What Kind of School Haverford College Is
Haverford College is a small, private, nonprofit college focused on the arts and sciences. The system that classifies colleges in the United States—Carnegie—places it in the group of small, highly residential, four-year schools: at least half of its undergraduate students live in housing owned by or affiliated with the institution, and at least 80 out of every 100 attend full time. It also places Haverford among the country's most selective schools for admission.
It is in the town of Haverford, Pennsylvania, in Delaware County, within the Philadelphia metropolitan area. But take note: that does not mean it is in downtown Philadelphia. Its census code places it in a suburb, outside the principal city. If your child were considering living at home, the only way to know whether that is practical is to drive the route on a weekday at the actual time of their classes. The map always lies a little.
The highest level it reports offering is the bachelor's degree. That is institutional information, not a guarantee that the exact major your child is interested in is offered there. One more thing: Haverford College has none of three specific designations—it is not a historically Black college or university, a tribal college or university, or a land-grant institution. Of the 3,012 colleges in this national directory, 138 do carry at least one of those three labels. Haverford's not having them says nothing about which communities it serves or how your child will feel there. Ask about that directly: which cultural centers exist today, which student organizations are active, and, better yet, talk with someone who is already studying there.
Do not rule it out or choose it because of the list price, which you will see later and is high. Ask in writing how much your family would be left paying after scholarships and aid. That is the number that should actually be compared across colleges, not the one in the brochure.
A Small Community, with More Women Than Men
Haverford had 1,424 students enrolled in the official fall count. It is a medium-sized school—neither among the large ones nor the small ones—compared with the other 941 selective private four-year schools that report this same figure. All of those students are undergraduates; there is no graduate enrollment in this count.
Out of every 100 students, 57 are women. As for ethnic composition, 12 out of every 100 undergraduate students are Hispanic or Latino. That is a small minority, although the share is slightly above the midpoint among the group of similar schools used for comparison—without reaching the highest quarter. This comparison has an important limitation: the group is constructed by school type and control, not by state, and that matters here. If this is important in your household, the right question during a visit is not “How many Latino students are there?” but “What is available here for a Latino student?”: a student group, a cultural center, someone in the office who speaks Spanish.
For adult students—those from 25 through 64 years old—the percentage rounds to zero. That does not mean there are none; it means they are almost nonexistent. In short, this is a small, young school made up mostly of students who enroll directly after high school.
A simple reminder that can be easy to forget amid so much data: being large does not mean more options, and being small does not mean more attention for your child in particular. The question should always focus on the specific major, not the entire school.
How the Academic Year Works and How Degrees Are Distributed
Haverford's academic year is organized into semesters: two long terms of about 15 weeks each. The school accepts credit from AP exams, but it does not award credit for life experience and does not enroll high school students in college courses for credit. Saying that it accepts AP does not mean it will award credit for every exam at every score. Ask for the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand.
In a recent year, Haverford awarded 348 bachelor's degrees distributed across 17 families of fields of study. The family that produced the most graduates was social sciences, with 22 out of every 100 degrees—no other field accounted for 30 out of every 100. Its offerings are distributed across fields; this is not a school dominated by a single discipline. But this figure counts degrees awarded in one year, not people or the current catalog of majors. It does not measure quality or what happens after graduation. Before deciding, ask about the exact major your child is interested in: how many students graduated in it, how long they took, and what the full curriculum is like.
Regarding the student-faculty ratio, Haverford reports 8 students for every full-time-equivalent faculty member. This is one of the lowest ratios among 941 similar schools—it is in the bottom quarter, meaning that three out of every four similar schools have a higher ratio. It is a number that sounds good, but by itself it does not measure faculty availability, actual class size, or individual attention. Ask directly how many students are in first-year classes.
The school also reports structured academic opportunities: study abroad, undergraduate research with faculty outside the classroom, and several pathways related to teacher certification. Their being reported confirms that they exist as programs; it says nothing about capacity, cost, or whether they fit what your child wants to study.
How Difficult It Is to Get In
This is where many families begin to feel the pressure, so let us take it slowly and use the exact numbers.
Haverford does not have open admission. It reviews specific components before saying yes. Of the nine considerations covered by this report—not counting standardized tests or legacy status—four are required: the high school record, the personal essay, letters of recommendation, and an English-proficiency exam for anyone who needs one. That means something very concrete for your child: assembling documents is not enough here. They will have to write.
Other components are not required but are considered if you submit them: the high school grade-point average, class rank, the curriculum completed, work experience, and whether a family member attended—the so-called legacy factor. If that does not apply to your family, do not spend energy on it. Spend it on what is within your child's control. The undergraduate application fee is $65.
Now for the figure people ask about most: in the 2023 cycle, Haverford received 6,391 first-time admission applications and offered 825 places. That is 13 out of every 100. Compared with 942 similar selective private schools, it is among those that accept the smallest share: nine out of ten schools in that group accepted a higher percentage of applicants. On the other side of that calculation are 5,566 applicants who did not receive an offer.
Here is something I want to tell you very clearly because it matters: this number says how many places were offered. It says nothing about your child's worth. A low percentage does not make the school better, and a high one does not make it worse. It measures supply against demand, nothing more. What I do recommend is that your child's list include schools on both sides—some as selective as this one and at least one that accepts most people who apply.
Of those who did receive a yes, only 45 out of every 100 ultimately enrolled at Haverford. The other 55 had an offer and did not accept it—that does not tell us whether they went to another school or why. This is a relatively high percentage compared with similar schools. But it does not measure quality or satisfaction either: when your child's letters arrive, what matters is putting each offer side by side and comparing net price, major, and distance, not this number.
Regarding exams, Haverford is test optional. The SAT and ACT are not required; if your child submits them, they are considered, and if your child does not, the application remains valid just the same. Among those who enrolled, 40 out of every 100 submitted SAT scores—a high proportion compared with similar schools. Among them, the middle half scored between 710 and 760 in reading and writing, and between 720 and 780 in mathematics. But these ranges describe those who enrolled and submitted scores, not all applicants. That 710 is not a minimum that must be reached, and that 760 does not guarantee anything either.
As for transfers, very few students leave Haverford before finishing. Of the cohort that entered in 2017, only 5 out of every 100 appear as having transferred to another school within the expected period. That is a low proportion compared with similar schools. Conversely, very few students arrive as transfers: only 11 in the most recent fall count. If your child were to transfer to Haverford, this figure says nothing about how many credits would be accepted—that should be requested in writing, with the exact course list in hand, before moving anyone.
The List Price, Plain and Simple
Here is the big number, the one that frightens people: for the 2023–24 school year, the total cost of attendance at Haverford—for a first-time, full-time student living on campus—was $90,382. That amount is the same whether the student is from Pennsylvania or any other state because this is a private school.
Broken down, it included $68,300 in tuition and fees, $18,880 for on-campus housing and food, and $1,240 for books and supplies. The rest is an estimate of personal expenses prepared by the financial aid office itself—transportation, laundry, and that sort of thing.
Compared with 888 similar schools, this cost of attendance ranks among the highest in the group. It is the list price, before any aid. It is not the bill your family will pay. Complete the FAFSA, ask for the aid letter in writing, and until you have it in your hands, you will not know what this school actually costs for your family.
The Real Price: This Is Where the Story Changes Completely
At Haverford College, among 15 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $3,600. Among 21 students in the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $15,500; among 53 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $44,137. For dependent students, the income band combines their parents' income and their own.
There is a difference of $40,537 between the average for the lowest-income band, which included 15 students, and the average for the highest-income band, which included 53 students. These are group averages, not a prediction of your family's price. Among first-year students who received any scholarship, the average was $22,828.
Among the 937 schools of the same type and control included in this census that reported this figure with the same time coverage, Haverford ranks in the least expensive quarter for lower-income families after scholarships are subtracted. That does not mean it will be inexpensive for your family. It is a figure that carries weight when you put together the list of schools to apply to.
Because the price changes so much from one income band to another, correctly identifying yours comes first. The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at public institutions, they use the in-state or in-district rate. The overall average after scholarships, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants. The aid letter that comes to you is what controls.
Scholarships, Pell, and Loans: Where the Money Appears
At Haverford, 43 out of every 100 degree-seeking students received a scholarship or grant that does not have to be repaid. The other 57 received none of that aid. Compared with similar schools, Haverford ranks in the quarter where scholarships reach fewer students—although among those who did receive one, the annual average was $60,617, a considerable amount. Only 14 out of every 100 students received Pell, the federal aid for low-income families.
Do not assume that a scholarship will arrive. Before applying, ask for the list of available scholarships, who qualifies, and the deadlines. And when your child's letter arrives, a high average among those who received aid does not mean your child's award will be that large. What matters when comparing schools is how much your family would have to pay out of pocket, not the size of the discount on paper.
Now for the comparatively good news: only 8 out of every 100 Haverford undergraduate students had a federal student loan in the reported year. That is very few—fewer than one in ten—and compared with 942 similar schools, students here rely on federal loans less than at almost all of them. Among those who did borrow, the average amount for the year was $5,187.
But we need to be honest about this number: the fact that most students did not take out a federal loan does not tell us how everyone else managed. There may have been scholarships, work, family savings, or another kind of debt that this report does not record. And that average of $5,187 covers only one year and only federal loans in the student's name—it does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes sign for, bank debt, or credit cards. It is not the total debt someone has upon graduating.
Haverford also offers an installment tuition payment plan as an additional mechanism for managing costs over the course of the year.
Campus Life, Athletics, and Available Support
Haverford has institution-controlled housing, but it does not require all first-time students to live there—that rules out a universal requirement, although it does not say whether a particular program might require it. It also offers meal plans, with a fixed number of meals per week in the largest plan. Its reported maximum housing capacity is 1,423 students. The existence of a room does not guarantee an available bed for your child: ask in writing for the year's rate, the housing application deadline, and whether housing is guaranteed or there is a waiting list.
Regarding ROTC, Haverford reported that an opportunity is available, and the only branch marked in writing is Air Force. Army and Navy are not marked. If your child is interested in a different branch, it is not confirmed in this report—that does not mean it is impossible; it means you need to ask directly, including whether the program takes place on this campus or another one.
In athletics, Haverford competes at the intercollegiate level and is affiliated with the NCAA. Membership is reported for basketball, baseball, and cross-country or track and field, although this does not confirm every current team or whether athletic scholarships are offered. If athletics matter in your child's decision, write directly to the coach: ask whether there is room on the team, which division it competes in, and whether that sport awards scholarships. Get the answers in writing.
Haverford does not offer distance education—not a single course, either undergraduate or graduate. If your child works or cares for someone at home, their schedule would have to fit entirely in person.
The library operates with hired staff, has physical and digital collections, and participates in interlibrary lending. That is a confirmed operational baseline, not a guarantee that it has specific databases for your child's major—ask about those by the name of the major. The institution also reports combined academic and career counseling services, employment services for current students, placement services for those completing their programs, and a webpage of services for people with disabilities.
If Your Child Gets In, How Likely Are They to Stay and Graduate?
For many families, this is the question that matters most after money. And Haverford's numbers here are strong.
Of the cohort that entered in the fall of 2022, 94 out of every 100 were still enrolled or had already graduated by the following year. This is one of the highest retention rates among 930 similar schools—nine out of ten schools in that group retained an equal or smaller proportion. Still, this figure combines two different groups: those who remain enrolled and those who have already graduated. We do not know what happened to the 23 students who did not meet the criterion.
Regarding graduation, among those who entered full time in 2017 without having previously attended another college, 89 out of every 100 graduated within six years—312 out of 349 students. By four years, the figure was already 82 out of every 100, just 7 points lower. Compared with 920 similar schools, Haverford is among those with the highest graduation rates.
And after eight years, counting all degree- or certificate-seeking students—including those who arrived with previous college experience—90 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from this school. Among students with Pell Grants, the figure was 92 out of every 100, practically the same as for everyone else. Compared with 935 similar schools, Haverford is also among those with the highest graduation rates by this measure.
These figures are high and consistent across all three ways of measuring the outcome. But a high percentage is not a promise for your child in particular: it describes what happened to an earlier cohort at that school at that time. What is within your family's control is making sure your child starts with their credits in order, knows who their adviser is from the first semester, and knows when to register for the courses required by the major.
Putting the Pieces Together
You now know, in as much depth as the official data allow, one central piece of the decision: what kind of school Haverford College is, how selective it is, what it costs on paper and what it may actually cost based on your family's income, how much aid arrives and who receives it, and how likely a student is—based on earlier cohorts—to make it all the way to a degree.
This piece does not tell you whether Haverford is the right school for your child. That depends on two other things only your family can see: what your child wants to study and what they have built so far, and what your family can and is willing to pay once you have the aid letter in hand. A real plan grows out of those three pieces together.
Your child's role is to write the essay, maintain their grades, and explore whether this major and this place make sense for them. Your role is the FAFSA, the deadlines, comparing the aid letter with those from other schools, and asking the questions these data cannot answer on their own. Neither of you travels the entire path alone.
Source note: The information in this article comes from data reported by Haverford College to the United States Department of Education's IPEDS system, corresponding primarily to the 2022-23 and 2023-24 cycles, as indicated in each section. Best College Aid does not represent Haverford College or the United States government, and this piece does not constitute personalized admission advice.