This isn't surprising. The important selection filter is entirely in getting into Harvard. It's an excellent signal for some critical amount of intelligence, conscientiousness, and conformity, where each one can be traded off for some of the others - but only up to a point.
What would be really interesting is if the same effects happen at top universities in the East Asian countries. I would be fascinated to know why the divergence if we found that only 20% of students at, say, Seoul National University got top marks in their classes.
What would be really interesting is if the same effects happen at top universities in the East Asian countries. I would be fascinated to know why the divergence if we found that only 20% of students at, say, Seoul National University got top marks in their classes.