<p>The analogy stated earlier in this post that Harvard is Gryffindor, Stanford is Hufflepuff, Princeton is Slytherin and Yale is Ravenclaw is half correct. Harvard is truly closer to Slytherin and Princeton is Gryffindor. This can be substantiated in several ways.</p>
<p>Firstly, Harvard is the oldest university in the country, the same way Slytherin is the headquarters for most of the old wizarding families. Also, in conversation with an MIT student on my summer visit to Harvard, he revealed that Harvard students are fundamentally power-hungry. Also, most of Harvard's courses are, according to my counselor, graded on a curve, which would mimic the intense competition of Slytherin students. Besides that, and this is a negative reason it's similar, Ted Kaczynski (the unabomber) went to Harvard, which parallels Voldemort being a Slytherin alum. Besides this, my first impression upon entering the Harvard campus was that it was very austere, something which was subtantiated in an article in the Crimson by a student who mentioned the perceived Harvard superiority to all other schools. Is it just me or does this perceived "Harvard superiority" not parallel the elitism of students like Draco Malfoy in Slytherin? Also, no disrespect meant to President Summers, but he's not exactly the most tactful person and the faculty seem to think he's as abrasive as Professor Snape. On a personal note, however, Harvard's incredible similarity to Slytherin was one reason why I fell in love with it, which is why I feel so compelled to explain the mistake in comparing it to Gryffindor.</p>
<p>Also, if you look at the Princeton website and compare it to the Harvard one, you'll notice the Princeton website has brighter colors and just seems to make more of an effort to feel friendly, whereas the first thing you see on Harvard's website is headlines about its faculty/student achievements. Princeton also has no dark secret in its alumni and while it is known to be snobby, there's no such thing as dropping the "P bomb." Returning to alumni, Bill Gates went to Harvard and he's the richest man on earth, whereas a famous alumnus of Princeton is Donald Rumsfeld, whose current job as secretary of Defense is a position dependent on courage, the main value of Gryffindor house.</p>
<p>However, in terms of which school is most like Hogwarts, I'd say the UK colleges already mentioned probably outstrip any American university, which is why I'll focus on which one is most similar in America. Yale most certainly has the most Hogwarts-esque architecture, whereas Harvard has the most Hogwarts-esque dining hall and uses "houses" as opposed to "residential colleges," as well as has a Durmstrang/Beauxbatons relationship with MIT and Wellesley. However, Wellesley did make the attempt to appear similar and I'll be the first to admit I was cracking up looking at that slideshow. I'd say it all depends on whether you want a school which parallels Hogwarts in terms of student life, or architecture or divisive housing arrangements. If you want a Gryffindor/Slytherin rivalry, however, I'd suggest either Harvard or Yale, since they both feel the same way about each other as Gryffindor and Slytherin do.</p>
<p>Sorry about it being so long, but I had a lot to say. I guess I'm just a loser. :)</p>
