Olivery Ni | Staff Illustrator

I am taking zero weed-out classes this semester. As a first-year, my course load is easier than most years of high school. I’m not on the pre-med track, I’m not an engineering major, and I probably won’t take a difficult math class for the rest of my life.

Why, then, am I qualified to talk about weed-out classes?

Because I am evidence that they work.

You don’t want me as your doctor. You don’t want me as the architect or engineer of the apartment you’re living in. I have no technical competence, I have shaky hands that would slice indiscriminately during surgery, and my mathematical education stalled in middle school.

But here’s the catch: If intro chemistry or intro physics were touted as normal classes with modest courseloads, I might take them. I’d think to myself: “Hell, I passed AP Chemistry just last year — I think I’ll try my hand at the pre-med track in college!” I need not reiterate why you don’t want this.

I am illustrative of the first benefit of weed-out classes: They disincentivize students less committed to a difficult career path from pursuing it anyway. Courses that demand genuine effort and aptitude force students to confront whether they care about the subject and are well-suited for it or are simply chasing a prestigious career. Doctors and engineers should be talented, hard-working people passionate about their fields, not those who just want a high-paying and socially admirable job. In this way, weed-out classes are a reality check for prospective students: Am I really able to put in this much work? Am I willing to risk a hit to my GPA?

However, people might object that future doctors or engineers will be weeded out in the future anyway. Even if we assume this to be true, first-year weed-out classes still serve a valuable role. It’s generally best for students to change career paths as soon as possible. I would certainly feel angry if it were near the end of college or in postgraduate school that I realized my chosen career path was unsuitable for me.

Therein lies the second benefit to weed-out classes: They speed up the inevitable in a way that helps even those who are weeded out. These classes provide students with an early opportunity to find out what sort of major or career is best for them in a process that, though painful, leads to a better allocation of time and effort.

However, there is a third category of students that seem unjustly harmed by weed-out classes — the earnest, hard-working student who lacks the requisite natural aptitude. While we should try to weed out those ambivalent toward a career, we shouldn’t discourage those who are genuinely committed to their career and willing to work tirelessly in its service. Still, weed-out classes rarely discourage the truly dedicated, no matter how harsh the grading or lengthy the homework. While someone’s dogged pursuit of a difficult career despite lacking natural talent might seem like the very problem I am trying to solve, this could not be further from the truth. It is precisely those who overcome immense challenges without any special academic skills but through hard work that are most deserving of their position in life.

I will, however, make one important concession: A class that weeds out the wrong people is not justified. While academic rigor is important, so are academic resources. It would be senseless and cruel to deny study resources to students or to arbitrarily discriminate between students on any basis but competence in relevant tasks. Classes that fail to select for the relevant traits — competence, perseverance, and passion — must be called out and eliminated. I only defend weed-out classes in the context of a college experience that emphasizes both rigor and support.

The push against justified weed-out classes is part of a concerning trend. Students increasingly seem to want an easier college experience — whether that be through grade inflation, lenient attendance policies, or less study time. And, frankly, I can’t blame them. Many of us want the best jobs in the best fields and the most success at the lowest cost. However, the function of a challenging education is to help us discover when that challenge is worth it.

College is not meant to open every door for every student. It is meant to show us which doors are worth opening. Weed-out classes provide that insight early, sparing wasted time and money in the process. If we embrace challenge instead of minimizing it, we will eventually find the path where our effort feels worthwhile.