The Haverford Workload

Hi! I’m a rising senior whose considering applying to Haverford this year, but I’m hesitant because of what I’ve seen in college books and hearing frequent stereotypes about the college. I’ve seen tons of pieces saying that students at Haverford are so swamped with work that they barely have time to relax beyond their other school organizations. I’m aware that a college as good as Haverford will be challenging, but I haven’t seen any other similar school have so much written about the lack of free personal time. Is this just a stereotype/exaggeration or is this truly accurate to the college?

Funny, I have never heard this about Haverford, but often hear it about Swarthmore. I know that about 4 years sgo, when we were starting the college search, Haverford 's students had been ranked “happiest” in the country.

My kid didn’t seriously consider either, btw, but they are popular destinations from his school and the kids choosing each seem to confirm the stereotypes. All of the kids are happy with their choices, so nobody seems to be working against their will. Your best bet is to visit for a day and talk to current students.

My son seems busy during the school year but does not complain that his workload is excessive. He seems to have time to have some fun on the weekends.

Yeah @gardenstategal that’s what I heard about Swarthmore. OP the Fiske Guide rates Education and Quality of life high…but from some of the revews it sounds like the food is just so-so.

Parent of Haverford STEM major and student-athlete. Haverford is challenging but reasonable overall. Like anything in life, you get out what you put in. Perceived workload can be a result of many factors; here’s a few to consider when making a decision as to where to spend your undergraduate years:

School culture: There are schools with long-established reputations as academic meat grinders: Harvey Mudd, UChicago, and Carnegie Mellon readily come to mind. Great schools, but definitely for everybody. Both Haverford and Swarthmore are challenging and take great pains to ensure admitted students are capable of thriving in their respective environments. Swarthmore’s culture tends to be more overtly competitive, whereas almost nobody at Haverford talks about GPA and the academic support structure is very accessible.

Major: As at any school, choose your major choose your fate. STEM/quantitative majors typically require lots of day-to-day work whereas qualitative majors (e.g., humanities, etc.) tend to require longitudinal projects such as papers; daily reading is common and class participation is important. STEM majors with a lot of lab requirements tend to have less flexibility to do such things as study abroad. Haverford students can major in a discipline offered at Bryn Mawr not available at Haverford (such as Russian or geology) and vice versa; the general perception is that classes at Bryn Mawr are less rigorous. Swarthmore students cannot major through Bryn Mawr.

Academic fit: Just because you get in somewhere doesn’t mean it’s the right place for you. Really take a hard look at your academic credentials and try to be as objective as possible when comparing them with the profile of a school’s most recently admitted class.For example, if your math SAT score isn’t north of 750, you might struggle to keep up with the rest of the class at MIT or Harvey Mudd. Likewise, English majors at Kenyon tend to be well-read, highly proficient writers, and have the test scores to match. Getting in to a top school only to struggle just to keep up will ultimately result in a miserable experience. What classes did you take in high school? Most Haverford students took the most challenging classes possible while in high school. You probably want SATs 1400+ and ACT of 33+ to be competitive; students have gotten in with lower scores and have been rejected with higher ones.

Community fit: Haverford is very concerned with “fit.” The admissions committee places a lot of weight on getting to know applicants through their interviews and essays. Interviews are not required but you are only hurting yourself if you don’t have one. You will need to write really good essays that reveals who you are to the committee. Haverford typically requires supplemental essays for the Common App.

Extracurriculars: Whether you play sports, have a job, do a lot of stuff in the community, party your brains out, or nothing at all, how you manage your free time will impact your ability to meet your academic obligations. Most Haverford students are involved in some club or other structured activity, and approx 40% play an intercollegiate sport. Time management is a critical skill to have if one wants to be successful at Haverford or any selective school.

Best of luck. Be sure to visit any school you plan to apply to if possible.

P.S. The food isn’t worthy of a Michelin star, but my kid said it was ok; there are a lot of great places just off campus.