Colleges Haverford College

Haverford College www.haverford.edu

Haverford College is a private liberal arts college that was founded in 1833. It sits on a serene 216-acre campus in an affluent suburban neighborhood, adjacent to the Haverford School, the Merion Golf Club, and the Merion Cricket Club, in Haverford, Pennsylvania just outside Philadelphia. The campus is highlighted by award-winning Quaker Colonial Revival styled architecture and landscaping, more than 50 academic, athletic, and residential buildings, and a nationally recognized arboretum with 400 species of trees and shrubs. There is also a 3.5-acre duck pond, gardens, and wooded areas. Haverford has more than 145 organizations that students can get involved with on campus. It is a residential college, and around 98 percent of students live in one of the residence halls, campus apartments, or houses. Social and academic life is governed by an honor code and influenced by Quaker philosophy.

Academics

Haverford College offers Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in more than 30 majors across humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences disciplines. It is a member of the Tri-College Consortium, which includes Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore colleges, as well as the Quaker Consortium, which includes those schools as well as the University of Pennsylvania. Its rigorous academic program focuses on individual growth, intellectual exploration, and pushing the boundaries of each discipline. Most classes are taught seminar style with an emphasis on discussion and debate. Haverford students are free to take classes at Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore Colleges, and UPenn offers a 4+1 engineering program that grants a BS from Haverford and a Master’s from Penn in just five years. The student-faculty ratio at Haverford is 9:1, and the school has 72% of its classes with fewer than 20 students. Popular majors include Social Sciences, Biology, and Psychology.

Special Highlights

Trust. Concern. Respect. Campus culture engenders an immediate sense of colleagueship between students and faculty and creates a relaxed, personal atmosphere. A philosophy of trust, concern, and respect for every individual guides the community and serves as the basis of our completely student-governed honor code, allowing students the agency to self-schedule unproctored exams, among other stress-reducing benefits. In addition to governing the honor code, students serve on hiring committees, manage budgets, and run more than 145 clubs and organizations.

KINSC. The Marian E. Koshland Integrated Natural Sciences Center (KINSC) catalyzes and facilitates programs that maintain Haverford’s position at the leading edge of academic excellence in the sciences. The KINSC is unique among Haverford’s three academic centers in that it is both a building and a program. The 185,000 square-foot building is the epicenter of natural science research. It was constructed to facilitate sharing of instruments, methodology, and expertise across disciplines and to contribute to cooperative problem solving and investigation.

School Mission & Unique Qualities

Haverford College offers students better learning for broader impact as scholars, creators, citizens, and practitioners. Committed to critical inquiry and ethical practice in local and global settings, we foster an inclusive intellectual learning community to prepare students for lives of integrity, ambition, and purpose. The mission of the Haverford College Arboretum is to steward the College’s historic tree collection, Maintaining the health, diversity, and history to honor the original 1834 landscape design, while our educational programming ensures continued engagement with this unique and treasured asset. The C. Christopher Morris Cricket Library and Collection houses a large collection of cricket books, photos, and memorabilia. Haverford offers a number of study abroad options through its Office of International Academic Programs, including programs designed specifically for pre-med students, science, and math majors.

Student Reviews…

“Haverford is an incredibly liberal arts-oriented college. Academics are highly focused on students, professors are caring and very approachable, and students respect and care for each other. Campus is scenic, quiet, and has an excellent suburban location.”