The campaign total has nonetheless topped the University's target due to unanticipated success in other areas of the campaign that made up the difference--and unsolicited gifts that were not part of the original wish list.

"You also can [receive gifts] which are marvelous, although not quite directly planned," said FAS Dean Jeremy R. Knowles. For example, Knowles said the Davis family chose to endow the Davis Center for Russian Studies because it was a subject they felt passionate about.

Seventy-five percent of the campaign total has come from gifts of over $1million. The largest gift received--$72 million from John F. Loeb--was one of 40 eight-figure gifts raked in by the University, two more than it expected to raise. More strikingly, Harvard came up with more than 100 extra contributions of between $1 and $5 million, yielding almost all of the surplus fundraising.

Those large gifts, however, came from fewer than 500 donors. The campaign as a whole managed to collect money from 172,000 individuals, most of whom came from Harvard's worldwide alumni pool of 240,000.

"The bar has gone way up," said Campaign Chair Rita E. Hauser, who has contributed about $30 million. "Before this, if someone gave a million, it was considered a huge gift."

The campaign's progress has not been steady over the past five years.

Within the last year or two it shot toward its goal, increasing $300 million in the last six months.

"It takes time to build on momentum," Rudenstine explained.