By students' sophomore and junior years, social divisions between classes have often crystallized in Harvard's various clubhouses. Exclusive social clubs like the Signet and the Hasty Pudding, as well as the nine all-male final clubs, tend to reinforce class boundaries.

To join the clubs, students are "punched" by friends or older acquaintances, often students they knew growing up or from high school. This among other things, largely prohibits socioeconomic diversity, since most of the club members come from private or boarding schools.

While class "is not an issue for initiation, there are a lot of formal events, so you are expected to act accordingly," says Joshua D. Powe '98, a final club member.

For students who aren't members, these clubs--with expensive monthly dues, ritzy parties and beautifully decorated clubhouses--seem both an expression of Harvard's wealth and a direct contradiction to the egalitarian and meritocratic values espoused in academic and extracurricular spheres.

Academic Elitism and the Debt Dilemma

Harvard's reputation for social elitism matches its reputation for academic elitism.

While the University's curricula may encourage students who enter to "grow in wisdom" and "serve mankind" upon graduation, a degree in fine arts or social studies is not necessarily marketable, and doesn't ensure a future job.

Many working-class parents consider Harvard's liberalarts ideals impractical in light of their economic circumstances, especially when students have to a carry large debt burden once they leave school.

As a result, poorer parents often expect children to concentrate in something than can be applied to a future career path--an expectation which may run counter to their children's academic interests.

"They expected me to learn a trade or learn something to get a specific job," Terriquez says of her parents. "They saw college as a specific trade school, like, 'Learn to be a lawyer.' They don't grasp the concept that sociology isn't a job."

Benjamin Kunkel '97 transferred to Harvard from Deep Springs College, a full-scholarship two-year school with about two dozen male undergraduates, and says that the specter of debt inhibits academic freedom at Harvard in a way it didn't at Deep Springs.

"Nobody was going into debt as a result of Deep Springs; this encouraged an intellectual freedom with economic constraints," he said. "If you feel in a sense financially indebted to your family this can restrict your intellectual freedom and what seems conceivable to you."

"Different Ways of Organizing One's World"

Clearly, for most students, the implications of class are much greater than membership in a club or choice of concentration. Class doesn't just determine activities or friends, but can determine values and mindsets as well.

"The difference between classes is the difference between two different worlds. It's complete foreignness. It's a different culture. I'm not trying to relegate people into cultural roles, but yes, I do feel more comfortable with my friends from [home]," Summer says.