r/Haverford

A Guide to Residential Life at Haverford

When arriving at Haverford, I wanted to know as much about the dorms as possible. Thus, I thought this might be helpful for incoming students or students considering Haverford! If I got anything incorrect, please feel free to correct me or share your experience. I'm going mainly off of anecdotes from friends, the residential website, and I've been in all the dorms.

Freshman dorms (as of 2025-2026):

Tritton:

Tritton is all single dorms. It has four quadrants of 20 people who all have their own singles. The layout is kind of like a hotel; you walk down the halls and there are rooms to one side. Each group of 20 shares a common room (which has a big TV, couches, and a kitchenette), two bathrooms (4 showers and 6 stalls total), and a laundry room (two washers and two dryers). Tritton is generally regarded as one of the quieter dorms on campus and was built in 2012, so along with its identical twin Kim, are generally considered the nicest dorms on campus. Of all the dorms (including apartments), the bathroom situation is definitely the nicest. It's located directly across from the campus center and The Coop and a 3 minute walk from the apartments.

Jones:

Jones is majority singles but also has some doubles. Due to the college slightly over enrolling over the last few years, what once were common rooms were converted into doubles. The layout consists of 4 single rooms and a double room that share a hallway and bathroom (which consists of two showers and a few stalls). From what I've seen, these showers are abnormally large lol. There is one common space in the basement which consists of a couch, foosball, and a TV. It also houses the Jewish Student Union in the basement. It's located right next to the other North Dorms, Lunt and Comfort, and is very close to the dining center and blue bus stops. From what I heard, Jones is generally a quieter dorm experience too. The main downside to living in Jones is the lack of common space, as there are no more common rooms besides the communal one in the basement.

Gummere:

Gummere houses the most freshman of all the dorms. It is all singles and has an infamously odd orientation. With a few exceptions, each hall consists of two sets of A,B,C, and D orientation rooms which vary in size. Most halls have a common room, but weirdly, some do not. Gum (as many call it) is considered to be the most social hall. Most people who indicate that they are extroverted end up here. There are also pregames and (rarely) parties hosted in Gum basement. The biggest downside to living in Gum is definitely the bathrooms. Compared to those in Tritton, for example, they are definitely outdated and can use some serious renovations. It is located pretty central on campus and is placed close to the track, the field house, and the Hall building.

Barclay:

Probably the weirdest orientation of the four options, Barclay has singles, doubles, and triples. There are differing orientations; for instance, my friend had a single and shared a common room with one other suite mate. These were furnished but did not come with a TV. However, the first floor of Barc has a pretty big common space/lounge area on top of this orientation. Barclay houses some non-freshman as well. They are getting rid of carpeting this summer, so it will be hardwood floors (which was the main complaint that I'd heard from residents here). One downside to Barc includes that the building is really old, so there are a good amount of defects in the building (broken windows, AC units, etc). The best thing about Barc is definitely the location, it's right on Founders Green and is essentially exactly in the center of campus.

Non-Freshman Dorms:

Lunt & Comfort:

Nearly identical layout to Jones. Lunt has a basement that hosts a good amount of parties throughout the year. This used to be home to "Lunt Cafe," which closed around 2014. There is also Lunt lounge on the first floor which makes up for the lack of common spaces caused by the conversion of common rooms into doubles/RSL rooms. A lot of sophomores end up here as the housing lottery makes it hard to get a single and most upperclassmen who don't opt into group housing take Kim first. In the housing lottery (only applicable for non-freshman), you can apply as a group of 6 to either of these dorms and take up a "suite," which consists of four singles and a double room.

Kim Hall:

Mirror image of Tritton. Very highly-coveted in the housing lottery, making it very hard to get into as a sophomore. Often the dorm where individuals who have living accommodations reside as it is the most accessible (given its modernity). Similarly to Tritton, it has a reputation of being one of the quieter dorm experiences on campus. There is no group housing here.

HCA (Haverford Apartments):

Located on the southernmost end of campus, the apartments house a lot of students at Haverford. While a bit outdated (the college has plans to knock them down in coming years), the interior is actually quite nice. You can apply to the apartments in groups of 2,3, or join an existing community (see the residential website for more information on these). Apts 19 (lacrosse) and 22 (soccer) host a LOT of the parties throughout the year. The biggest upside to living in the apartments is that you can opt out of the meal plan. Given these are real apartments, they have a full kitchen so you can make your own food. The biggest downside is the location. It's about a 15-16 minute walk to the other side of campus, and in the dead of winter, this can be a pain.

Leeds Hall:

Leeds Hall consists of mainly groups of 5 single rooms that share a bathroom (one shower, one stall) and a common space. Along with Lloyd, it is one of the most popular group housing options and is quite hard to get unless you apply with a group of majority upperclassman (although 2 of the suites last year were fully sophomores, so there's a chance you can get it as a sophomore). There is also a section of Leeds that are traditional single dorms but don't qualify as group housing, but these are nearly impossible to get if you don't have accommodations or aren't a senior. It is located near Hall building, the Library, and is quite close to the dining center.

Lloyd Hall:

Lloyd Hall consists of mainly groups of 6 single rooms that share two bathrooms (two stalls, one shower), and a very large common space. It is the most popular group housing option, so most groups are predominantly juniors and seniors. It is located right next to the dining center on the northernmost side of campus. It is virtually impossible to get Lloyd as a group of all sophomores (most opt for Lunt, Comfort, or Leeds in groups of 5 or 6 instead, or live in the apartments).

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u/Strange-Wafer-2562 — 1 day ago
▲ 21 r/Haverford+1 crossposts

Haverford waitlist - email update

My daughter is WL and she received email from Haverford. Did anyone else got it? Is this a-good sign or ….!?

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u/Fair_Bug_1236 — 9 days ago

Vanderbilt vs Haverford for pre-med

Hi! I'm committed to Haverford (and I love this school), but I just got off the Vanderbilt waitlist and only have two more days to decide. Any personal experiences, thoughts, or comments would be super helpful and appreciated!!!

I’m interested in neuroscience on the pre-med track, so Haverford’s 95% acceptance rate to med school, access to professors, and the close pre-med advising sound appealing. I feel like opportunities to do research are easier to obtain due to the invested faculty and not having to compete so much than at Vanderbilt (please correct me if I’m wrong). I also went to the fly-in program, and I really liked the cozy, friendly, non-stress environment. Although I’m not so sure if I want to be in such a small setting, I feel like I can genuinely be happy at Haverford, feel supported, and find my people. Haverford seems really inclusive and welcome to diversity (I’m Asian and from the Northeast). That said, Haverford is less well-known and a bit more expensive than Vanderbilt by a few thousand for me.

On the other hand, Vanderbilt has great resources and more opportunities for research and experience, vibrant social life, and urban location that I wouldn’t want to miss out on. As a pre-med student, I’d really benefit from the close proximity to VUMC and name recognition from med schools. Vanderbilt also doesn’t expect me to take loans or do work study. I heard it’s really hard there though, especially with the weed-out courses. Vanderbilt is probably a bit more stressful/competitive and has less pre-med advising/support than Haverford as the med school acceptance rate was 68%, and I don’t know if I would find my place at Vanderbilt.

How is being pre-med at Haverford? Is advising good? Can Haverford students get as much resources and opportunities from Philadelphia and other surrounding areas as students at Vanderbilt from VUMC? Would Haverford give me a good chance at gaining admission to top 20 medical schools?

Again, I’d greatly appreciate any opinions or experiences!! I was also waitlisted from Case Western, so any opinion on that would be tremendously helpful as well even though I’m not really considering it. Thanks so much for your time!

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u/Available_Young_5118 — 12 days ago

transfer students... is it worth it?

hi! i just got my acceptance to haverford as an incoming transfer sophomore for fall 2026 & while not completely out of my family's budget, it is very pricey and i was wondering if it would be worth it... can any current students and/or transfer students let me know how they like the school and how it's set them up post-grad?

for some context, i'm a girl, math major, and im currently at a big 10 school. a big issue i had at my current school was the lack of community and help from advisors & professors, which are things i'd really emphasize at my next institution.

thank you everyone!!

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u/Conscious-Pop3307 — 13 days ago