- Larry Summers, the former United States Secretary of the Treasury and Harvard president, says: “I’ve been very troubled that at Harvard now the most common grade is a straight A.”
Getting an Ivy League education is known for being extremely rigorous. But for Harvard students who get admitted, classroom success is more widespread than you might think.
About one in five students from Harvard’s graduating class of 2024 reported having a nearly perfect GPA, rounding to 4.0, according to the Harvard Crimson. Nearly 80% had an average GPA of 3.7 or greater—or roughly an A– or higher.
These high grades have caused concern among the faculty about grade inflation since relative course success is less distinct.
Larry Summers, Harvard professor and president emeritus, tells Fortune that higher education institutions do not have their priorities straight.
“I think that there is a need for these institutions to reflect on the importance of pursuing truth as their mission, rather than social justice, pursuing opportunity rather than pursuing identity politics, and venerating excellence rather than simply celebrating mutual self-esteem,” he says.
“For example, I’ve been very troubled that at Harvard now the most common grade is a straight A. I think a time when we have a more competitive world and when excellence is ever more important, I don’t think that’s sending the right type of signal to our students.”
The issue with grade inflation
New conversations at Harvard were sparked last year when a report revealed that A-range grades were up nearly 20% for students in the 2020–21 academic year, as compared to the decade prior.
However, grade inflation is not a new concern in higher education. The average GPAs of students at both public and private institutions have been slowly rising for years, and at Yale, for example, recent concerns about grade inflation arose after averages continued to rise after a stark spike during the pandemic. Sixty-seven percent of all grades were either an A or A– in the 2010–11 academic year. By 2021–22, that number had risen to 82%.
Summers has been voicing his concerns about the issue for decades, in part due to worries about students being disadvantaged in the job market.
“We’ve got to be sensitive not to put Harvard students at a disadvantage,” he told students in 2002. “We’ve got to make sure a student who performs well is seen that way by employers.”
Grade inflation can have a wider impact than just a number on a transcript. Academic honors and other distinctions are often based on a student’s GPA—all of which may matter when trying to secure a first internship or job.
Not being able to distinguish themselves can be a double whammy for Gen Zers, who are struggling more than ever to secure entry-level jobs—with over half of the class of 2025 reported feeling pessimistic about soon starting their careers, according to Handshake.
But once recent graduates land a job, some bosses are finding them to not be as great as advertised. Six in 10 employers have reportedly fired Gen Z workers, citing a lack of motivation, organization, and professionalism.
Trouble at Harvard
Beyond grades, Harvard had made national headlines for its handling of anti-Semitism on campus—something that eventually led to the resignation of Harvard’s president, Claudine Gay.
Summers posted on X last year that he had “lost confidence in the determination and ability of the Harvard Corporation and Harvard leadership to maintain Harvard as a place where Jews and Israelis can flourish.”
At campuses across the country, he tells Fortune, the handling of anti-Semitism has highlighted how institutions of higher education have not always been open to all viewpoints, including more conservative perspectives.
Harvard is also currently facing a lawsuit by two advocacy groups over what they describe as a hostile educational environment from incidents in the spring and fall of 2023.
Despite a rocky year, Harvard saw its second-highest donation haul in its history, with more than $525 million in current-use donations in fiscal year 2024.
