| Name
| Known for
| Relationship to Harvard
|
A
|
| Charles Francis Adams (1866) (1866-1954)
| United States Secretary of the Navy
| College 1888; Law School 1892
|
| Charles Francis Adams, Jr. (1835-1915)
| president of Union Pacific Railroad
| College 1856
|
| Henry Adams (1838-1918)
| historian; novelist
| College 1858; professor
|
| John Adams (1735-1826)
| President of the United States
| College 1755
|
| John Coolidge Adams (1947-)
| composer
| College 1971
|
| John Quincy Adams (1767-1848)
| President of the United States
| College 1787
|
| Samuel Adams (1722-1803)
| organizer of Boston Tea Party
| College 1740; M.A. 1743
|
| Mahidol Adulyadej (1892-1929)
| Prince of Thailand, father of present king Bhumibol Adulyadej
| C.P.H. 1921; Medical School (M.D.) 1928
|
| Esko Aho (1954-)
| Prime Minister of Finland (1991-1995)
| "Sabbatical leave" of one year to lecture at Harvard University in 2000
|
| Horatio Alger, Jr. (1832-1899)
| novelist
| College 1852
|
| Leroy Anderson (1908-1975)
| composer
| College; M.A. 1930
|
| Darren Aronofsky (1969-)
| film director and screenwriter
| College 1987
|
| Kenneth Arrow (1921-)
| economist; Nobel Prize winner
| professor (1968-??)
|
| John Ashbery (1927-)
| poet
| College 1949
|
| Margaret Atwood (1929-)
| novelist
| Radcliffe M.A. 1962; Ph.D. 1967
|
B
|
| Bernard Bailyn (1922-)
| historian
| Ph.D. 1953; professor (1961-)
|
| Steve Ballmer (1953-)
| president and CEO of Microsoft
| College 1977; gave mother's maiden name to Maxwell Dworkin Hall
|
| Alfred Barr (1902-1981)
| art historian; founding director of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City
| Ph.D. 1946
|
| Robert Benchley (1889-1945)
| comedian
| College 1912
|
| Sean Bennett (1979-)
| pianist
| College 2001
|
| Bernard Berenson (1865-1959)
| art historian
| College 1887
|
| Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990)
| composer
| College 1939
|
| David Bevington (??-)
| scholar
| Ph.D. 1958
|
| Benazir Bhutto (1953-)
| prime minister of Pakistan
| College 1973
|
| Harry Blackmun (1908-1999)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| Law School 1932
|
| Robert Bly (1926-)
| poet
| College 1950
|
| John Boswell (1947-1994)
| historian of homosexual history
| Ph.D. 1975
|
| L. Paul Bremer, (1941-)
| ambassador
| Business School 1967
|
| Stephen Breyer (1938-)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| Law School 1964
|
| Dan Bricklin (1951-)
| creator of VisiCalc
| Business School 1979
|
| Harold Brodkey (1930-1996)
| novelist
| College 1952
|
| Charles Bulfinch (1763-1844)
| architect
| College 1781
|
| Thomas Bulfinch (1796-1867)
| mythologist
| College 1814
|
| William S. Burroughs (1914-1997)
| writer
| College 1936
|
| George W. Bush (1946-)
| President of the United States
| Business School 1975
|
C
|
| Elliot Carter (1908-)
| composer
| College 1932
|
| Doug Carlston
| Co-founder of Broderbund Software, publisher of popular computer games</i>
| College 1970, J.D. from the Law School 1975
|
| Stockard Channing (1944-)
| actress
| Radcliffe 1965
|
| William Ellery Channing (1780-1842)
| Unitarian leader
| College 1798
|
| Jacques Chirac (1932-)
| President of France
| attended Summer School in 1953
|
| William Christie (1944-)
| conductor
| College 1966
|
| Richard Clarke (1951-)
| diplomat; counterterrorism expert
| faculty
|
| Stephen Cook (??-)
| computer scientist
| M.A. 1962; Ph.D. 1966
|
| Don Coppersmith (??-)
| computer scientist
| M.S. 1975; Ph.D. 1977
|
| Elias J. Corey (1928-)
| chemist; Nobel Prize winner
| professor
|
| Michael Crichton (1942-)
| novelist, best known for Jurassic Park and the television series E.R.
| College 1964; Medical School 1969
|
| Hardy Cross
| civil engineer
| MCE 1911
|
| E. E. Cummings (1894-1962)
| poet
| College 1915
|
| Rivers Cuomo (1970-)
| singer of band Weezer
| Currently completing college (originally dropped out)
|
D
|
| Matt Damon (1970-)
| actor
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| Donald Davidson (1917-2003)
| philosopher
| Ph.D.
|
| Paul de Man (1919-1983)
| literary critic
| Ph.D. 1960
|
| Alan Dershowitz (1938-)
| law scholar, pro-Israel activist
| professor (1964-)
|
| Elizabeth Dole (1936-)
| United States Senator
| M.A. 1960; Law School 1965
|
| John dos Passos (1896-1970)
| novelist
| College 1916
|
| George Downing (c. 1624-1684)
| English soldier-diplomat
| College 1640s
|
| W. E. B. Du Bois (1868-1963)
| civil rights leader; African American studies scholar
| College 1890, Ph.D. 1894
|
| E.B. Dreyer (1957-)
| ophthalmology scientist; glaucoma scholar
| medical school 1984, Ph.D. 1984
|
E
|
| Edward Eager (1911-1964)
| writer of children's literature
| College c. 1932
|
| T. S. Eliot (1888-1965)
| poet
| College 1909; Ph.D. 1914
|
| Noam Elkies (1966-)
| mathematician
| M.A. 1986; Ph.D. 1987; professor (1990-)
|
| Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
| writer
| College 1821; gave name to Emerson Hall
|
| Edward Everett (1794-1865)
| United States Secretary of State
| College 1811
|
F
|
| John K. Fairbank (1907-1991)
| East Asian scholar
| College 1929
|
| Denise Faustman
| Medical doctor and pioneer in diabetes research
| Assoc. Professor of Medicine
|
| Martin Feldstein (1939-)
| economist
| College 1961; professor
|
| Jonathan Frakes (1952-)
| actor
| College (Master's degree)
|
| Al Franken (1955-)
| comedian
| College 1973
|
| Felix Frankfurter (1882-1965)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| Law School
|
| Bill Frist (1952-)
| United States Senator, Majority Leader
| Medical School 1978
|
| Robert Frost (1874-1963)
| poet
| attended College (1897-1899), did not graduate; awarded an honorary degree in 1937
|
G
|
| William Gaddis (1922-1998)
| novelist
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| William H. Gates (1955-)
| co-founder of Microsoft; as of 2003, wealthiest person in the world
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (1950-)
| African American studies scholar
| professor
|
| Walter Gilbert (1932-)
| molecular biologist; Nobel Prize winner
| College; professor
|
| Daniel Goldhagen (1959-)
| political scientist; controversial author of Hitler's Willing Executioners
| Ph.D. recipient, previously an Associate Professor of Government and Social Studies
|
| Nelson Goodman (1906-1998)
| philosopher
|
|
| Richard Goodwin (1931-)
| speechwriter for Kennedy and Johnson administations, author
| Law
|
| Al Gore (1948-)
| Vice President of the United States
| College 1969
|
| Edward Gorey (1925-2000)
| illustrator
| College 1950
|
| Stephen Jay Gould (1941-2002)
| biologist
| professor
|
| Fred Grandy (1948-)
| actor, politician
| College 1970
|
| Milton Green (1913-2005)
| runner, former world recorder holder in hurdles
| College
|
| Walter Gropius (1883-1969)
| architect
| professor; dean of Harvard Graduate School of Design
|
| Fred Gwynne (1926-1993)
| actor
| College 1951
|
H
|
| John Hagelin (1954-)
| third-party presidential candidate
| Ph.D. 1981
|
| G. Stanley Hall (1844-1924)
| First president of APA and Clark University
| Ph.D. 1878
|
| John Hancock (1737-1793)
| President of the Continental Congress
| College 1754
|
| John Harbison (1938-)
| composer
| College 1960
|
| Trip Hawkins (1953-)
| founder of Electronic Arts and the 3DO Company
| College
|
| Rutherford Hayes (1822-1893)
| President of the United States
| Law School 1845
|
| William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951)
| newspaper magnate
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| H. John Heinz (1938-1991)
| United States Senator
| Business School 1963
|
| Mark Helprin (1947-)
| writer
| College, Graduate School
|
| Dudley R. Herschbach (1932-)
| chemist; Nobel Prize winner
| professor
|
| Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (1809-1894)
| poet, physician
| College; Ph.D. 1836; professor
|
| Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (1841-1935)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| College 1861
|
| Charles Hamilton Houston (1895-1950)
| jurist
| Law School 1922 and 1923
|
| Samuel P. Huntington (1927-)
| political scientist
| Ph.D. 1951; professor
|
I
|
J
|
| Thomas Jaggar
| geologist, founder of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
| College 1897
|
| William James (1842-1910)
| philosopher; psychologist
| Medical School 1869; gave name to William James Hall
|
| Philip Johnson (1906-)
| architect
| College 1930
|
| Tommy Lee Jones (1946-)
| actor
| College 1969
|
K
|
| Ted Kaczynski (1942-)
| Unabomber terrorist
| College 1962
|
| Anthony Kennedy (1936-)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| Law School 1961
|
| Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg (1957-)
| writer; daughter of John F. Kennedy
| Radcliffe 1979
|
| Edward Kennedy (1932-)
| United States Senator
| College 1956
|
| John F. Kennedy (1917-1963)
| President of the United States
| College 1940; gave name to Kennedy School of Government
|
| Robert F. Kennedy (1925-1968)
| United States Senator
| College 1948
|
| Alan Keyes (1950-)
| U.S. presidential candidate and Senatorial candidate
| College 1972; Ph.D. 1979
|
| Karim Aga Khan IV (1936-)
| spiritual leader of Shia Ismaili branch of Islam
| College 1959
|
| Henry Kissinger (1923-)
| United States Secretary of State
| College 1950; M.A. 1952; Ph.D. 1954
|
| Saul Kripke (1940-)
| philosopher
| College; Society of Fellows
|
| Thomas Samuel Kuhn (1922-1996)
| philosopher and historian of science
| College 1943; M.A. 1946; Ph.D. 1949
|
| Maxine Kumin (1925-)
| poet
| College 1946; M.A. 1948
|
L
|
| Edwin Land (1909-1991)
| inventor
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| George Martin Lane (1823-1897)
| classicist
| professor (1869-1894)
|
| Ursula K. Le Guin (1929-)
| novelist
| Radcliffe 1951
|
| Tom Lehrer (1928-)
| satirist; mathematician; singer
| College 1947
|
| Jack Lemmon (1925-2001)
| actor
| College 1947
|
| David Lewis (1941-2001)
| philosopher
| Ph.D.
|
| John Lithgow (1945-)
| actor
| College 1967
|
| Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)
| poet
| professor (1834-1954)
|
| John Loeb (1902-1996)
| financier
| College 1924
|
| Alan Lomax (1915-2002)
| musicologist
| attended College (1932-1933), did not graduate
|
| John Lomax (1867-1948)
| musicologist
| visiting student (1907)
|
| James Russell Lowell (1819-1891)
| poet, abolitionist
| College 1838
|
| Robert Lowell (1917-1977)
| poet
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| Alison Lurie (1926-)
| novelist
| Radcliffe 1947
|
M
|
| Yo-Yo Ma (1955-)
| cellist
| College 1976
|
| Norman Mailer (1923-)
| novelist
| College 1943
|
| N. Gregory Mankiw (1958-)
| economist
| professor
|
| Thom Mayne (1944-)
| architect; Pritzker Prize winner
| School of Design 1978
|
| Malcolm McKesson (1909-1999)
| outsider artist
| College 1933
|
| Scott McNealy (1954-)
| co-founder of Sun Microsystems
| College
|
| Robert Merton (1944-)
| economist; Nobel Prize winner
| professor, Harvard Business School
|
| Tom Mesereau (1950-)
| criminal defense attorney
| College 1973
|
| Marvin Minsky (1927-)
| computer scientist
| College 1950
|
| Tom Morello (1964-)
| lead guitarist of the band Audioslave
| College 1986
|
| David Mumford (1937-)
| mathematician; Fields Medal winner
| College 1957; Ph.D. 1961
|
N
|
| Ralph Nader (1934-)
| public advocate
| Law School 1958
|
| Ogden Nash (1902-1971)
| poet
| attended College (1920-21), did not graduate
|
| Howard Nemerov (1920-1991)
| poet
| College 1941
|
| Robert Nozick (1938-2002)
| libertarian philosopher
| professor
|
O
|
| Conan O'Brien (1963-)
| talk show host
| College 1985
|
| Frank O'Hara (1926-1966)
| poet
| College 1950
|
| Bill O'Reilly (1949-)
| journalist and commentator
| KSG 1995
|
| Tim O'Reilly (??-)
| founder of O'Reilly Media
| College 1975
|
| J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967)
| physicist, "father of the atomic bomb"
| College 1922
|
| Masako Owada (1963-)
| Crown Princess of Japan
| College 1985
|
P
|
| Theodore Parker (1810-1860)
| Unitarian leader
| Divinity School
|
| Francis Parkman (1823-1898)
| historian
| Law School
|
| George Parkman (1790-1849)
| physician
| Medical School
|
| Milman Parry (??-1935)
| scholar of the classics and folklore
| professor
|
| Benjamin Peirce (1809-1880)
| mathematician
| College 1829; professor
|
| Charles Peirce (1839-1914)
| philosopher; mathematician
| College 1859
|
| Steven Pinker (1954-)
| psychologist
| Ph.D. 1979; professor (2003-)
|
| George Plimpton (1927-2003)
| journalist; actor
| College 1948
|
| Natalie Portman (1981-)
| actress
| College 2003
|
| Robert Putnam (1941-)
| political scientist
| professor
|
Q
|
| Daniel Quillen (1940-)
| mathematician; Fields Medal winner
| College 1961; Ph.D. 1964
|
| W. V. Quine (1908-2000)
| philosopher; logician
| Ph.D. 1932; professor (1956-2000)
|
R
|
| Norman Ramsey (1915-)
| physicist; Nobel Prize winner
| professor
|
| John Rawls (1921-2002)
| philosopher; political scientist
| professor
|
| Edwin O. Reischauer (1910-1990)
| East Asian scholar
| Ph.D. 1939; professor; gave name to Reischauer Institute
|
| William Rehnquist (1924-)
| Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| M.A. 1950
|
| Stuart A. Rice (1932-)
| Famous physical chemist at The University of Chicago
| A.M., 1954; Ph.D., 1955
|
| Adrienne Rich (1929-)
| poet
| Radcliffe 1951
|
| Tom Ridge (1946-)
| United States Secretary of Homeland Security
| College 1967
|
| Eden Riegel (1981-)
| actress
| College (1998-2000; dropped out but plans to return)
|
| Jay Rockefeller (1937-)
| United States Senator
| College 1961
|
| David Rockefeller (1916-)
| Banker; Philanthropist; Chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank
| College 1936
|
| Eduardo Rodríguez (1956-)
| Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Bolivia; Interim President of Bolivia
| Law School
|
| Mitt Romney (1947-)
| Governor of Massachusetts
| Business School and Law School 1975
|
| Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945)
| President of the United States
| College 1904
|
| Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)
| President of the United States
| College 1880
|
| Josiah Royce (1855-1916)
| philosopher
| professor (1892-1914)
|
| Robert E. Rubin (1938-)
| U.S. Treasury Secretary; Chairman, Citigroup
| College 1960
|
| Frederic Rzewski (1938-)
| composer, pianist
| College 1958
|
S
|
| Edward Said (1935-2003)
| coined term Orientalism; Palestinian activist
| M.A. ??; Ph.D. 1964
|
| Carlos Salinas de Gortari (1948-)
| president of Mexico, (1988-94)
| M.P.A. 1973; Ph.D. 1978
|
| Leverett Saltonstall (1892-1979)
| United States Senator
| College 1914; Law School 1917
|
| Michael Sandel (??-)
| political scientist
| professor
|
| George Santayana (1863-1952)
| philosopher
| College 1886; Ph.D. 1889; professor
|
| Antonin Scalia (1936-)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| Law School 1960
|
| Phyllis Schlafly (1924-)
| political activist
| Graduate School 1945
|
| Arthur M. Schlesinger (1888-1965)
| historian
| professor; gave name to Schlesinger Library
|
| Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. (1917-)
| historian, advisor to John F. Kennedy
| College 1938; professor
|
| Julian Schwinger (1918-1994)
| physicist; Nobel Prize winner (1965)
| professor
|
| Pete Seeger (1919-)
| songwriter, singer, activist
| attended College, did not graduate
|
| Peter Sellars (??-)
| theater director
| College 1980
|
| Amartya Sen (1933-)
| economist; Nobel Prize winner (1998)
| professor
|
| Robert Gould Shaw (1837-1863)
| abolitionist, Union Army colonel
| attended College (1856-1859), did not graduate.
|
| Elisabeth Shue (1963-)
| actress
| College 2000
|
| Jonathan Siegel (1962-)
| Professor of Law, George Washington University
| College 1984
|
| Jeffrey Skilling (1948-)
| CEO of Enron
| Business School
|
| Cordwainer Smith (1913-1966)
| East Asian scholar; science fiction writer
| faculty
|
| Robert M. Solow (1924-)
| economist; Nobel Prize winner (1987)
| College 1947, Ph.D. 1951
|
| Maximo V. Soliven (1933-)
| Decorated Writer; Chevalier (knight) of the National Order of Merit.
| Ph.D. 1951
|
| Mira Sorvino (1967-)
| actress
| College 1990
|
| David Souter (1939-)
| Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
| College 1961; Law School 1966
|
| Jared Sparks (1789-1866)
| historian
| College 1819; professor (1838-1849)
|
| Richard Stallman (1953-)
| founder of the Free Software Foundation
| College 1974
|
| Gertrude Stein (1874-1946)
| poet, novelist
| Radcliffe 1897
|
| Wallace Stevens (1879-1955)
| poet
| Special student (1897-1900), did not graduate
|
| Surakiart Sathirathai (1958-)
| Foreign Minister of Thailand
| Law School; LL.M.; S.J.D.
|
| Lawrence Summers (1954-)
| economist; United States Secretary of the Treasury; Chief Economist for the World Bank
| Ph.D. 1982; President (2001-)
|
T
|
| Jonathan Taylor Thomas (1981-)
| actor
| attended college (2001-2002), did not graduate.
|
| Grant Thompson (??-)
| runner-up on second season of Dream Job, actor
| College 1998
|
| Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)
| journalist, philosopher, writer
| College 1837
|
| James Toback (1944-)
| film director and screenwriter
| College 1966
|
| James Tobin (1918-2002)
| economist; Nobel Prize winner (1981)
| College 1939
|
| Sergio Troncoso (1961-)
| novelist and writer of short stories
| College 1983
|
| Jonathan Trumbull (1710-1785)
| politician
| College 1727
|
| Jonathan Trumbull, Jr. (1740-1809)
| politician, Speaker of the House of Representatives
| College 1759
|
| Barbara Tuchman (1912-1989)
| historian
| Radcliffe 1933; faculty
|
U
|
| Alvaro Uribe (1952-)
| Colombia's President
| Business School 1993
|
|
|
| John Updike (1932-)
| writer
| College 1954
|
V
|
W
|
| Alexander Watson
| ambassador, diplomat
| College 1961
|
| James D. Watson (1928-)
| molecular biologist; Nobel Prize winner
| professor
|
| Cornel West (1953-)
| African American studies scholar
| professor (1993-2002)
|
| William Lindsay White
| journalist
| College 1924
|
| George Whitesides (1939-)
| chemist
| professor (1982-)
|
| Richard Wilbur (1921-)
| poet
| M.A. 1947; professor
|
| Edward Osborne Wilson (1929-)
| biologist
| Ph.D.; professor
|
| Kenneth G. Wilson (1936-)
| physicist; Nobel Prize winner
| College 1956
|
| John Winthrop (1714-1779)
| astronomer; mathematician
| College 1732; professor
|
| Henry Austryn Wolfson (1887-1974)
| philosopher
| Ph.D.; professor
|
| Charles W. Woodworth (1865-1940)
| entomologist; Founder UCB's Entomology Department
| Grad. Student, Researcher (1886-1888), (1900-1901)
|
X
|
Y
|
| Yamamoto Isoroku (1884-1943)
| World War II Japanese admiral
| visiting student (1919-1921)
|
Z
|
