A new report looks at grade inflation, a problem that is proliferating far beyond the Ivy League.
You can always tell a Harvard man, the old saying goes, but you can’t tell him much. That includes, apparently, that he may not be as smart as his grades suggest.
A recent internal Harvard report found that more than 60% of grades given to undergraduates in the 2024-25 academic year were A’s—up from about 25% two decades ago. The median grade-point average at graduation, which was 3.29 in 1985, is now 3.83. Since 2016 the median GPA at Harvard has been an A, even though the number of hours that students say they spend studying has remained relatively unchanged for close to 20 years.
It’s possible that these outcomes stem from Harvard admitting smarter and more diligent applicants. But Dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda Claybaugh, who authored the 25-page report, found that rampant grade inflation provides a more credible explanation. She cited an evaluation system that fails to perform “key functions” and a need to “restore the integrity of our grading.” The report also noted that the problem of skyrocketing grades is an open secret on campus.
Continue reading the entire piece here at the Wall Street Journal (paywall)
______________________
Jason L. Riley is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a columnist at The Wall Street Journal, and a Fox News commentator. Follow him on Twitter here.
Photo by Zhu Ziyu/VCG via Getty Images