# Residential Life

**Source**: https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/why-harvard/residential-life
**Parent**: https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/apply

Video description:

Aerial of Harvard, students in dining hall, and hanging out by Charles River

# Residential Life

## Overview

Lasting Friendships in a Lifelong Community

From your first year living in or around Harvard Yard, to your upper-level years in one of our iconic Houses, you'll feel at home. You will live in a community of students hailing from all fifty states and more than eighty countries, whose diverse backgrounds, life experiences, and perspectives enrich and enliven our campus.

## First-Year Dormitories

Your [first year will be spent in or adjacent to picturesque Harvard Yard](https://dso.college.harvard.edu/life-yard), the historic heart of the University. Through activities specially designed for first-year students, such as Orientation, Housing Day, and more, you will get to know your classmates and the College.

The [Dean of Students Office](https://dso.college.harvard.edu/) creates careful, intentional matches between first-year students. Typically, students live in suites, which include a common room and two to four bedrooms. Students live in a mix of suites, which include a common room and several bedrooms or a double. All first-year students dine in Annenberg Hall, one of Harvard’s most beautiful interior spaces located in the legendary Memorial Hall.

## Dorm Tour Video

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Video description:

Watch as Helen '26 gives a tour of Pforzheimer House

Watch the full dorm tour
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## Upper-Level Houses

One of the most exciting moments of your first year is Housing Day, when you'll learn which of [Harvard's historic Houses](https://dso.college.harvard.edu/houses) you've been assigned to live in for the remainder of your undergraduate experience. Made up of 350 to 500 students, each House serves as your home base throughout your sophomore, junior, and senior years. Houses are led by Faculty Deans—faculty members who live in the Houses with their families. As you share in House meals, extracurriculars, intramural sports, and other activities, you'll learn from the perspectives and experiences of your housemates and develop friendships and connections that endure long after graduation.

## Living at Harvard

Residential Life at Harvard provides the opportunity to develop your own community through shared experiences.

[Learn more about residential life](https://college.harvard.edu/student-life/residential-life)

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## Boston and Cambridge

A ten-minute ride on the nation's first subway system takes you from Harvard to downtown Boston, the quintessential college town, with more than 200,000 students across fifty institutions.

With discounted event tickets and pre-paid museum tuition, Harvard makes exploring Boston easy. Visit world-class institutions like the Museum of Fine Arts, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and the Museum of Science. Enjoy parks and wildlife at Boston Common, the New England Aquarium, and the Franklin Park Zoo. Explore famous neighborhoods such as Beacon Hill and the North End, where you’ll find historic architecture and delicious food. And watch great performances ranging from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Ballet to the Red Sox, Celtics, and Bruins.

Other nearby destinations for day or weekend trips include historic Concord and Walden Pond, Cape Cod, and the White Mountains.

[Learn more about Cambridge & Boston](https://college.harvard.edu/student-life/residential-life/cambridge-boston)

## Take a Virtual Tour

See inside residence halls, athletic facilities, dining halls, libraries, and more on our virtual tour.

[Take our virtual tour](https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/explore-harvard/virtual-tour)

## Related Stories

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- [### Reflecting on My First-Year Dorm

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[Read more stories](https://college.harvard.edu/student-life/student-stories)

## Related Topics

[### Residential Life

Residential Life at Harvard provides the opportunity to develop your own community through shared experiences.](https://college.harvard.edu/student-life/residential-life)

[### Student Life

From the moment first-year students walk into Harvard Yard until they graduate, they are surrounded by people dedicated to making Harvard “home.”](https://college.harvard.edu/student-life)

[### Cambridge & Boston

Harvard students have access to events, museums, music, and more. Explore the opportunities the dynamic cities of Cambridge and Boston have to offer.](https://college.harvard.edu/student-life/residential-life/cambridge-boston)