Bringing the conversation back into college:
Grade inflation does not mean students’ lives are easier, in fact many a times it means the opposite: A single A- can cost you a chance at scholarships or graduating cum laude. Students are ever more stressed about getting 93+% in a class instead of a 92% (A-). At my university (large Big Ten flagship) if you want to win any awards or recognitions you need a 4.0
We learn in Econ 101 it is important to align incentives to motivate action. But there is simply no incentive for focusing so much on academics. McKinsey/Goldman Sachs would prefer to hire the 3.85 GPA student with an amazing resume, over the 3.99 bookworm solely focused on academics. In society, we also view the first student as a superstar/role model, and the latter student a nerd.
Finally, America’s entire education system is set up with an ethos to be more “applied” / hands-on and less bookish compared to Oxford and Cambridge, which till this day is still extremely scholarly. The main clubs that exist there are sports and recreation (swimming/pickelball etc.) without any pre-professional experiences (consulting, social impact, finance, IR, hands-on projects etc..). Students compete to have the “best thesis in history” and the London branch of McKinsey focuses on hiring those with Book Prizes and Dissertation Awards. A completely different world, and one that the US ecosystem does not support.