A joint programme
It is offered jointly with the Economics Department and Harvard Business School.
Doctoral · Harvard Business economics
Harvard Business Economics PhD: an economics PhD with a business lens, and a GRE or GMAT
The Harvard Business Economics PhD is offered jointly with the Economics Department and Harvard Business School, with students enrolled in and receiving their degree from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. It requires the GRE General or the GMAT, treats a writing sample as optional but highly recommended and has a coordinated JD/PhD route with separate applications. For an economics graduate, the decision is whether a PhD in economics with business-related questions fits better than the Economics PhD. This guide sets out what the programme page says, which carries no entry-year label, marks Avandy's judgment separately and ends with next steps.
Official information · no entry-year label on the page
What Harvard asks for in Harvard Business Economics PhD
Taken from the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Business Economics PhD programme page and read on 1 November 2026. The page carries no entry-year label, so every value below is treated as previous-cycle evidence for a 2028-29 start; Harvard's requirements, dates and funding for 2028-29 are awaiting publication, and none is stated here.
The GRE General or the GMAT
Either test is required.
An optional, recommended writing sample
The sample is optional but highly recommended, should be largely your own work and be no more than 10 pages plus references.
Graduate School degree
Students are enrolled in and receive their degree from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
A coordinated JD/PhD
Applicants apply separately to each programme and say in the application that a concurrent application has been made.
Official sources
Read on 1 November 2026 on the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Business Economics PhD programme page, which carries no entry-year label. The Graduate School's general admissions pages, the department's own website, deadlines, funding and the required English test scores were not used and are not stated. No deadline, fee, funding amount or place number is stated.
The decision
Does your record fit what the programme page asks?
This guide concerns only the Harvard research degree. The reading below is Avandy's judgment (heuristic), built from what the programme page says.
It fits if
you want the full economics PhD training with business-related research questions and a business-school career in view.
Think again if
you expect the Economics PhD admissions pattern. The pages differ, for example in the test accepted and the writing sample.
Check the page
The Graduate School's programme page is the source; deadlines, funding and score thresholds change by cycle and are not stated here.
How the application is read
What the programme page lists
The programme page lists the GRE General or the GMAT as required, a writing sample as optional but highly recommended, fall term grades to be sent when available and a separate application for the coordinated JD/PhD. The Harvard Business School Doctoral Programs website is named for additional guidance.
How the programme runs
Focus and working pattern
Students specialise in fields such as behavioural economics, development economics, econometrics, economic history, financial economics, industrial organisation and others, and work with faculty from the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and Harvard Business School. The page says most graduates have gone on to faculty positions. This page carries no entry-year label and may change.
Avandy's judgment
Where an application can go wrong
These points are Avandy's heuristic reading of the page. They are not Harvard rules and carry no probability.
Assuming the Economics PhD rules apply
The Business Economics page lists its own tests and writing sample guidance.
Skipping the writing sample
Harvard says it is optional but highly recommended.
Forgetting fall grades
The page says fall term grades should be sent when available.
Applying to JD/PhD as one form
Applicants must apply separately to each programme.
Next steps
A sensible order of work
The order is Avandy's suggestion, built from the page's own steps.
Check your record
Compare your coursework and experience with the stated expectations.
Prepare the written work
Draft the statements and writing sample the page asks for, in the formats it lists.
Plan the tests
Check which tests are required, optional or not accepted.
Read the current page
Read the programme page for the cycle you apply in.
Planning for 2028-29 entry
Planning for 2028-29 entry: what carries over and what awaits publication
Harvard's programme page carries no entry-year label. A start in 2028-29 means applying under rules Harvard has not yet published. Each item below is either read on the page and treated as previous-cycle wording, which may change, or awaiting publication for 2028-29 entry.
The structure of the programme and the application
The expectations, the written work and the test policy are described on Harvard's programme page, which carries no entry-year label. Harvard has not published the following cycle.
Deadlines, places, funding and fees
This guide states none of them. Harvard publishes them per cycle; read the page again for the cycle you apply in.
What to do now
Check your record against the programme page, prepare the written work it lists and plan any required test.
Support
Independent support with the research statement and fit
Avandy provides independent academic and admissions support. It is not affiliated with Harvard University or any of its departments, and it has no relationship with any member of staff. Support sits within the Avandy Trinity Advisory Model: a Strategic Admissions Consultant and a PhD-level Academic Mentor help the applicant test a research idea against the department's published research areas and plan their own statement. Support here is limited to testing a research idea against the department's published research themes and planning the applicant's own statements; it does not extend to contacting staff on the applicant's behalf. Avandy does not write or submit any part of an application, cannot arrange a supervisor and promises no outcome or funding.
Questions
Questions applicants ask
What does the Harvard Business Economics PhD ask for?
A writing sample is optional but highly recommended, and should be no more than 10 pages of text plus references.
Is a test required?
The GRE General or the GMAT is required.
Does this guide state a deadline?
No. The page carries no entry-year label and this guide states no deadline, fee or funding. Check the programme page for the cycle you apply in.
Does the programme include funding?
This guide did not use Harvard's funding sections and states no funding.
Students and families
Talk to us about the Harvard Business Economics PhD
Tell us about your degrees, your research experience, the research question you want to pursue and the supervisors or groups you have in mind. A senior adviser will review the academic profile before recommending how to develop the research statement.