Haverford College
- Academics

Overrated for the most part

While Admissions loves to brag about our small classes and the attention our professors give to the students, it's way overblown. Classes are small, but still about the same size as the undergrad classes at research universities ranked in the top ten in the U.S. News World & Report (Harvard, Penn, Princeton, University of Chicago, etc). Unfortunately many of the popular classes are very hard to get in because of cap sizes, but upper level classes are nice and intimate. Some professors are interesting and accessible, but just as many are self-absorbed and mediocre. It's surprisingly common for professors here to brag about their Ivy League educations. Our professors aren't paid as well as ones at "peer" institutions at Swarthmore, Amherst, etc. so this probably helps to explain the variability of teaching quality here. Don't expect to have dinner with your professors all the time either. It doesn't happen often (if at all). Classes here are surprisingly easy as long as you study and do your work (pretty much all students here do) - the average gpa is around 3.4/3.5 and roughly a quarter of all grades are 4.0's. Of course, this varies by department and the natural sciences are typically more challenging. The workload can get rough around exam periods, but it's usually light as long as you don't procrastinate too much.

Overrated for the most part

While Admissions loves to brag about our small classes and the attention our professors give to the students, it's way overblown. Classes are small, but still about the same size as the undergrad classes at research universities ranked in the top ten in the U.S. News World & Report (Harvard, Penn, Princeton, University of Chicago, etc). Unfortunately many of the popular classes are very hard to get in because of cap sizes, but upper level classes are nice and intimate. Some professors are interesting and accessible, but just as many are self-absorbed and mediocre. It's surprisingly common for professors here to brag about their Ivy League educations. Our professors aren't paid as well as ones at "peer" institutions at Swarthmore, Amherst, etc. so this probably helps to explain the variability of teaching quality here. Don't expect to have dinner with your professors all the time either. It doesn't happen often (if at all). Classes here are surprisingly easy as long as you study and do your work (pretty much all students here do) - the average gpa is around 3.4/3.5 and roughly a quarter of all grades are 4.0's. Of course, this varies by department and the natural sciences are typically more challenging. The workload can get rough around exam periods, but it's usually light as long as you don't procrastinate too much.

So Much to Learn - So Little Time

I came from a pretty rigorous private school, which prepared me well for Haverford. That being said, I am challenged more than I thought possible. But in a really good way. No one here talks about grades - it just isn't done - because everyone is scary smart. But we challenge each other in areas other than grades.