New York University has an acceptance rate of 33%. The reason is that there are many applicants. NYU, although expensive, is excellent in specific fields (mainly, business and the performing arts). Excellent grades with intense coursework (e.g., Chemistry, Physics, Calculus, etc.), participation in activities, and a good SAT/ACT score will most likely get you in. It is hard to calculate the likelihood of acceptance because NYU, among other top-tiered schools like Brandeis, Boston U., and Georgetown, are highly sought-after universities, and competition for admission is fierce.
Harvard Business School has a strong proclivity to admit students who display enormous ‘passion’ or drive in whatever they do. The applicants who cut people from very diverse backgrounds, but the one thing that is common among them is their intense passion for their domain expertise. Applicants who display exemplary leadership inside and outside of their workspace are likely to get admitted.
Reference
Burns & Hayes, T. J. (2017). New Strategies in Higher Education Marketing. London, England: Routledge.
The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/