Key insights
- Harvard faculty are voting on a proposal to limit A grades, addressing concerns about grade inflation. The White House has also pushed for grading reform, linking it to federal funding access. While primarily an education issue, it reflects broader concerns about credential inflation and potentially impacts how employers evaluate graduates, indirectly affecting labor market dynamics and future productivity.
Investing.com -- Harvard University faculty began voting Tuesday on a proposal to limit A grades in undergraduate courses to no more than 20% of the class plus four additional students.
The measure represents the most significant attempt in decades to address grade inflation at the institution. Roughly 60% of grades were an A in the academic year ending in mid-2025 at Harvard, more than double the rate in 2006. That figure fell to 53% in the fall semester after Harvard urged faculty to be more disciplined.
Eligible faculty have one week to cast their ballot, with results expected on May 20. Professors say there is significant support for tackling grade inflation, though vocal opposition exists and the measure may not pass.
The proposal is the latest effort to address grade inflation, which critics say makes it harder for employers and graduate schools to evaluate students. The White House included grading reform in a proposed compact that it asked select schools to sign last fall in exchange for priority access to federal funding.
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