The academic pressure of freshmen in Harvard is not great, especially compared with MIT, it is much easier to get an A in the course, but only one compulsory English writing course is more difficult for some students. Harvard is a general education, and students have a high degree of freedom in choosing courses. Harvard students do sleep less, but for freshmen, this is not because of pressure, but because of the temptation of various club activities. I asked them that many people will participate in six or seven different club activities, some of which are political, some are entertaining and some are service. These club activities take up too much time, and with homework, students have the problem of insufficient sleep.
The sophomores of Harvard are faced with the choice of majors. They can't just choose their favorite courses like freshmen, but have to figure out what courses they want to take before they can graduate. Many courses in liberal arts require a lot of reading, with a weekly reading of 500-800 pages per course. If you don't read English fast enough, you will feel very tired. This year, most students choose to do professional-related work during the summer vacation, such as volunteering in the hospital or preparing for medicine in the biochemical laboratory; Those who are going to study economics go to some financial institutions to find some low-end jobs, that is, to prepare for their senior internship in the summer vacation of grade three. If you have zero experience in the summer vacation of senior two, it will be difficult to find a corresponding senior internship in the summer vacation of senior three. My son got a high-paying internship in a financial institution in Asia in the second summer vacation, so all the first-class investment banks were open to him in the third summer vacation.
The academic burden of Harvard's third year suddenly increased, because at this time, the requirements for course papers of professional courses were very high. To write every paper, you should consult a lot of materials and have your own independent critical views. Specific requirements such as writing format are also very strict. Many students think the third grade is the worst, and they have to go through a lot of summer internship interviews in the second semester. You will inevitably miss many classes. Many students go back and forth between Cambridge and new york (Wall Street), and make up lessons passively. A lot of time spent studying science is spent in the laboratory.
The first semester of Harvard's fourth grade is a crucial period for many students to find jobs. If you don't get the Offer you expect by the end of this semester, you will be very passive. In class, you will see many people wearing formal suits. Boys wear black or dark blue suits and black shoes, because they will go to the company for an interview after class, which is in stark contrast to the casual and relaxed style of freshmen. In the last semester, I will be busy completing the core courses required by my major. Students with bad plans will have a hard time.
Harvard students usually sleep from midnight 12 to 2 am, and some students stay up all night to prepare for the midterm and final exams. At this time, the library will cooperate with students to open the door 24 hours a day, but generally it will not. Most libraries usually close on 12 or earlier. So it is not normal for the library to be brightly lit at four o'clock. But most dormitory lights are on at midnight.
Very different from China, Harvard students pay more attention to club activities and work than just studying books.
This is not the characteristic of Harvard school, and most good schools are like this. But MIT and Caltech are very different from other schools.
The above is not plagiarism.