Overview
- Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences voted in favor of a policy to limit A grades to about 20 percent of undergraduates in each course with up to four exceptions.
- The policy responds to a university report showing A-range grades rose to roughly 60 percent in 2024–25 after decades of steady increases.
- The cap will take effect in the 2027–28 academic year and the faculty set a formal three-year review to assess results and compliance.
- Students and some faculty warn the rule could increase competition, narrow course choices, and disproportionately burden students from less-resourced backgrounds.
- Analysts say the cap targets only A grades and may shift inflated marks into A– and B+ ranges unless other incentives tied to evaluations, grading systems, and upstream K–12 trends are also changed.