Alert: Harvard Yard Closed to the Public
Please note, Harvard Yard gates are currently closed. Entry will only be permitted to those with a Harvard ID via Johnston, Thayer, Widener, Sever and Solomon (Lamont) Gates. Guests are not allowed.
Last Updated: April 25, 2:24pm
Residential Life
Overview
Home at Harvard
At Harvard, you'll meet friends in expansive libraries and historic classrooms. You'll uncover cozy reading nooks, stumble across sun-kissed lawns, and discover the joys and frustrations of roommates and late-night study sessions. As you grow more familiar with the faces and places around you, you'll begin to recognize something else: a feeling of belonging. Make yourself at home.
First-Year Students
Life in the Yard
First-year students live in dorms with shared suites adjacent to Harvard Yard and eat the majority of meals in Annenberg Hall. This is a place of far-ranging conversations where you'll get to know fellow new students. The dorms are grouped into larger clusters called Yards (Crimson, Elm, Ivy and Oak). Here, you'll engage with your peers during the many activities designed for first-year students.
![Harvard Yard in the Fall](/sites/default/files/styles/max_800_x_985/public/2019-06/yard.jpg?itok=rfMsTfjV)
First-Year Living
![Students with Harvard gear](/sites/default/files/styles/billboard_image/public/2019-06/admissions1.jpg?itok=kz5fvWXj)
Dean of Students Office
From student-led social events to campus-wide traditions, the Dean of Students Office is here to enhance your experience.
Upper-Level Students
A House Away from Home
The Residential Community system is one of Harvard's best known traditions. In the second semester of your first year, on Housing Day, you'll receive your sophomore year house affiliation to one of Harvard's 12 Houses. Each House accommodates between 350 and 500 students. Alternatively, you can join the Dudley Community, which serves a small community of undergraduates including Visiting Undergraduate Students, Dudley Co-Op residents, and off-campus students. The Houses and the Dudley Community help create close-knit communities within the broader College. You will be introduced to your unique residential community during Sophomore Orientation.
![Harvard building Eliot House](/sites/default/files/styles/max_800_x_985/public/2019-05/fpo-linderpix-harvard-50248.jpg?itok=tWgeNDAt)
Upper-Level Students
![Waffle with Harvard Shield](/sites/default/files/styles/billboard_image/public/2019-05/waffle.jpg?h=3a8a77de&itok=iK1Y6QWG)
Dining
Meals are the backdrop to some of the College's most rewarding experiences: sharing stories, debating ideas, forming friendships.
House Renewal
House Renewal
Cambridge & Boston
Boston and Cambridge combine New England charm with modern innovation, an impressive culinary scene, and youthful energy. We'll help you make the many opportunities that surround you a part of your residential experience.
![View of a bridge over the Charles river. Harvard campus can be seen in the background.](/sites/default/files/styles/max_800_x_985/public/2019-05/harvard-charles-river-bridge.jpg?itok=o-PSiPtK)