<p>How difficult is it to finish at harvard. How many students do you know of that have said that its just to hard. If you can cope with a shcool like penn, would the academic rigor of H be similar. What are gpa's like. Do you sacrafice a social life for a 4.0</p>
<p>Yikes. Ugh, I must be a closet grammar-freak, because I just about had an aneurysm when I read this post.</p>
<p>Just for the sake of my sanity:</p>
<p>"How difficult is it to finish at Harvard*?* How many students do you know of that have said that it*'s just too* hard*?* If you can cope with a s*chool like **Penn, would the academic rigor of H be similar?* What are gpa's like*?* Do you sacr*ifice a social life for a 4.0?*"</p>
<p><em>gasps for air</em></p>
<p>^^ jesus. grammar-freak? Much?</p>
<p>Harvard graduates nearly all of the students it admits. </p>
<p>The</a> Education Trust - Closing the Achievement Gap </p>
<p>Harvard hardly ever graduates a student with a 4.0 grade average as an undergraduate at Harvard College. </p>
<p>FresnoBee.com:</a> Local: Local Harvard grad gets a rare 4.0 GPA </p>
<p>Students who are academically prepared for Harvard (who are presumably the only kind of applicants who are admitted) can have a very balanced and fun (while still challenging) life at Harvard.</p>
<p>Two words: Grade inflation. Just because Harvard is so hard to get into, does not mean is hard to finish. Almost 50 percent of grades given at Harvard are A's. It's harder to finish Cornell than Harvard.</p>
<p>
[quote]
It's harder to finish Cornell than Harvard.
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</p>
<p>The data you mention don't necessarily support this conclusion, because Cornell admits different students from those admitted to Harvard.</p>
<p>Most of the students admitted to Harvard have never received anything but As. Why would you expect them to suddenly become B or C students once they get there?</p>
<p>Don't compare high school work with college.</p>
<p>"How difficult is it to finish at Harvard? How many students do you know of that have said that it's just too hard? If you can cope with a school like Penn, would the academic rigor of H be similar? What are the gpa*s* like? Do you sacrifice a social life for a 4.0?"</p>
<p>hahahahaha</p>
<p>Hi, gadad, you speak from experience, as the father of a daughter who didn't just survive but thrived at Harvard, right?</p>
<p>OK, put Harvard's student body in perspective. Harvard students didn't just get As in HS. They got As while compiling lists of other accomplishments and honors that emboldened them to enter a worldwide competition with other ultra-accomplished A students for limited slots in a class chosen for its potential to make a significant impact in the world. Out of that pool, only seven of every 100 got selected. Those individuals' drive for achievement and almost unbelievable patterns of accomplishment are what makes Harvard unique. So, if over half of those students then failed to make As in college, we'd have to question what Harvard was doing wrong to keep them from continuing to be the highest possible achievers.</p>
<p>SM, my older daughter is a junior at H this fall, and came from a rural, public HS with limited resources. Despite a very strong HS record and test scores, she found during her freshman year that she had a lot of catching up to do, and had to work harder than she ever had before. As is typical for H students, she worked equally hard at extracurriculars, a cappella, theatre, study abroad, a campus job, a social life, etc. I asked where she found the hours in the day, to do everything and she said that when you're in the midst of that culture, it doesn't seem that daunting - it's what everyone is doing. I don't frankly know how they manage it, but thriving seems to be the campus norm.</p>
<p>The idea that Harvard is easy is spread by people who have never attended Harvard, at least that is my opinion. I can promise you that students here work unbelievably hard. It is not uncommon for a number of us freshman to stay until 2-3 AM or later each morning studying and doing work. It's a culture of students that work hard. Almost no one would even think of going out on a week night.</p>
<p>One of my closest friends here attended RSI, and I can tell you she'll be studying all weekend in hopes of doing well on here Life Science midterm.</p>
<p>It is not at all uncommon for people to take time off during their undergraduate years. Harvard would much prefer to have students take a leave of absence than not graduate up the road.</p>