Harvard University is a private
Ivy League research university and the
oldest higher education institution in the
United States. It was established in
1636 colonial America and founded by the
General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The school was originally created to educate members of the church leaders according to the university 's collections of historical documents.
Harvard is made up of
13 schools and institutes spread across the
four campuses. It also has graduate or professional schools of medicine, law, business, divinity, education, government, dental medicine, design, and public health such as its prestigious
Business School and Medical School and the highly ranked
Graduate Education School,
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences,
Law School, and John F. Kennedy School of Government.