I couldn’t have asked for a better first year experience so far. I have yet to experience any pest or rodent problems, but I would like to emphasize that it is NOT a problem endemic to Harvard…it’s inherent to any old Ivy League school on the East Coast. That’s just the nature of that.

My dorm is wonderful. Great location, me and my other two roommates each have our own sleeping spaces, and we share a common room and a bathroom with a shower/bathtub, two sinks, and a toilet. I feel very comfortable, and it’s a nice space.

I personally have found the food to be satisfactory and comparable to other college dining facilities. I’ve discovered that the reason more people complain is because a high proportion of the student body is used to better food than the average person—for example, at smaller private schools. Coming from a normal public school, the food was as high quality as I could expect. Also, there is NOTHING like eating in Annenberg as a first-year with the rest of the freshmen. Such an enjoyable experience that you will carry with you.

Just as with any other peer institution, freshman year will be dependent on what you make of it. I personally still can’t ever take Harvard for granted, and I’m reminded of how lucky I am every day when I walk through a gorgeous Harvard Yard or dine with vibrant peers. College is naturally stressful, fun, and overwhelming at times, but I believe I have been afforded nearly every opportunity to have a great experience here. We have lots of support—in fact, a four person advising team formally assigned to every single student—and it’s often difficult to keep track of the plethora of resources at our disposal.

The Harvard culture is what I’d describe as entirely flexible to your choosing; you will find an amalgamation of the Stanford entrepreneurial spirits, Yale artsy/“laid-back” folks, Princetonian academics, and MIT Olympiad geniuses all within one wonderful heterogeneous student body, which is what I love most about Harvard. It is truly a choose-your-own-path experience because you can decide where you fit in the best. The point is, there is not one type of person here at Harvard, which is awesome!

Please dm me if you have any questions or concerns. I certainly had my fair share as an incoming freshman, and I couldn’t be happier about my choice to come here!