<p>Getting back to the original question the OP asked…</p>
<p>I can’t speak for everyone at Harvard, but I’m a freshman and this is what I know:</p>
<p>There is a substantial community of people who smoke pot here. I would estimate 5-10% of the student body, based purely on the number of marijuana users in my dorm (3 known users out of 28 students in my entryway). I don’t claim that as an absolute statistic; maybe my dorm is an anomaly. Two of the three users regularly smoke weed on the fire escape. They have wandered around the halls in the middle of the night, clearly in altered states of consciousness, and so far our proctor (Harvard’s version of an RA) is either unaware or unwilling to take action. </p>
<p>I’m not aware of anyone getting busted for pot–alcohol violations are much more common. However, Harvard University Police (HUPD) and the administration are trying to crack down on marijuana in particular, because of an incident last spring (a drug deal went bad and someone died in one of the upperclass houses–see this Crimson article: [Kirkland</a> Shooting Victim Linked to Harvard Campus Drug Trade | The Harvard Crimson](<a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2009/5/20/kirkland-shooting-victim-linked-to-harvard/]Kirkland”>Kirkland Shooting Victim Linked to Harvard Campus Drug Trade | News | The Harvard Crimson) ) In past years, if you were caught with pot, you would usually face a disciplinary hearing and go on probation; essentially, you got a slap on the wrist. That’s for the FIRST offense, though–Harvard only gives you one chance. A second possession charge could jeopardize your official standing, or you could be forced to withdraw for up to a year. Because of the drug-related homicide in May, HUPD has been saying the punishments will be much more severe now. Then again, Massachussetts has decriminalized possession of less than 1 oz of marijuana. Bottom line, the only way to guarantee that you won’t face punishment is to not smoke pot. </p>
<p>What about the 90-95% of students who don’t use marijuana? Oddly enough, the first time I was ever offered weed was here at Harvard, not at my large, urban, public high school (I’m still not sure how that happened). I declined politely but firmly. The person did not offer again. There’s not much pressure to do drugs here–if you want to, you can find people who will do so with you, but no one will ever judge you for not joining the crowd.</p>
<p>So, to answer the OP’s question, you can smoke weed and probably won’t get caught. If you do get caught, though, there’s no way to know what the punishments will be, and they could be very severe. I, personally, wouldn’t jeopardize everything I worked for by using marijuana. Your choice may be different.</p>
<p>I hope this sheds some light on the original topic of this thread.</p>