At Howard University, the historically Black college that educated Kamala Harris four decades ago, students are dreaming about how her victory in the US presidential election could elevate the institution -- and their own ambitions.

"I like seeing people that look like me and are doing such great things, like Kamala," said Serena Evans, who said she experienced racism at majority-white schools in her native North Carolina before she enrolled at Howard two years ago.

Evans followed in the footsteps of Democratic presidential nominee Harris, who began her studies in 1982 at the university, located in the nation's capital -- one of around 100 such institutions nationwide that cater primarily, though not exclusively, to African Americans.

For many, these so-called "historically black colleges and universities" or HBCUs serve as safe havens in a country still marred by racism -- even if those same racist attitudes lead to some doubting Howard's credibility.

"People think that we're underdeveloped compared to Ivy League schools like Harvard," said Evans, who is studying classics.

But with Harris aiming for the White House in November's vote, Howard students are feeling "on top of the world," 20-year-old Jomalee Smith told AFP.

"I feel like once Kamala wins, (Howard) will not only be an American thing, it will be a global thing," said Smith, an international relations student.

"More people will know about Howard. It will showcase more job opportunities internationally, not just domestically," Smith added.

- 'She loves Howard' -

Among the red-brick buildings and their tall columns, white students are rare, and it's difficult to find anyone who isn't proud to be studying at the vice president's alma mater.

For her part, Harris, 59, regularly returns to the Washington campus -- and was there earlier this month to prepare for her September debate against Donald Trump, according to the New York Times.

"She loves Howard," said Yusuf Kareem, who came from Texas on the advice of a cousin who was disappointed by her experience at a majority-white university.

"For people to see that a Black woman could be the president of the United States, and she went to Howard University -- they can't take us as a joke," Kareem said.

Other major figures have passed through Howard, including Nobel Prize in Literature winner Toni Morrison, and the first Black Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall.

"All we want is a fair shot, you know, a foot in the door," said Kareem, a second-year finance student.

- 'Refuge' -

Access to education is still an ongoing battle for racial minority groups in the United States.

Among Black adults, 28 percent have an undergraduate degree or higher, compared to about 40 percent of all Americans, according to 2022 data from the Pew Research Center.

In June 2023, the Supreme Court effectively ended the right for colleges and universities to consider race when admitting applicants.

MIT, a prestigious college in Boston, said it saw a nine percentage point drop in admissions of students identifying as Black, Hispanic, Native American or Pacific Islander following the ruling.

Developments like that make Howard -- where 82 percent of the incoming class last year was Black, in a country where African Americans make up 14 percent of the population -- stand out more than ever before.

For Howard law student Opeyemi Faleye, historically Black colleges provide a "refuge, a sanctuary, where you don't have to pretend, you don't have to engage in that kind of performance, you just are accepted, and that allows you to thrive."

Sitting on a campus bench with a laptop on his knees, he said the colleges "have been sort of the hallmark of Black-centered education."

"And I feel if things continue to go the way that they are, where other institutions become increasingly hostile or increasingly sort of discriminatory, then historically Black universities will sort of become even more of a refuge," Faleye said.