Harvard social life -- explain the paradox

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

Not OP, but it is also very easy to find claims from professors regarding this:

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/09/teacher-evaluations-grade-inflation/684185/?gift=hES2-gYGuMNFzvFJOo-72ba4hqGBhAQX47VtSPKnrUU&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share

"Melani Cammett, a Harvard international-affairs professor, saw her scores slide when she moved from teaching at Brown to Harvard. After deducing that a cluster of students had penalized her for assigning too much reading, she cut several academic articles from her syllabus and raised the grades she gave."

As well as both implied and explicit support for the statement from Harvard students:

https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2025/10/30/students-react-grading-report/

Harvard students pushed back forcefully against a new University report condemning grade inflation, arguing that it misrepresented their academic experience and would add pressure to an already demanding campus environment....

Sophie Chumburidze ’29 said the report felt dismissive of students’ hard work and academic struggles.
“The
whole entire day, I was crying,” she said. “I skipped classes on
Monday, and I was just sobbing in bed because I felt like I try so hard
in my classes, and my grades aren’t even the best.”
...
Zahra Rohaninejad ’29 added that grading already felt harsh and
raising standards further would only erode students’ ability to enjoy
their classes.
“I can’t reach my maximum level of
enjoyment just learning the material because I’m so anxious about the
midterm, so anxious about the papers, and because I know it’s so harshly
graded,” she said. “If that standard is raised even more, it’s
unrealistic to assume that people will enjoy their classes.”
...
“What makes a Harvard student a Harvard student is their engagement in extracurriculars,” Peyton White ’29 said. “Now we have to throw that all away and pursue just academics. I believe that attacks the very notion of what Harvard is.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

OP has answered this question many times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

OP has answered this question many times.

I actually forgot what the question was but recall it being dumb. Remind me

[Anonymous]

OP, you need to get into Harvard first before worrying about their social scene. This thread is beyond pathetic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yale has a lot of social events and parties. It is much more well rounded than Harvard.

I went to Yale, and I'd say this is true. There was a lot going on. I have a couple of good friends who went to Harvard. They are fun, smart and social. They didn't like Harvard very much.

Yea, the "fun, smart, and social" personality type seems to have the worst experience at Harvard and it has always been that way.

Incredibly not true

I'm the poster who posted about my friends' lived experience at Harvard. Your claim that this wasn't true is not accurate for them.

I guess your friends weren't as fun, smart, or social as they thought they were, despite their lived experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to MIT which had a pretty vibrant social scene. We have a such Greek scene. Parties usually corresponded to getting past key testing schedules or holidays.

I never, literally never met a Harvard student at a party but to be fair that part of Boston is pretty far from their part of Cambridge.

MIT has long pushed for all Greeks to come back on campus. Thankfully, they can't force the issue because it probably wouldn't be as great if so.

I think the network is more post-graduation but it's also in the grade inflation. Harvard 4.0 >>>> MIT 3.0 to most graduate institutions which is frustrating.

They are both in Cambridge and I think two stops on the red line. A five minute drive.

I watched those soap opera type reality episodes of rushing for Sororities down South. The girls spoke to the screen on TikTok while applying makeup. Most had bleached hair. They then named the brands of clothing they wore plus the jewelry. They ran around for a couple of days hoping to get picked for a sorority. At the end they simultaneously opened their envelopes and then squealed like pigs who just found mud piles.

The exact opposite of the females at Harvard. 80% of Supreme Court Judges went to Yale and Harvard. Leaders around the world studied at Harvard including our Canadian friends Trudeau and Mark Carney. It’s not a large party school with frats and sorority girls getting black out drunk. It’s more smaller groups of friends getting together. Much nicer.

Isn't this why the finals clubs guys are said to prefer girls from outside harvard for parties? I'm not sure how parents of daughters at Harvard feel about that.

It’s possible the final clubs guys prefer girls who squeal like pigs who just found mud piles! Parents of daughters at Harvard (I am one) are definitely glad our daughters do not squeal like pigs. 😂

I think anyone squealing like a pig should be taken to the doctor.

Or the vet!

Even if it's a pig?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yale has a lot of social events and parties. It is much more well rounded than Harvard.

I went to Yale, and I'd say this is true. There was a lot going on. I have a couple of good friends who went to Harvard. They are fun, smart and social. They didn't like Harvard very much.

Yea, the "fun, smart, and social" personality type seems to have the worst experience at Harvard and it has always been that way.

Incredibly not true

I'm the poster who posted about my friends' lived experience at Harvard. Your claim that this wasn't true is not accurate for them.

I guess your friends weren't as fun, smart, or social as they thought they were, despite their lived experience.

I think the poster is suggesting that Harvard is not a good fit for fun, smart, or social people, not that they weren't fun, smart, or social enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to MIT which had a pretty vibrant social scene. We have a such Greek scene. Parties usually corresponded to getting past key testing schedules or holidays.

I never, literally never met a Harvard student at a party but to be fair that part of Boston is pretty far from their part of Cambridge.

MIT has long pushed for all Greeks to come back on campus. Thankfully, they can't force the issue because it probably wouldn't be as great if so.

I think the network is more post-graduation but it's also in the grade inflation. Harvard 4.0 >>>> MIT 3.0 to most graduate institutions which is frustrating.

They are both in Cambridge and I think two stops on the red line. A five minute drive.

I watched those soap opera type reality episodes of rushing for Sororities down South. The girls spoke to the screen on TikTok while applying makeup. Most had bleached hair. They then named the brands of clothing they wore plus the jewelry. They ran around for a couple of days hoping to get picked for a sorority. At the end they simultaneously opened their envelopes and then squealed like pigs who just found mud piles.

The exact opposite of the females at Harvard. 80% of Supreme Court Judges went to Yale and Harvard. Leaders around the world studied at Harvard including our Canadian friends Trudeau and Mark Carney. It’s not a large party school with frats and sorority girls getting black out drunk. It’s more smaller groups of friends getting together. Much nicer.

Isn't this why the finals clubs guys are said to prefer girls from outside harvard for parties? I'm not sure how parents of daughters at Harvard feel about that.

It’s possible the final clubs guys prefer girls who squeal like pigs who just found mud piles! Parents of daughters at Harvard (I am one) are definitely glad our daughters do not squeal like pigs. 😂

I think anyone squealing like a pig should be taken to the doctor.

Or the vet!

Even if it's a pig?

the final clubs have an onsite vet

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, you need to get into Harvard first before worrying about their social scene. This thread is beyond pathetic.

Agree, too many people working out their issues on this forum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you need to get into Harvard first before worrying about their social scene. This thread is beyond pathetic.

Agree, too many people working out their issues on this forum.

Isn't this board about college and university discussion? Why would parents not be curious about the culture of different universities?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

OP has answered this question many times.

I actually forgot what the question was but recall it being dumb. Remind me

The poster is unhappy that OP has not cited "proof" for the anecdotal observation that Harvard has deemphasized its focus on academic life in the college. OP has, multiple times, noted that this is a qualitative observation made by many, and other posters have provided articles from the Harvard student newspaper noting the same. The poster, however, repeatedly demands "proof," presumably in the form of some sort of empirical study and will keep making demands until OP submits such proof.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

OP has answered this question many times.

Actually, they haven’t, and I went there, so am still waiting for a valid cite/link, not garbage attempts thst prove nothing and waste everyone’s time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

OP has answered this question many times.

Actually, they haven’t, and I went there, so am still waiting for a valid cite/link, not garbage attempts thst prove nothing and waste everyone’s time.

Cite/link to in-person informal conversations and anecdotes? Is this a court hearing with some sort of evidentiary standard for proof? What a weird thing to repeatedly demand. Based on your behavior, it is certainly very believable that you went to Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is said to be less focused on academics than most elite colleges and Harvard students are said to be more focused on a kind of pre-professional networking. At the same time, it is said to be have a relatively poor social scene and a worse party scene than any of the other top schools, particularly for freshman. This seems like a contradiction to me. Wouldn't a school obsessed with schmoozing and networking be known for its vibrant social scene?

Still waiting for OP to provide proof for this weird statement.

OP has answered this question many times.

Actually, they haven’t, and I went there, so am still waiting for a valid cite/link, not garbage attempts thst prove nothing and waste everyone’s time.

Cite/link to in-person informal conversations and anecdotes? Is this a court hearing with some sort of evidentiary standard for proof? What a weird thing to repeatedly demand. Based on your behavior, it is certainly very believable that you went to Harvard.

That poster enters every thread that criticizes Harvard and demands "proof" for every assertion.

[Anonymous]

DF's son is there, a junior. He has changed A LOT since going to H; used to be a shy sweet boy (I've known him since birth), now a lot more slick. He is cutting deals and networking left and right, often with much older adults and people from other schools like MIT, Stanford, Princeton. Doesn't sounds like he socializes with kids from H except a few kids who are partners in his startup. They are very focused on getting rich, not focused on partying on campus. He is away a lot in CA and doesn't sound like he goes to classes or is even in MA that much.