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Harvard University - Campus Housing - Campus Housing - College ProwlerCollege Prowler5.00

Campus Housing

A+
Where does this grade come from?View all Campus Housing rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Campus Housing Grades:

Quick Stats

On-Campus Housing Available? Yes
Campus Housing Capacity 13,420
Average Housing Costs $7,525
Freshmen Required to Live on Campus? Yes
Undergrads Living On Campus 98%
Number of Dormitories 16
Number of Campus-Owned Apartments 13
Best Dorms
  • Adams House (for upperclassmen)
  • Anything in the Yard (for freshmen)
  • Kirkland House (for upperclassmen)
Worst Dorms
  • Mather House (for upperclassmen)
  • Union Dorms (freshmen)

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

When more than 95 percent of undergraduates at Harvard prefer to live on campus, you know there must be something attractive about the housing opportunities. From its rich history and beautiful architecture to the close-knit House communities and central location, Harvard campus housing is matched by few, if any, universities in the country. Freshmen live in the Old Yard and the Union, while upperclassmen move toward the River and out toward the Quad after their first year. But regardless of location, Harvard’s rooms tend to be spacious, and almost all rooms feature common rooms and private bathrooms. Many of the Houses also offer features like darkrooms, music practice rooms, workout facilities, and late-night grilles.

However, all dorms have their pros and cons, and you will hear undergraduates living in the river houses complain about smaller rooms, while students in the Quad complain about the long trek to classes. These complaints are rare but do exist. The general sentiment of the Harvard undergrad is resoundingly in favor of campus housing at Harvard. House communities are integral parts of student social life, and because of this, few would relinquish their campus housing just because of a long walk or smaller room.

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Harvard Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Campus Housing at Harvard University

cocofish

Environmental Engineering '13

4.2
A-

Your Social Sphere for 3 Years

House life is wicked fun. There's not a lot of inter house mixing so when dining in a different house farthest away from your own house the faces will more unfamiliar. Freshman dorms range, but for the most part are pretty nice and the proximity to classes is unparalleled.

Sep 28, 2011

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Campus Housing at Harvard University

senaztosun

Biological Sciences '17

4.6
A

The Dorms

The freshman dorms at Harvard College aren’t perfect, but the options are wonderful for upper class students. Esspecially new dorms have great facilities.

Feb 11, 2011

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Campus Housing at Harvard University

jayycee

Biological Sciences '11

5.0
A+

Upperclassman Houses

Living in one of Harvard's 12 upperclassman houses is one of the best things about attending Harvard. House life and house community really make being a school a home away from home

May 25, 2010

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Page 1 of 5
User rating for Harvard University - Campus Housing is 4.6 out of 5 based on 14 user reviews.

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate campus housing on the following subjects

Facts

Room Types
  • all freshman housing is suite-style
  • Students live in houses after their freshman year
Bed Types Twin extra-long
What You Get
  • Bed
  • Bookcase
  • Closet
  • Desk
  • Dresser
  • Ethernet connection
Also Available In addition to the 13 traditional upperclass Houses, another option is the Dudley Co-Op. Undergrads in this House share the duties of cooking and cleaning, but they pay about half what other students pay for room and board.

Cleaning Service

There’s weekly cleaning of all bathrooms

Did You Know?
  • Harvard approaches on-campus living unlike any other college in the nation. After being carefully assigned roommates and dorm accommodations by the University during their first year, students get to choose with whom they'll live for the remaining three. They do this by means of a blocking group, which is composed of up to eight people and can be coed. Every group is then entered into a random housing lottery and assigned to an upperclass House for the next three years, so you will live with your blockmates together in one House. But don't worry—although you stay in the same House, you still get assigned a different room each year, and they get better as you go along.
  • Before you get ready to move into your House, you'll spend your first year in one of the freshman dorms. All of the freshman dorms, with the exception of Apley Court, Greenough, Pennypacker and Hurlbut, are in Old Harvard Yard. The type of room and number of students each dorm holds varies from year to year, depending on the size of the freshman class and the planning of the Harvard Housing office. All freshman housing is suite-style.
  • There are 13 independent upperclassman Houses, and each offers its advantages and disadvantages. The Houses are made up of several individual buildings that all feature a variety of room sizes, and the number of floors and bathrooms per room varies greatly, even within the same building. All Houses and freshman dorms are coed and the male-to-female ratio is tweaked to match the overall composition of the college as close as possible.
  • You can search the past inhabitants of every freshman dorm room at www.hcs.harvard.edu/~dorms.

DormitoriesWhat's This?

Apley Court
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: One per suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Singles, doubles, triples
Special Features: Full kitchen in building, high ceilings, marble staircase, prime location just outside the Yard, walk-in closets.

Canady
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: One per floor
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Singles, quads
Special Features: Each suite has s common room. Building has courtyard, kitchen, laundry facility, Muslim prayer rooms, renovated common room with plasma TV, renovated study room, wall-to-wall carpeting. It is the largest freshman dorm and located close to Science Center and Annenberg.

Grays
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: One per suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Quads, quints
Special Features: Common room with TV and seating for 35, hardwood floors, houses classrooms and peer counseling office, large windows, suites have extremely spacious common rooms.

Greenough
Floors: 4
Bathrooms: Shared, except suites, which have in-suite bathrooms
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Singles, doubles, triples, six-person suites
Special Features: Each suite has common room and is party-friendly. Building has common room with TV and ping-pong table, hardwood floors, kitchen in building, music practice room.

Hollis
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: Shared
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Doubles
Special Features: Hollis has large rooms and is the fourth-oldest building at Harvard. Once home to Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau.

Holworthy
Floors: 4
Bathrooms: Shared with adjoining quad
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Quads
Special Features: Building has renovated basement with full kitchen, lounge with plasma TV, seating for nearly 30 people. Each suite has common room and party-friendly rooms.

Hurlbut
Floors: 4
Bathrooms: Shared by pod or suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Singles, six-person suites
Special Features: Only dorm you can get into with just a key—useful on the Jewish Sabbath. Building has computer room and laundry facilities.

Lionel and Mower
Floors: 3
Bathrooms: Shared by suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Triples, quads
Special Features: Courtyard in front of the building, which forms a nice place for relaxing. Mower basement has common room, full kitchen, study space.

Massachusetts
Floors: 4, but residents only live in top two floors
Bathrooms: One per suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Singles, doubles
Special Features: Oldest dorm in the country, and each suite has a common room. The bottom floors of the building are home to offices of University administrators, including the University president.

Matthews
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: Shared per hallway
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Doubles, triples
Special Features: Suites have common room and decorative in-room fireplaces. Building has full kitchen, Gothic architecture, music practice rooms, renovated common room with plasma TV, study room.

Pennypacker (“The Pack”)
Floors: 4
Bathrooms: One per suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Doubles, quads
Special Features: Central marble staircase, each suite has common room, hardwood floors.

Stoughton
Floors: 4
Bathrooms: Shared
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Doubles
Special Features: Large rooms, located next to Hollis.

Straus
Floors: 4
Bathrooms: One per suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Doubles, triples, quads
Special Features: Common room with TV, small kitchen, seating for 30.

Thayer
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: Varies by room
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Doubles, triples
Special Features: Elevator; great location in the North end of the Old Yard; renovated basement with full kitchen, laundry room, lounge with plasma TV, pool table, study room. Once home to E. E. Cummings.

Weld
Floors: 5
Bathrooms: Shared by hallway or suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Five- and six-person suites
Special Features: Adjacent to Widener Library. Building has common room with full kitchen, study tables, and TV, elevator, and houses Harvard Police station in basement. Once home to John. F. Kennedy.

Wigglesworth (“Wigg”)
Floors: 3
Bathrooms: One per suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen
Room Types: Mostly quads
Special Features: Music practice rooms, pool table, renovated common room with plasma TV and seating for 20.

Campus-Owned ApartmentsWhat's This?

Adams (Halls: Claverly, Randolph, Russell and Westmorly)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Café, computer/fax/copier room, darkroom, dining hall, library, music practice rooms, pool table, student kitchen, studio space, theater, TV room. Considered one of Harvard’s most historic houses, former residents include William Burroughs, Henry Kissinger, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Cabot (Halls: Barnard, Bertram, Briggs, Cabot, Eliot, Whitman)
Number of Units: 345
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Bike repair shop, coffeehouse, common room with foosball, ping-ping, and pool tables, computer room, dance studio, dining hall, libraries, kitchens, music practice rooms, private dining room, renovated weight room, TV room, video library.

Currier (Halls: Bingham, Daniels, Gilbert, Tuchman)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Art studio, computer lab, dance studio, dining hall, exercise room, full kitchen, laundry facilities, music room with grand piano, weight room.

Dudley (Halls: Lehman, plus two co-op houses (1705 Massachusetts Ave., 3 Sacramento St.))
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Café, computer lab, dining hall, game room, library, lockers.

Dunster
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Computer lab, darkroom, Dunster House Grille, library, music rooms, pottery studio, student kitchen, video library, weight room. Former home to Al Gore and John Lithgow.

Eliot
Number of Units: 450
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Art room, game room, photography studio, weight room, woodshop.

Kirkland
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Computer lab, dining hall, library, music rooms, performance spaces, weight room.

Leverett (Halls: Leverett Towers, McKinlock)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Computer lab, darkroom, dining hall, fitness center, library, music rooms, pool and ping-pong room, theater, views of Boston skyline for students on top floors of tower, volleyball court.

Lowell
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Art room, computer lab, darkroom, gym, library, Lowell House bells, music rooms, squash courts.

Mather (Halls: Low-Rise, Tower)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Art gallery, computer lab, courtyard, darkroom, game area with air hockey, foosball, and pool table, grille, library, music practice rooms, pottery studio, tranquility room, views of Boston from rooms in the tower, weight room, woodshop.

Pforzheimer (Halls: Comstock, Holmes, Jordan North and South, Moors, Wolback)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Art studio, computer lab, dance studio, dining hall, living rooms, TV studio, weight room.

Quincy (Halls: Old Quincy, New Quincy)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Computer room, darkroom, dining hall, fitness center, library, music room, performance space, pottery studio. Former home to Lou Dobbs and Tom Ridge.

Winthrop (Halls: Gore, Standish)
Coed: Yes
Residents: Upperclassmen
Special Features: Common rooms, computer labs, library, music rooms. Former home to Ben Bernanke, Edward Kennedy, John F. Kennedy.

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