Harvard sidesteps Hegseth’s ban on military students

The school will allow troops accepted into its academic programs to defer enrollment for four years after Pentagon leaders barred studies there.

Harvard University will allow military students new options to defer or continue their education after the Pentagon cut academic ties with the school. | Rick Friedman/AFP via Getty Images

Harvard University will allow active-duty troops to defer their admission for up to four years in response to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s ban on academic involvement with the school — a rebuke of his attempt to sever ties between the Ivy league school and the military.

The university will also work with students accepted into the Harvard Kennedy School’s programs to get expedited consideration at four other graduate schools that have not been banned by the Defense Department, according to a person familiar with the plans and a letter written for prospective students obtained by POLITICO.

“While we hope to welcome active-duty military students to the Harvard Kennedy School next year, we are fully committed to making sure you get the education you deserve — even if you cannot get it at Harvard,” Dean Jeremy Weinstein wrote in the letter.

© Politico