Students at the Harvard Business School graduation ceremony. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Harvard is one of the most prestigious universities in the world and also one of the most selective. The school accepted just 5.33% of applicants this year, making it the most competitive of the Ivy League schools.

As Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust once said, "We could fill our class twice over with valedictorians."

The school seeks out students who not only have high grades, but also have outstanding achievements under their belts — from overcoming homelessness to starting their own nonprofits. The students who manage to catch the attention of admissions officers overcome exceptional odds, but they should maintain some perspective.

However, many things in life — like landing a job at some Wal-Mart locations — are harder to achieve than getting into this prestigious university.

Ben Winsor contributed to the original version of this report.