<p>I was just accepted to Haverford and I'm excited about going to a small liberal arts school. Is Haverford too small though? Do any current students feel bored or trapped on campus? I understand that Philly is at your fingertips, but do students actually go into the city much? Side note: any free tickets to games, plays, exhibits, etc. in Philly?</p>
<p>Sup Sky, Haverford here.</p>
<p>I went from a high school of like 3000 kids to Haverford. 'Twas quite the shock to me, and I expected to stop meeting new people after like a month. But I was dead wrong, and find myself meeting new people everyday still. There is a crucial difference between Haverford and other small LACs that helps buffer and prevent the feeling of isolation and boredom from the small-feel. Haverford’s honor code provides an ethos of friendly/communal relations with most-all students on campus, so there is less social fragmentation among haverford students. what this means is that groups don’t just stick to themselves exclusively (sports teams, clubs etc), they branch out more routinely, which means that you meet more people. To break it down into ratios: let’s say with a typical LAC, you’d get 1700 students, and you’d meet maybe 300 of them eventually (idk exactly…) at Haverford, you get 1200 students but you meet maybe 500 of them eventually, or more. </p>
<p>Beyond that, lots of people go into Philly all the time. Some don’t though. Most kids branch out to Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore though, with a bit of kids taking classes at Penn. It is very easy to stay in Haverford’s beautiful and cool bubble, but it’s just as easy to get away from it. </p>
<p>And yes, you can get free tickets into Philly from Haverford, and FAB (Fords against Boredom) funds trips into Philly for sports games, plays, tons of stuff, as well as on-campus stuff.</p>
<p>I have a friend who transferred from Haverford. My understanding is that you will either love it there or absolutely hate it. Most people seem to speak highly of the school, but from what I have gathered it, there are a lot of weird (“quirky”) people who go there.</p>
<p>My friend also said that not many people venture outside the campus, but that one of the best things about Haverford is that the administration really tries to get you to explore Philly - free tickets to sports events, plays, etc.</p>
<p>But, yes, Haverford can be stifling to some people. I think you should have known that when you applied to a school in the suburbs with roughly a 1000 people…</p>
<p>No one can tell you if any college is the right size for you as it’s all relative. </p>
<p>Although HC is 1150 students, it is also in a tight consortium with BMC so provides academic and social resources of a much larger school. Also, it depends on how you interact with others. If you feel content seeing someone in passing and superficially saying “hi” to them casually, HC may be too stifling as you will recognize everyone’s face after a year or 2. If you are the type of person who searches out and gets out of your comfort zone to meet new people and people who may be different than you, no college will be stifling. Not only are there 300 students in your class from around the country and globe for you to get to know, but there are also students in the upper classes as well as 310 new students each year as well. Can you really get to know all these people in 4 short years while also juggling the heavy coursework you will have?</p>