Rhodes’ Critics Rebuked

A recent op-ed in which two Harvard grads air frustrations about their time at Oxford University as Rhodes Scholars has stirred up controversy on both sides of the Atlantic.

In an opinion piece titled “Oxford Blues” that was published in The Crimson on Feb. 25, Melissa L. Dell ’05 and Swati Mylavarapu ’05 cautioned current Harvard juniors to “think twice before attending the Rhodes scholarship information session.”

In the article, the pair expressed disenchantment with Oxford’s “outdated academic system,” the “less than inspiring” library collections, high costs, and the 5 p.m. closing times of coffee shops.

The American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust, Elliot F. Gerson ’74, said that the op-ed raised legitimate points that were obscured by its presentation. However, he said “much of the rest of their article was frankly silly.”

Although Gerson said that the two Rhodes Scholars’ views are “in the extreme minority,” he said that “there is an unfortunate perception that those attitudes are more common among Harvard students at Oxford.”

Gerson submitted a letter to the editor that was published in The Crimson on March 2.

Indian news Web sites have reported on the opinion piece, and as of 1:30 a.m. today, 166 comments had been posted on The Crimson’s Web site in response to the op-ed.

Rhodes alum Rachael A. Wagner ’04 said she knew both Dell and Mylavarapu while at Harvard.

“The way in which they conveyed it stirred up more controversy than it was worth,” she said.

Ryan R. Thoreson ’07, one of six 2007 American Rhodes Scholars from Harvard, said that his House tutors had advised against applying to the program “just for the sake of applying for the Rhodes.”

Dell and Mylavarapu’s op-ed did not change his decision to attend the British university, he said.

“Everybody has their own pros and cons at any university that they are at,” Thoreson said. “I’m going into it with an open mind.”

In response to a request for comment, Dell and Mylavarapu provided a Crimson reporter with a copy of a letter to the editor they had submitted to The Crimson.

“The aim was not to sound ungrateful for our time at Oxford but to raise issues that students encouraged to apply for the Rhodes rarely consider,” their letter states.