15 things that are harder to get into than Harvard

Harvard is one of the most prestigious universities in the world.

The Cambridge, Massachusetts, school accepted just 5.3% of roughly 37,000 applications for its class of 2019. As Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust said last year, "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.

Many things in life - like landing a job at some Wal-Mart locations - are harder to achieve than getting into that prestigious university.

Ben Winsor contributed to the original reporting of this story.