Class Differences at Harvard

        At home, most of us went to schools with people from the same socioeconomic class as us. Our friends had similar financial backgrounds and our neighborhoods were all the same demographic. Most likely, none of us had ever truly encountered class differences. Then we come to college and we are thrust into a large mix of students, hailing from all different backgrounds. In class one day, we worked in groups to discuss the situations at Harvard in which we have observed class differences between ourselves and others around us. Within minutes, my group and I had already written quite an extensive list. Despite not being on campus for long, we had all already experienced encounters in which we felt uncomfortable about our social class, whether it be higher or lower than our peers. Two of the main focal points in which class differences were noticed were during move-in week and J-term.
        During move-in week, numerous opportunities arise to discover social class differences. Some students arrive with suitcases in tow, piles of clothes, and expensive furniture to arrange in the common room. Other students might come with only a few necessities and no amenities to share with roommates. Debates might arise over whether to purchase a television or couch for the common room and how the price for the good will be divided. Do all the roommates split the cost? What if one roommate cannot afford the television? If that is the case, is he not allowed to watch the television because he did not help purchase it? Learning to live with a roommate is difficult, especially for students who have never experienced a roommate situation before. Not only is it hard to adapt to living with a stranger, but we must also learn to interact with people of different social classes. We must be aware that some students come from different financial backgrounds than us. For example, one of my friends prefers eating out at restaurants in Cambridge instead of eating for free in the dining hall. For her, it is not a problem to pay the check several times a week at a restaurant. For the friend she invites to join her, however, these outings are a severe drain on her finances, but she is too embarrassed to tell her friend no. Often times, we do not even realize  that the other person might not be able to afford the meal because we assume that everybody comes from a similar background.
        Discussing J-term and summer plans, for example, can also bring up distinct class differences. While students from rich families might choose to backpack Europe, take a summer abroad in Italy, or scuba dive in the Caribbean, the lower income students will need to find a job during those months and put their time to good use. Talking about these plans with our peers can be a shock, especially for those who have never had to find a job to finance their lifestyle. These conversations about how we are going to use our free time are a lens for the class differences here at Harvard. Class intersections like these occur daily at Harvard and we must be aware of them and willing to adapt to the situation in order to interact smoothly with people from different backgrounds.