Former Dean of the Faculty Henry A. Rosovsky says discriminating among students of different caliber is Harvard’s “professional obligation.”

He warns that the inability to distinguish among students could lead to a return to a system in which personal connections are necessary for success—harkening back to an earlier elite era of Harvard.

However, for those whose job it is to evaluate and differentiate among Harvard College graduates—recruiters and graduate school admissions officers—grade inflation is virtually irrelevant.

Jean K. Webb, director of admissions for Yale Law School, notes that law schools are provided with the last three years of grading data for many colleges—including Harvard—which allows them to account for changes in a particular school’s grading trends.

And according to William Wright-Swadel, director of Harvard’s Office of Career Services, recruiters rarely even consider grade point average, as long as it meets a minimum standard.

“There’s no indication that grade inflation or stories about grade inflation are affecting employer or graduate school perception of our students,” Wright-Swadel says.

But a second problem, most professors say, is the inability of these compressed grades to provide accurate feedback to students on the quality of their work. They fear students do not know when the work they submit is substandard—and have no incentive to submit top-notch work.

“[Professors] should not be afraid to give D’s or C’s,” says Roderick MacFarquhar, Williams professor of history and political science and chair of the government department. “Some people here may be smart and just not working up to their potential.”

Nearly half of Harvard College students surveyed in a random telephone poll conducted by The Crimson last weekend agreed with that sentiment—saying they did not believe the current grading system motivates them to do their best work.

Even though many professors say grade inflation poses a serious dilemma for Harvard, some Faculty question the very premise that grade inflation is a problem.

“I worry about what my students learn not the grades,” says William M. Gelbart, professor of molecular and cellular biology. “I don’t think [administrators] should loose a lot of sleep over this. There are a lot more important things to worry about here like pedagogy and scholarship.”

—Jessica E. Vascellaro contributed to the reporting of this story.

—Staff writer Kate L. Rakoczy can be reached at rakoczy@fas.harvard.edu.