‘Don’t go to Harvard’: Canadian journalist’s tip to youth for success in class, career

Malcolm Gladwell compared Harvard with Hartwick College, a small liberal arts school in New York. Despite vast differences in prestige, he found similar patterns: lower‑scoring students at both institutions were more likely to abandon STEM majors, regardless of raw talent.

Canadian journalist and author Malcolm Gladwell has advised young people to rethink aiming for Ivy League universities—especially Harvard—if they intend to pursue STEM degrees, arguing that elite institutions may actually hinder, rather than help, long‑term success.

Speaking on the Hasan Minhaj Doesn’t Know podcast, Gladwell said students should only choose Harvard if they are confident they can rank among the top performers. Otherwise, the competitive environment may push them into the bottom tier of their cohort, increasing the likelihood of academic struggle, burnout, or dropping out.

“If you want to get a science and math degree, don’t go to Harvard,” Gladwell said in a 2019 Google Zeitgeist talk, adding that success in STEM requires not just ability but relative standing. “Don’t go there if you’re going to be at the bottom of your class. Doing STEM? You’re just gonna drop out.”

The ‘big fish, little pond’ effect

Gladwell bases his warning on relative deprivation theory, arguing that students evaluate themselves not against the global population but against immediate peers. In his book David and Goliath, he referred to this as the big fish in a little pond phenomenon—suggesting students thrive when they are among the strongest in their cohort, Fortune reported.

He compared Harvard with Hartwick College, a small liberal arts school in New York. Despite vast differences in prestige, he found similar patterns: lower‑scoring students at both institutions were more likely to abandon STEM majors, regardless of raw talent. For him, class rank—not institutional prestige—is what determines persistence.

'Completing degree matters more than getting into a top college'

Gladwell advises prospective students to pick universities where they have a realistic shot at excelling academically. He argues that excelling builds confidence, resilience and professional self-belief—qualities he considers more valuable than the brand name of an institution. The journalist and author also emphasised that completing the degree matters more than attending a top‑ranked college.

A call for employers to change hiring practices

Gladwell also challenged employers who prioritise Ivy League résumés. Instead of selecting candidates from “top schools”, he urged them to hire “top students from any school under the sun”.