The truth of this is powerfully illustrated in a 1986 study commissioned by Harvard’s then-president, Derek Bok. Bok wanted to know if there was a way to predict whether a kid would succeed or fail in college. What was different about those who kicked ass as undergrads? A large-scale study was conducted over the course of several years. One finding in particular surprised everyone: The single best predictor of college success had nothing to do with any metric we associate with collegiate achievement, now or then. It wasn’t GPA, SAT scores, or a number of any kind for that matter. It was,
...more
