Overview
- Faculty approved the measure in a 458–201 vote Wednesday to limit A grades in undergraduate letter-graded courses to 20% of enrollment plus up to four additional A's per class, with A-minus and lower grades uncapped.
- The faculty also voted to use average percentile rank instead of GPA for internal honors and awards, and they rejected a proposal that would have let courses opt out of the cap by switching to alternative grading.
- Harvard officials and the grading subcommittee said the move responds to an October report by Dean Amanda Claybaugh showing a steady rise in A-range grades from about 24% in 2005 to roughly 60% in 2025 and that transcripts had lost signaling value to employers and graduate schools.
- Students and some faculty pushed back, citing surveys that showed strong student opposition and warning the cap could increase competition, discourage collaboration, raise stress, and limit instructors' grading autonomy.
- The policy takes effect in fall 2027, will be reviewed after three years by the Office of Undergraduate Education, and is likely to be watched closely by peer institutions given mixed precedents and debate over long-term effects.