Harvard faculty admit students skipping class, not engaging with opposing views, and still getting good grades

A group of Harvard faculty members say many students at the Ivy League university are skipping class, skimming or ignoring reading assignments, avoiding challenging discussions, and still graduating thanks to grade inflation.

The New York Times reported Monday on findings released by the Classroom Social Compact Committee, a group of seven Harvard faculty members, who have found that more and more Harvard students are putting in less work but coming out with college degrees, thanks to grade inflation.

The Times wrote, “But once they get in, many of its students skip class and fail to do the reading… When they do show up for class, they are focused on their devices, and are reluctant to speak out. Sometimes it is because they are afraid of sharing ideas that others will disagree with. But often, they have not read enough of the homework to make a meaningful contribution.”

“Rampant grade inflation allows them to coast through anyway,” the report concluded.

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The New York Times reported on a new Harvard campus culture study showing that students have been working less hard and going to class less, while still graduating thanks to grade inflation. (Bloomberg/Getty)

The committee, formed to study Harvard’s classroom culture, found that because of grade inflation, students don’t have to engage “very much with their teachers and peers,” that they “stay stuck in ideological bubbles,” and are “unwilling or unable to engage with challenging ideas.”

These findings come as elite schools like Harvard and Columbia have come under scrutiny from the federal government for allegedly favoring liberal bias and failing to address antisemitism on campus.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration froze $2.2 billion in funding for Harvard and threatened to revoke its tax-exempt status due to the Ivy League school’s alleged failure to address antisemitism on campus.

The Times quoted a pre-med student named Omosefe Noruwa, who said that because professors record their lectures, students often don’t bother showing up to class. 

“If they can get good grades without attending class, they stop,” she said.

Grade inflation, already a problem during the pandemic, has soared since then. According to Harvard’s undergraduate education dean, Amanda Claybaugh, 40% of grades given out at the school were A’s – now it’s 60%. 

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Demonstrators gather on Cambridge Common to protest Harvard’s stance on the war in Gaza and show support for the Palestinian people, outside Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, April 25, 2025.  (JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)

Economics professor and committee co-chairman David Laibson told The Times that the classroom culture at Harvard has faced problems since the 1980s. He said procrastination and over-scheduling have “characterized” learning at Harvard and other schools for decades.

Laibson also said smartphones in the classroom have become a major obstacle to learning.

“You should know when you’re looking at your phone you’re not really hearing what I’m thinking,” he said. 

Harvard dean of the faculty of arts and sciences, Hopi Hoekstra told The Times that the committee’s report has presented faculty and staff with “some hard truths about our learning culture.”

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The Trump administration has targeted universities and foreign students amid a crackdown on antisemitism on college campuses nationwide.    (AP Images)

It has inspired change this fall semester, with professors now taking attendance and requiring that electronic devices be put away during class.

The school also added a new essay question to its application asking prospective students to write 150 words about a time when they strongly disagreed with someone. The measures aim to encourage free exchange of ideas on campus, at a time when many students say they don’t feel comfortable sharing their views.

A Harvard University spokesperson did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.