The Grade Most People Get at Harvard

The most common grade handed out to students at Harvard University is an "A," according to one school official.

Dean of Undergraduate Education Jay M. Harris confirmed to The Harvard Crimson on Tuesday afternoon that the Ivy League school's median grade is an "A-" and that the most frequently awarded score is a solid "A."

The average grade at Harvard University is an "A," according to one school official. (Image source: Shutterstock)

The revelations were first uncovered after government professor Harvey C. Mansfield asked Harris at the monthly meeting for the information.

“A little bird has told me that the most frequently given grade at Harvard College right now is an A-,” Mansfield said, according to The Crimson. “If this is true or nearly true, it represents a failure on the part of this faculty and its leadership to maintain our academic standards.”

Harris quickly responded.

“I can answer the question, if you want me to," he said. “The median grade in Harvard College is indeed an A-. The most frequently awarded grade in Harvard College is actually a straight A.”

[sharequote align="center"]"The most frequently awarded grade in Harvard College is actually a straight A.”[/sharequote]

According to one faculty member in attendance, measures should be put into place to do something about this.

“I don’t know what should be done about it, but it seems to me troubling,” Classics Department chair Mark J.Schiefsky reportedly said. “One has a range of grades to give and one would presumably expect a wider distribution.”

The Crimson reports that Harvard's rival institutions have also struggled with "grade inflation," adding that Princeton has restructured their grading system in an effort to combat it.

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Follow Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) on Twitter

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