Harvard Faculty Votes to Cap A Grades at 20 Percent Starting in 2027

Harvard faculty voted 458-201 on Wednesday to cap A grades at 20 percent of total grades starting in the 2027-2028 school year. The policy allows professors to award four additional A grades per course enrollment. 2 percent of grades awarded in the 2024-2025 academic year were A's.

Two decades earlier, only 25 percent of Harvard undergraduates received A's. A 2025 report identified several causes for the increase, including professors' reluctance to appear more demanding than colleagues and concerns about student complaints. The report also noted that faculty members faced expectations to provide emotional support to students dealing with family difficulties, imposter syndrome, and stress.

The same report stated that requirements were relaxed and grades raised, particularly during the period of remote instruction. Faculty members reportedly wanted to reverse the shift but questioned whether the administration would support them. Harvard also moved from high-stakes exams to more frequent lower-stakes assignments, which professors found harder to differentiate.

Harvard is not the only institution addressing the issue. 0 mean grade or other college-wide standard to make letter grades more comparable. The report also suggested adding context on transcripts showing a student's standing relative to the class. Princeton implemented a grade cap in 2004 but abandoned it after ten years following criticism that the policy disadvantaged students applying for jobs and graduate school.

7 percent of Princeton undergraduate grades. Harvard's dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda Claybaugh stated that grade inflation is a complex and thorny issue. She encouraged other institutions to address similar problems with the same level of rigor and courage.