Is Yale Grade Inflation or Deflation?

December 7, 2023

Has Yale actually deflated the value of all Ivy League grades by hyper inflating their own grades. And as a result the value of a ‘grade’ from an Ivy now has deflated in global respect and admiration.

Yale Faces Scrutiny Over Rising Grade Inflation, Report Reveals

Moreover, a recent report brought to light the astonishing and significant rise in grade inflation at Yale University! Thus, creating an outcry and raising concerns among students, alumni, and faculty about the dilution of academic excellence.

Nearly 80% of all grades given to undergraduates at Yale during the last academic year were A’s or A minuses. A sharp increase that began during the coronavirus pandemic and has persisted, the report found.

The mean grade point average (GPA) at Yale was 3.7 out of 4.0, indicating a notable increase over prepandemic years. The findings, which have sparked frustration among various stakeholders, raise questions about the value and meaning of academic excellence at the Ivy League institution.

The report, authored by Yale economics professor Ray C. Fair, indicated that the trend of grade inflation has been on the rise for years, with 67% of grades being A’s and A minuses in the 2010-11 academic year, increasing to 73% in 2018-19, and spiking during the pandemic.

Professor Fair.

Shelly Kagan, a Yale philosophy professor known for his rigorous grading standards, expressed concern to the New York Times over the trend. “When we act as though virtually everything that gets turned in is some kind of A — where A is supposedly meaning ‘excellent work’ — we are simply being dishonest to our students,” Kagan said. He argued that this trend has altered the very essence of grading, with students no longer perceiving a B as a ‘good’ grade.

Grade inflation is not unique to Yale. At Harvard, 79% of all grades in the 2020-21 academic year were also A’s or A minuses, a significant jump from 60% a decade earlier. Harvard’s average GPA was 3.8, compared to 3.41 in 2002-03.

Stuart Rojstaczer, a retired Duke University professor who tracks grade inflation, compared grades to currency, noting their tendency to increase over time. He highlighted that GPA increases are a nationwide trend, more pronounced in private colleges compared to public schools.

Pericles Lewis, the dean of Yale College, suggested that students might be overly concerned with their GPAs. He commented to the New York Times, “I don’t think many people care, 10 years out, what kind of grades you got at Yale. They mostly care that you, you know, you studied at Yale.”

However, students and graduate programs do care about undergraduate grades. Amanda Claybaugh, Harvard’s dean of undergraduate education, expressed concern that grade inflation could impact students’ mental health, leading them to seek distinction outside the classroom, thereby increasing stress.

The report’s findings have resonated with many Yale students. Some observed a divide between grading in science and math classes and those in the humanities. Jonah Heiser, a mechanical engineering major, noted, “There’s a common understanding that they’re kind of different scales.”

Jonah Heiser

Others worry about the potential impact of public knowledge of Yale’s grade inflation on the value of their degrees and their efforts.

In conclusion, Gustavo Toledo, a junior majoring in political science, expressed concern to the New York Times that this could devalue their hard work in the eyes of employers. And, lastly, further increase pressure on students to achieve every higher and higer GPAs!