<p>It is interesting. You can point to top graduates of both schools, but the last time that I looked at the statistics (which admittedly was a few years ago) it was clear that both on a percentage basis and in absolute terms, the number of Harvard alum that reach the top of their profession is appreciably higher than at MIT. It is also true that the MEDIAN income of MIT grads comes in appreciably higher than the equivalent at Harvard.</p>
<p>I graduated from MIT, I had a lot of friends at Harvard. I went to a bunch of Harvard parties, I got to know it moderately well. I personally perferred MIT. Anecdotally, I seemed to have better access to senior faculty than was available to my friends at Harvard (for example, one of MIT's Nobel Laureates is teaching two sections of freshman physics - that seemed to be much less likely to occur at Harvard). I found more people on the MIT campus who thought the way I did, and a much lower level of pretention. But everyone is different. You may prefer Harvard, and heck, good luck to you there.</p>
<p>At the level of these schools, there is really no such thing as one school being BETTER than the other. This is the basis of the admissions counsellors talking so long and often about the importance of MATCH. There will be some students who are a better match for Harvard and will prosper and thrive there, others who are a better match for MIT. In the rare case that an applicant has been accepted at both schools and has a free choice, it is a huge mistake to sit down and to rationally pick the BETTER school. There isn't such a thing. Rather visit both campuses (which are all of fifteen minutes apart), talk to people, and figure out where you would be happier.</p>
<p>-Mikalye</p>
<p>PS: And if you really want to be CEO of a tech company, where you did your undergraduate degree does not matter at all. What matters is where you did your MBA.</p>