of its workChemistry: 347 fractional works · 0.5% of its workOrganic Chemistry: 161 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 186 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 316 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEnergy: 71 fractional works · 0.1% of its workChemical Engineering: 30 fractional works · 0.0% of its workSocial Sciences: 7,991 fractional works · 10.5% of its workPsychology: 3,146 fractional works · 4.1% of its workClinical Psychology: 1,405 fractional works · 1.8% of its workExperimental and Cognitive Psychology: 649 fractional works · 0.8% of its workSocial Psychology: 648 fractional works · 0.8% of its workApplied Psychology: 231 fractional works · 0.3% of its workDevelopmental and Educational Psychology: 176 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 38 fractional works · 0.0% of its workSocial Sciences: 2,539 fractional works · 3.3% of its workSociology and Political Science: 886 fractional works · 1.2% of its workHealth: 398 fractional works · 0.5% of its workGender Studies: 313 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEducation: 261 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPolitical Science and International Relations: 179 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 501 fractional works · 0.7% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 1,205 fractional works · 1.6% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 1,079 fractional works · 1.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 126 fractional works · 0.2% of its workArts and Humanities: 461 fractional works · 0.6% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 353 fractional works · 0.5% of its workDecision Sciences: 286 fractional works · 0.4% of its workALL ITS WORKHarvardUniversity76kfractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences20%Physical Sciences14%Health Sciences56%Social Sciences10%

Each ring splits the one inside it: the four domains of science, their fields, their subfields. Size is fractional works in 2022-now. Every slice is a page; the interactive view zooms down to single topics and colours each by how much more of it this institution does than the world.

Its 4 domains and 26 fields, with their numbers
    1. Medicine39k51.0%
    2. Health Professions2,9363.8%
    3. Nursing4130.5%
    4. Dentistry2750.4%
    5. Veterinary470.1%
    1. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology8,83211.6%
    2. Neuroscience3,4244.5%
    3. Immunology and Microbiology2,0332.7%
    4. Agricultural and Biological Sciences4730.6%
    5. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics2300.3%
    1. Physics and Astronomy3,3744.4%
    2. Engineering3,0063.9%
    3. Computer Science1,3851.8%
    4. Environmental Science1,2321.6%
    5. Mathematics5600.7%
    6. Materials Science4700.6%
    7. Chemistry3470.5%
    8. Earth and Planetary Sciences3160.4%
    9. Energy710.1%
    10. Chemical Engineering300.0%
  4. Social Sciences7,99110.5%
    1. Psychology3,1464.1%
    2. Social Sciences2,5393.3%
    3. Economics, Econometrics and Finance1,2051.6%
    4. Arts and Humanities4610.6%
    5. Business, Management and Accounting3530.5%
    6. Decision Sciences2860.4%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

What does Harvard University specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Instrumentation takes 18.5× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. InstrumentationSubfield · 705.6 works18×
  2. TransplantationSubfield · 169.0 works5.0×
  3. Family PracticeSubfield · 167.3 works4.6×
  4. Astronomy and AstrophysicsSubfield · 1,822.6 works4.6×
  5. Internal MedicineSubfield · 182.9 works3.9×
  6. Developmental NeuroscienceSubfield · 143.6 works3.8×
  7. Anesthesiology and Pain MedicineSubfield · 316.0 works3.8×
  8. GeneticsSubfield · 762.0 works3.6×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.13× its world share, 473 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 2.17× its world share, 8,832 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 2.64× its world share, 2,033 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 2.76× its world share, 3,424 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.86× its world share, 230 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 0.11× its world share, 30 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.29× its world share, 347 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.23× its world share, 1,385 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.26× its world share, 316 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.10× its world share, 71 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.26× its world share, 3,006 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.32× its world share, 1,232 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.18× its world share, 470 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.62× its world share, 560 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 1.99× its world share, 3,374 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.74× its world share, 275 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 1.46× its world share, 2,936 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 2.65× its world share, 39k worksMedicineNursing: 1.10× its world share, 413 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.45× its world share, 47 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.21× its world share, 461 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.14× its world share, 353 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 0.39× its world share, 286 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.74× its world share, 1,206 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.35× its world share, 3,146 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.26× its world share, 2,539 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Neuroscience, 2.8×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 26 fields, with their numbers
  1. Neuroscience2.76×3,424 works
  2. Medicine2.65×39k works
  3. Immunology and Microbiology2.64×2,033 works
  4. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology2.17×8,832 works
  5. Physics and Astronomy1.99×3,374 works
  6. Health Professions1.46×2,936 works
  7. Psychology1.35×3,146 works
  8. Nursing1.10×413 works
  9. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics0.86×230 works
  10. Dentistry0.74×275 works
  11. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.74×1,206 works
  12. Mathematics0.62×560 works
  13. Veterinary0.45×47 works
  14. Decision Sciences0.39×286 works
  15. Environmental Science0.32×1,232 works
  16. Chemistry0.29×347 works
  17. Earth and Planetary Sciences0.26×316 works
  18. Engineering0.26×3,006 works
  19. Social Sciences0.26×2,539 works
  20. Computer Science0.23×1,385 works
  21. Arts and Humanities0.21×461 works
  22. Materials Science0.18×470 works
  23. Business, Management and Accounting0.14×353 works
  24. Agricultural and Biological Sciences0.13×473 works
  25. Chemical Engineering0.11×30 works
  26. Energy0.10×71 works

Who are the top researchers at Harvard University?

Ranked on the quality score, B Bernstein, David Emil Reich and Cumrun Vafa lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Harvard University.

  1. 1 B Bernstein United States · #18 worldwide 159k citations · 2,602 works
  2. 2 David Emil Reich United States · #65 worldwide 113k citations · 510 works
  3. 3 Cumrun Vafa United States · #80 worldwide 56k citations · 414 works
  4. 4 Andrei Shleifer United States · #94 worldwide 234k citations · 520 works
  5. 5 Alfred Lewis Goldberg United States · #95 worldwide 87k citations · 486 works
  6. 6 Ronald C. Kessler United States · #96 worldwide 360k citations · 1,625 works
  7. 7 Daniel J. Jacob United States · #121 worldwide 92k citations · 1,049 works
  8. 8 Tom Maniatis United States · #135 worldwide 233k citations · 363 works
  9. 9 Steven P. Gygi United States · #159 worldwide 176k citations · 1,056 works
  10. 10 Walter Churchill Willett United States · #177 worldwide 411k citations · 2,692 works
All ranked researchers at Harvard University

What are the most cited papers from Harvard University?

The most cited paper from Harvard University is "The PRISMA 2020 statement: an updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews" (Matthew James Page et al., 2021), with 105,915 citations. Next come "Moderated estimation of fold change and dispersion for RNA-seq data with DESeq2" (104,335) and "The Sequence Alignment/Map format and SAMtools" (69,061).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 The PRISMA 2020 statement: an updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews Matthew James Page et al. · BMJ ReviewOpen access 29 Mar 2021 105,915
2 Moderated estimation of fold change and dispersion for RNA-seq data with DESeq2 Michael I. Love, Wolfgang K. Huber, Simon Anders · Genome biology Open access 5 Dec 2014 104,335
3 The Sequence Alignment/Map format and SAMtools Heng Li, Bob Handsaker, Alec Wysoker et al. · Bioinformatics Open access 8 Jun 2009 69,061
4 Gene set enrichment analysis: A knowledge-based approach for interpreting genome-wide expression profiles Aravind N. Subramanian, Pablo Tamayo, Vamsi Krishna Mootha et al. · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Open access 30 Sep 2005 58,060
5 Maximum Likelihood from Incomplete Data Via the EM Algorithm A. P. Dempster, N. M. Laird, Donald B. Rubin · Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series B (Statistical Methodology) Sep 1977 50,034
All 59 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Harvard University?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Epidemiology, Inflammation, Immunotherapy, Cardiovascular Disease, Treatment, Risk Factors, Quality of Life and Oxidative Stress.

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's

Size is fractional works in 2022-now in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Epidemiology6,542▲ 2.1×140 topics
  2. Inflammation3,932▲ 2.4×83 topics
  3. Oxidative Stress2,277▲ 1.81×62 topics
  4. Quality of Life2,188▲ 1.98×57 topics
  5. Cardiovascular Disease2,182▲ 2.5×39 topics
  6. Treatment2,178▲ 2.3×52 topics
  7. Cancer2,072▲ 2.0×58 topics
  8. Risk Factors2,055▲ 2.5×37 topics
  9. Immunotherapy1,915▲ 3.5×19 topics
  10. Public Health1,846▲ 1.66×71 topics
  11. Diagnosis1,632▲ 2.3×41 topics
  12. Metabolic Syndrome1,592▲ 2.6×24 topics
  13. Depression1,539▲ 2.3×26 topics
  14. Chemotherapy1,536▲ 2.8×25 topics
  15. Biomarkers1,482▲ 2.8×18 topics
  16. Clinical Trials1,467▲ 2.9×19 topics
  17. Neurological Disorders1,434▲ 3.3×20 topics
  18. Genetics1,396▲ 2.6×27 topics
  19. Obesity1,300▲ 2.2×29 topics
  20. Mortality1,284▲ 3.0×13 topics
  21. Management1,272▲ 2.1×35 topics
  22. Gene Expression1,217▲ 2.5×20 topics
  23. Prognostic Factors1,196▲ 3.6×14 topics
  24. Genetic Mutations1,173▲ 3.5×23 topics
  25. Guidelines1,156▲ 3.2×13 topics
  26. Precision Medicine1,078▲ 2.8×8 topics
  27. Clinical Practice Guidelines1,075▲ 2.6×14 topics
  28. Heart Failure1,068▲ 3.1×14 topics
  29. Aging1,051▲ 2.5×19 topics
  30. Radiotherapy1,036▲ 3.4×13 topics
  31. Tumor Microenvironment1,006▲ 2.9×8 topics
  32. Neuroimaging917▲ 4.4×11 topics
  33. Neuroinflammation840▲ 3.8×6 topics
  34. Structural Health Monitoring818▲ 14×3 topics
  35. Optical 3D Laser Measurement812▲ 81×1 topic
  36. Position-Sensitive Detector812▲ 81×1 topic
  37. Astronomical Instrumentation699▲ 28×1 topic
  38. Spectrograph699▲ 28×1 topic
  39. Supernovae615▲ 9.9×2 topics
  40. Gravitational Waves601▲ 14×2 topics

Which research topics does Harvard University publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Astronomical Observations and Instrumentation, Astronomy and Astrophysical Research, Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae and Cancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers.

Astronomical Observations and Instrumentation: 812 fractional worksAstronomy and Astrophysical Research: 699 fractional worksGamma-ray bursts and sup…573Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae: 573 fractional worksCancer Immunotherapy and…404Cancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers: 404 fractional worksAstro and Planetary Science: 387 fractional worksCAR-T cell therapy research: 364 fractional worksCancer Genomics and Diag…357Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics: 357 fractional worksAstrophysics and Star Formation Studies: 327 fractional worksDementia and Cognitive Impairment Research: 321 fractional worksFunctional Brain Connect…318Functional Brain Connectivity Studies: 318 fractional works
Computational MechanicsInstrumentationAstronomy and AstrophysicsOncology3 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Astronomical Observations and Instrumentation Computational Mechanics 812 works
  2. 2 Astronomy and Astrophysical Research Instrumentation 699 works
  3. 3 Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae Astronomy and Astrophysics 573 works
  4. 4 Cancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers Oncology 404 works
  5. 5 Astro and Planetary Science Astronomy and Astrophysics 387 works
  6. 6 CAR-T cell therapy research Oncology 364 works
  7. 7 Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics Cancer Research 357 works
  8. 8 Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies Astronomy and Astrophysics 327 works
  9. 9 Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research Psychiatry and Mental health 321 works
  10. 10 Functional Brain Connectivity Studies Cognitive Neuroscience 318 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world's own shares: the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available40.9%not open59.1%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors20.2%domestic only79.8%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Harvard University's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 2% lower than in 2018-2021.

still counting1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon: one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Its share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share: all of science grows. This is Harvard University as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.30% in 2024.

still counting0.50%1.0%Harvard University0.29% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Harvard University over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

Year by year, against all institutions in the same year.

still counting10%20%30%Harvard University14.9% in 2025all institutions10.0% in 2025200020102020

Of each year's output, the share that reached the world's 10% most cited for its field and year. Peak 22.9% in 2008.

Other research institutions in Cambridge

All research institutions in Cambridge

Which institutions have research most like Harvard University's?

Among the world's leading institutions, Johns Hopkins University has the research profile closest to Harvard University's, with both strong in Neuroscience.

  1. 1 Johns Hopkins UniversityUnited States · Both strong in Neuroscience, Medicine, Immunology and Microbiology 0.94 Compare
  2. 2 The University of Texas Southwestern Medical CenterUnited States · Both strong in Medicine, Immunology and Microbiology, Neuroscience 0.92 Compare
  3. 3 University of North Carolina at Chapel HillUnited States · Both strong in Immunology and Microbiology, Medicine, Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 0.91 Compare
  4. 4 Mount Sinai Health SystemUnited States · Both strong in Medicine, Immunology and Microbiology, Neuroscience 0.91 Compare
  5. 5 The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer CenterUnited States · Both strong in Medicine, Immunology and Microbiology, Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 0.90 Compare

Similarity is the correlation of each side's location quotients across every field it publishes in, on a log scale: 1 is the same shape of research, 0 is unrelated. It ignores size. How it is measured.

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Harvard University on Science Explorer

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Its overall standing, then the domains, fields and subfields where Harvard University is in the world's top ten or its top 1%. Each has an image of its own.

Overall

Domains

Fields

Subfields

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners have tabs of their own, above.

Questions people ask

How does Harvard University rank in research?

In research, Harvard University stands highest in Health Sciences (#1 of 9,902 worldwide), Medicine (#1 of 8,541 worldwide) and Life Sciences (#2 of 6,403 worldwide), 2022-now. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Instrumentation, Transplantation and Family Practice (Instrumentation is 18.5× its share of world research).

Also asked as

  • What is Harvard University known for in research?
  • What does the Broad Institute research?
  • What does the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute research?

Who are the top researchers at Harvard?

Ranked on the quality score, B Bernstein, David Emil Reich and Cumrun Vafa lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Harvard University.

Who are the top researchers at Harvard University?
All 1,273 questions in the Question Catalogue

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