Haverford College Top Questions

My favorite thing about Haverford is the community. There are only 1,200 students at the college, and no grad students, so it is very easy to get involved and meet great people. The school isn't so big that I feel like just another face in the crowd. When I first arrived on campus for orientation, called Customs Week, I felt so welcomed and comfortable, which is more than others can say about their first days at college. I lived on a hall with 12 other freshmen. Our group of 12 had nine upperclassmen who were chosen and trained to help us get used to all aspects college life, from dorm life to academics, from the Honor Code to multicultural issues. It was in this group, my Customs Group, that I made my best friends at Haverford. Even better--they all lived near me! Another big part of Haverford is the Honor Code. Student written and revised, the Code is our manner of self-government. It asks us to uphold certain principals and police ourselves. Under the Code, we must have trust, concern, and respect for ourselves, our schoolwork, and each other in terms of academics and social life. For instance, if I'm having a problem with another student, it is my responsibility to talk to him or her in order to gain mutual understanding and resolve our problem. In class, the Honor Code is most evident in our testing. Professors give take-home exams that we take on our own outside of class. For example, my calculus professor would give us all an exam at the end of the class on Wednesday. We were not to open the exam until we were ready to take it, and we couldn't use the text or any other resource. There was no collaboration alone. I would usually go to my room (a single) or to the library, take a look at my watch, and begin the exam as if I was in a proctored setting. When three hours passed, I put down my pencil and closed the exam. At the next class on Friday morning, I turned in the exam and all the scratch paper. Done. When I tell this to people. most of them laugh, thinking this would never work. But at Haverford, it does! It is my responsibility to not cheat, and my responsibility to not turn a blind eye if I know someone else is cheating. I feel like the students who come to Haverford take their studies so seriously that we know that cheating only hurts us in the end. Know that if you come to Haverford, few people outside of academia will know where you are going. Many will think you are going to Harvard. We're not Harvard, but our Princeton Review rating for academics is as high as Harvard's. When I'm at college, I spend most of my time on campus. Haverford is on a 200 acre arboretum along the Mainline in the suburbs of Philadelphia. I think the campus is absolutely gorgeous, and I don't have to look too far for what I need. Nearly all Fords (Haverford students) live on campus so there is always plenty to do outside of class. There are study spaces for all types as well as a diverse array of possibilities in terms of the social scene.

The general attitude of the school is very comfortable, friendly, and down to earth. That's the best thing about Haverford, is that you immediately feel at home and accepted. However, the problem with this arises when something happens in the community that rubs someone the wrong way. People may overreact because of this disruption in the school's harmony. People I think need to realize that these disagreements are okay, and that all talks don't need to lead to a healthy equilibrium again. Haverford does a lot of raising awareness of things - lots of talks and forums and such but not a lot of action. For example, we talk a lot about class inequality and racism but don't do anything about it. Although we are doing a lot better on putting action to our words. Most people spend their time on campus. It's a very close-knit school and if you wander away too much you'll miss so much going on. But no worries, there's always plenty of stuff going on on campus to keep you occupied. We're only a 25 minute train ride from Philadelphia, so taking an evening to see an opera, a play, or a musical performance is really nice. Also TONS of great places to eat. No one really hangs out on the Main Line - it's basically jsut there for us to run errands and grab some food once in a while. But generally the life is on campus and philly is nearby if you ever want more exciting things to do. There are also nearby colleges of upenn, swarthmore, bryn mawr, and villanova - so you can always go to those schools for excitement as well. I think people generally like Haverford a lot but are not bursting with school pride. You'll always find people anywhere that don't love their school, but everyone at Haverford is generally quite happy with Haverford. Biggest controversies on campus always involve someone being un-PC, too intolerant, not respecting the Honor Code, not respecting their peers, etc. Nothing really terrible ever happens - it's just that they become a bigger deal at Haverford because we have the Honor Code in place and any breach of that sort of undermines the ideals of the school.

The best thing about Haverford has got to be the honor code. The customs groups offers immediate friends for students. Because of Haverford's small size, most incoming freshman do not have friends that have gone or are going to Haverford. The customs groups ease the anxiety of making new friends, by sorta forcing them upon you. Haverford is a very small school and academically stressful. Because of the small class sizes, you can't get away with not doing your homework or just floating through a class. Seeing the same people everyday can get really annoying and this is feeling is even more obnoxious during finals weeks. I love being able to close my dorm room and not see anyone for 12 hrs at a time. Have a single room is by far one of my favorite things. It can be very difficult to never have any privacy, so having my own room is definitely a major plus. There are a lot of unusual things about Haverford. The most is that virtually everyone is nice. If they aren't then they are trying to be. Being bitchy or saying a crude joke won't fly at Haverford because you don't want to be politically incorrect. The reason being is that you have to see the same people everyday and if you offend anyone- it's impossible to avoid them on such a small campus. Rumors spread fast at Haverford, and you don't want to have a reputation on campus.

Haverford, a small liberal arts school, is located in the town of Haverford, a tiny town resting amidst the highly wealthy residential suburbs of Philly, known as the "Main Line." Haverford as a town is almost non-existent-- it is made up of a few boutiques and a bunch of pretty houses. However, the neighboring towns, Bryn Mawr and Ardmore both house a lovely selection of places to go out to eat and shop, and are walking distance, which is highly convenient. The first thing I noticed about Haverford College, is how cozy it feels. It's a small, tightly-knit community, filled with friendly, warm people. I felt immediately welcome, even as a new student. It's a community focused on comfort-- people wear comfortable clothes, and make a lot of effort to make each other feel comfortable. Starting with "Customs," freshman orientation, Haverford does a great job of providing comfort, and truly nurturing its freshmen. Each hall group participates in fun bonding activities (everything from light-hearted ice breakers to intense dialogues about controversial issues) led by upperclassmen chosen to work with freshmen. This provided me with social opportunities with fellow freshmen, as well as support from older students and helped me feel really comfortable right away. However, in the years that I attended Haverford, I got frustrated with the focus on comfort. People at Haverford are so afraid to make anyone feel uncomfortable that they avoid talking about controversial topics completely, except behind closed doors. People skirt around issues and don't address topics directly. As a result, issues like race and class get buried, and only come up when there is a specific forum addressing these issues-- usually as a result of an incident that upsets a lot of people. Basically, unless people feel like it's necessary to address these more "uncomfortable" issues, they get avoided, until people get angry enough and some sort of confrontation occurs. That is my one major complaint. I wish people would engage in dialogue more, and be willing to talk about issues with which they are uncomfortable. Nothing changes without dialogue! A lot of other aspects of Haverford are great. People are considerate of each other, and really make an effort to follow the Honor Code. Professors really trust students, and there is a great sense of trust in the community as a whole. We have don't have proctors for exams, and take-home tests. On the weekends, as long as we follow the Honor Code, we have a lot of freedom socially. There is a sense that as long as we are responsible and "follow the Code," then we can do pretty much whatever we want. This is wonderful and provides for a great sense of freedom and responsibility, and adds to the sense of community. In general, we, the students, have a lot of say in the way things work at Haverford. This can also be positive and negative, however, as sometimes students are forced to take on way more of a load of responsibility since the administration is not as supportive of the students and activities as they could be. Also, being a closely-knit community, Haverford can sometimes feel stifling. Everyone knows each other, and gossip travels very quickly. However, Haverford has a great study abroad program, and after traveling to Italy for the semester, I felt a lot more appreciative of the smallness of Haverford. Also, Philly is only a train-ride away, and can serve for some freedom from Haverford. I played on the frisbee team, and this community also provided an outlet for me, as we traveled constantly, playing teams all over the country. That's another thing: Haverford offers clubs catering to interests across the board, and if you don't see your interest addressed in a club, you can start your own club. Haverford allows people to be proactive and take charge. I only wish there was more funding, and more support from the adiministration. Overall, though, it's an inspiring place-- so many motivated, talented people, working hard and managing to balance that with doing a whole array of activities that many times relate to saving the world in some way.

Haverford has a vibe and an atmosphere, an essence and it is something I have found nowhere else. It isn't something can be explained, which is something you will learn from Derrida if you come here. It is fantastic though. You become a part of something that you can find nowhere else and you know it. Complain about it or not, the place is good for you and more people know it than admit to it. There is just something a little bit fabulous about the place even when you are saddled with work, suffering from lack of sleep, and not interested in waking up at 10 for your class the next day.

The best thing about Haverford is the rapport between faculty and students. Because of the academic Honor Code, which makes students responsible for their own decisions when it comes to things like cheating and plagiarism, professors hold a high level of trust and respect for their students. Most people where I live have never heard of Haverford, but people ho have heard of it are impressed. I spend a lot of time in Lunt basement, is our subterrean bohemia where the majority of student performances take place. Bands jam, improv groups improvise. We got brand new speakers this year so it sounds gret, and there's always a keg. Adjacent to the performance area is Lunt Cafe where you can get pizza bagels for $2.50, plus milkshakes, coffee, nachos etc. There was a controversy in the fall over our new President(Steve Emerson)'s statement that he would support a campus-wide outdoor smoking ban (smoking is already banned in most indoor areas). Many student smokers were upset, as well as non-smokers who felt that such a top-down change would go against the "spirit of the community". There is often a lot of talk about the "spirit of the community" in general as well, and people are often criticized for either violating it, or using the phrase, which is not clearly defined but has something to do with equality, acceptance, democracy, openness etc., to attack views which they disagree with. There's no college town but Philly is right down the road. Twenty minute drive if you have a car (can't have one on campus as a freshman) or it's $10 round trip by train. The station is a 5-minute walk from campus. I went to Philly to see a show this year, there's always something going on there if campus life gets too monotonous. Campus social life involves a repeating cycle of lulls and highs of apartment basement parties, Lunt shows, Founders dances (dances at Founders' hall), beer pong parties and keggers.

I think my favorite thing about Haverford is that I feel at home there. I got that vibe from the college when I visited, and my Freshman year confirmed it. Everyone just sort of knows everyone else. Haverford's pretty small, so there are a lot of times and places where the entire student body gathers. We all meet at "Plenary" twice a year where the student body gets together and decides how things will be run, and we all eat (well, most of us) at the one and only dining center (aka "The DC"). Also, most people tend to be involved in a lot of different things, so the student body isn't segmented into exclusive groups. A Haverford community exists, and I enjoy being part of it. All the faces are familiar.

There are a lot of best things about Haverford. The students are really nice, interesting people, and even if people are a bit awkward sometimes, they are generally very well-intentioned. The honor code, which some students say doesn't really work, is really important because it allows a lot more freedom in the structure of learning and of life in general. It isn't necessary to worry about whether someone is going to cheat or steal. Life at Haverford feels very safe. In some ways, one of the best things (for me) is also one of the worst things. That Haverford is so small means that one can find friends in almost any situation, but it also means that if you try to avoid someone (eg. after a hook-up), it's virtually impossible. And Haverford's limited party scene lends itself to a lot of awkward hook-ups.

One of the best things about Haverford is its honor code. We have an academic honor code similar to most schools, however, we also have a social honor code that greatly enhances both our learning and living environments. People are very friendly and genuinely interested in the well-being of other community members. At times Haverford can get a little small, but Philadelphia is so close that it is easy to escape the "Haverbubble" and spend a weekend downtown.

I think that Haverford is great as a small liberal arts college- if you find your niche. Haverford is very small, and you will likely find a little bit of everything, but in most cases it is a very little bit. Most academic departments are small, most clubs and extracurricular activities are fairly small (obviously a few exceptions to this, e.g. a capella groups). I think much of Haverford's impressive academic reputation comes from it's natural sciences and rigorous pre-med program. There are several other departments that stand out, such as the religion department, but many of its other departments are far less impressive (e.g. philosophy, sociology, fine arts...) For this reason it is advantageous that Haverford is part of the consortium with Swarthmore and especially Bryn Mawr. Bryn Mawr offers a lot that Haverford does not, and should be taken advantage of, since it is five minutes away and has frequent buses to and from. The campus is very pretty, and while there is not much of a town, it is a 10-15 minute walk out onto the mainline to get to a few restaurants, drug stores, bank, the train station, etc. Philadelphia is a 20 minute train ride away as well, which is a good option to have even if not very many students take advantage of it. Students generally get a lot of attention from the administration, and often develop close relationships with them, especially when support is needed. Returning to my point that the school is cliquey because of its size, I think that athletic teams definitely have a presence on campus. Boys baseball, lacrosse, and track and girls soccer and basketball are very clear examples of this, but certainly not the only ones. (The large athlete presence may be one reason why this school is not as ultra-liberal as many other small liberal arts colleges. I would call it moderately liberal.) There are definitely clicks throughout the non-athletic student body as well. Often this forms around "customs groups" which are the orientation groups that you live with your freshman year. This probably is pretty indicative of what Haverford is like compared to a larger school, where the people you live with don't usually tend to be your best friends. At Haverford, you kind of have to seize upon what is in front of you, rather than go out and search for who you want to be with or what you want to do. This may be the root of why Haverford is not one of those schools that is universally loved; some people find their place there, some don't, some kind of in between. The dating scene is a fairly good example of how the character of the school is defined by its small size. In general, people either randomly hook up with each other at or after drunken parties and then awkwardly avoid making eye contact with the person for the rest of their time at the school, or become "Haver-married," which essentially means that you spend all of your time with the other person (study, classes, cafeteria, sleep...) because you really cannot avoid them. Usually couples have the same or similar friendship circles, so even if you wanted to go hang out with other friends on a Friday night, your significant other would probably be there. There is usually not much in between these extremes. I asked one of my friends if he would recommend Haverford. He said, "It's better than a state school." It is not the perfect place, but it serves some people well. I would say that you really have to look at what Haverford has and does not have before coming here- and weigh your other options. I just realized I talked about Haverford without talking about the Honor Code. Basically a lot of students come to Haverford partially because of the honor code. It is kind of a big deal to most people, and people have pride in it to varying degrees. It certainly works better at Haverford than it would at other schools because Haverford is small, but I think that for it to actually work, especially in the social honor code, our school would have to be even smaller. I really have not very much of an idea how well it works academically, but we at least have the impression that it works, and that students are upholding it.