The Houses
For information about housing for the Class of 2026, see First-Year Living.
The House System
The Houses serve as the foundation for the undergraduate experience at Harvard College. Ninety-eight percent of all undergraduates live in one of the twelve residential Houses. Additionally, Dudley Community serves non-residential students who live off-campus and those living in the Dudley Cooperative. Each House accommodates 350-500 students with its own dining hall, common rooms, and facilities for academic, recreational, and cultural activities.
Living and Learning
With the goal of forging a link between learning and living, the House system hosts a diverse assortment of intellectual activities and traditions. In addition to lectures and seminars, each House runs a collection of weekly language and interest tables that provide informal opportunities for students with common interest to meet, exchange ideas, or learn particular skills. Houses are places where learning occurs all the time, whether in the dining hall as students share a meal with faculty and visiting scholars or in House tutorials and seminars taken for degree credit.
Community
The life of the House extends beyond the intellectual. The Houses host robust cultural and social opportunities and are are home to their own film, music, art, and drama resources that range from small-scale jam sessions to full opera productions. Houses encourage physical wellness by fielding a variety of competitive intramural sports teams. Social functions, such as Faculty Dean open houses, formal dances, and coffee hours, provide students an opportunity to relax and interact with members of their House community.
House Websites |
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Faculty Deans
Each Harvard House is under the leadership of Faculty Deans who live in residence. Faculty Deans are responsible for all House staff, tutorial and Senior Common Room appointments. Lending their experience as scholars and academic officers of the College , Faculty Deans help set the tone and culture of the House community.
Faculty Dean Directory
Allston Burr Resident Deans
Each House is served by an Allston Burr Resident Dean who, under the direction of the Dean of Harvard College and the Faculty Deans, is responsible for the well-being of the students in the House. The Allston Burr Resident Dean represents House members at the Administrative Board, is the primary liaison to academic departments on behalf of students, and serves as a key resource for students who encounter personal or academic difficulty. The Allston Burr Resident Dean contributes to the House as a scholar and participates fully in the life of the community.
Allston Burr Resident Dean Directory
House Administrators
The House Administrator oversees all aspects of the House lottery and room assignment process. Questions about housing cancellations and returning forms, in-House room/suite changes, and the InterHouse Transfer process should be directed to the House Administrator. The House Administrator manages the House finances and budget and plans events for the House community.
House Administrator Directory
Academic Coordinators
The Academic Coordinator answers students’ questions on routine academic matters, provides support for pre-professional and fellowship committees and advisers, assists in the preparation of weekly Administrative Board dockets and otherwise implements and maintains office systems and procedures.
Academic Coordinator Directory
Building Managers
The Building Managers in each House is responsible for the physical upkeep of their Houses. Attending to maintenance problems, providing housekeeping items, overseeing storage (where applicable), and managing House property are all under the Building Manager’s purview. Students may submit routine maintenance requests online (requires HarvardKey authentication). Emergency or urgent maintenance needs (i.e. major leak, loss of heat in winter months, power outages, etc.) should be called into the Operations Center at 617-495-5560. The Operations Center is open 24/7.
Building Managers Directory
Dining Managers
The Dining Hall Manager is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the House dining hall. Dining Hall Managers are responsive to student feedback and make every effort to address the specific needs of each House, including dietary needs, preferences, special events and formal dinners.
Dining Services Staff Directory
Tutors
House Tutors, both resident and non-resident, provide counsel and serve as a resource for undergraduates. They are typically graduate students or staff whose primary roles are to provide academic and personal advice to students, as well as to participate in the life of the House. Tutors take initiative in organizing and participating in intellectual, cultural, and extracurricular activities in the House, such as discussion and language tables, intramural sports, drama, music, and art. Tutors often represent their departments and/or fields of study by teaching sections and advising students interested in their fields.
Apply to Be a Tutor
Harvard College does not offer undergraduate housing in the Houses or dorms to married undergraduates or undergraduates with families; however, students who are veterans, married, or have children may be eligible for Harvard-affiliated housing through Harvard University Housing (HUH). Given the leasing period for HUH housing, students are strongly encouraged to make such a request during the spring term (between March 1 and May 1) if they are requesting housing for the following academic year. Requests and inquiries related to this policy should be directed to the Harvard College Housing Office.
Harvard’s House system is one of the most unique features of our undergraduate experience. Ensuring its excellence and vitality in the 21st century is critical to our educational philosophy. Harvard is undertaking a major renewal of the Houses creating a home where students can bring together their academic, social, and personal passions and pursuits. Harvard is far along on this program with the sixth House (of twelve) now in renewal.
House Renewal aims not only to improve conditions through renovation, but also to change how the physical spaces function to meet programmatic and other goals essential to the residential experience at Harvard.
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