What The ‘Asian Grind Culture’ Panic Gets Wrong About American Education

“In certain international markets, bad actors have long made concerted efforts to access and share test content.” As Americans get more exposed to Asian cultures of education, we are slowly learning about their downsides. So far we have been slow to adapt. https://t.co/EBxxWq770M

— Helen Andrews (@herandrews) February 1, 2026

In her view, Asian students who have embraced a grueling work ethic involving constant test-taking drills and an unhealthy obsession with academics (“grind culture,” as she puts it), will gradually transform the ethos of elite universities from places of truth-seeking and open inquiry to places devoted to “indiscriminately maximizing test scores and then picking a high-status career.” This in turn will precipitate an exodus of white students from the Ivy Leagues to Southern colleges which have resisted Asiatic grind culture.

Writer Scott Greer built upon this argument, discussing what the alternative to Asian grind culture actually looks like in these Southern universities. Instead of grades and test performance, students in these schools are focused on social networking and being cool. As a result of these priorities, these schools are surprisingly conservative, reflexively shunning leftist causes and mass conformism.

While valid to a point, both Andrews and Greer rely too much on Asian stereotyping. They assume that Asian students are mostly grinders and nerds, and non-Asian students are jocks and socialites. This results in the popular caricature that Asian college students are cold-blooded, unimaginative drones while non-Asian college students are warm-blooded, creative entrepreneurs.

No doubt, many Asians and non-Asians fulfill these stereotypes, but in my experience teaching high-achieving Asian and non-Asian students in an AP English class, the reality on the ground is much more complicated. Not all Asians are narrow-minded grinders, nor are all non-Asians free-spirited risk-takers. Moreover, grind culture itself, insofar as it exists, is much more multifaceted and nuanced than is often assumed.

Concerning the demographic of grinders, it’s true that most of those who come close to this description are Asian — specifically South Asian where I teach — but there are plenty of white, Hispanic, and black students who also show the same kind of academic hustle. Most of them understand the need to perform well on aptitude tests and earn high grades in their core classes, and most of them have vigilant Tiger Moms at home who will regularly remind them of this.

Nevertheless, they also understand that excelling academically does not require them to sacrifice their social life or creativity. They are not mindless drones boycotting extracurriculars and friendship. On the contrary, most of the students who push themselves in class also have busy social lives, work part-time jobs, and cultivate outside interests. They show a keen interest in world issues and converse about a variety of topics. And yes, they even have a sense of humor.

Although some people might dismiss my high-achieving Indian students as typical, unthinking Asian strivers, they are the ones reading the news, asking me for recommendations on classic literature and introductions to philosophy, playing and watching sports, learning about music and creating art, and seeking out advice on how to ask someone out to Homecoming. Do many of them also attend test-prep centers and bother me about their grade? Sure, but this is only a small part of who they are. They have personalities and opinions, and most of them are thoroughly American in their outlook and sensibilities. They are hardly different from my high-achieving non-Asian students, except they happen to speak Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, Hindi, or Urdu at home (often with thick American accents).

More importantly, the grind culture of today’s top students in American schools is much broader than the high-stakes testing monomania that one sees in East Asia. As any junior and senior applying for scholarships and college admission can attest, simply testing well does not suffice. Applicants need to present polished resumes showcasing their involvement in a number of clubs, various athletic and academic competitions, and internships. Additionally, they must write eloquent essays about their lives and hold their own in an intense interview about their personal philosophies and life goals. Needless to say, all of this usually demands constant networking and well-honed soft skills.

That said, I readily admit that, as a group, Asians make up the majority of the strongest students at most campuses, including mine, and show the most willingness to jump through the many hoops of American grind culture. On average, they earn better grades, take harder classes, and score higher on the SAT and AP exams. And it’s true that most of this really does come from their cultural and ethnic background. Asian households generally value education, and this is a good thing.

Rather than seeing Asian students dominating in high schools and filling up the slots at Ivy Leagues as a cause for alarm, we should welcome this development and ask more from everyone else. These students are the ones keeping standards high in America and upholding a meritocracy that incentivizes excellence from all students. Their presence at a college is not something to fly from, nor should anyone belittle their achievements in the name of racial tribalism.

These students are playing the game that is quintessentially American, not Asian. Non-Asians can either play the game with them (and many do), or they can stay on the sidelines, whine about their fate, and foolishly hope to eventually get invited to some sick keggers at their overpriced party school.