Haverford College: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Lancaster, Pennsylvania · Private nonprofit · Selective · CDS 2024-2025
Haverford College is a private institution located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with a selective admissions profile. For the most recent reporting cycle, Haverford College admits between a quarter and half of applicants, with an overall admission rate of 32%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT around 1394. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $39,061 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether Haverford College is realistic for their teenager, the most useful planning step is comparing your child's current GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against these admitted-student ranges — not the headline acceptance rate alone.
What GPA does my child need for Haverford College?
Admitted students at Haverford College typically present unweighted GPAs in the 3.6–3.9 range with several honors or AP courses. Parents tracking their child's GPA toward this tier of school can use Solyo's free calculator to see weighted, unweighted, and college-recalculated numbers side by side.
What does Haverford College weight in admissions?
Haverford College reports the following factor importance in its Common Data Set (2024-2025). These are the criteria the admissions committee weighs when reviewing applications.
- • Rigor of secondary school record
- • Class rank
- • Academic GPA
- • Character/personal qualities
- • Standardized test scores
- • Application essay
- • Recommendations
- • Interview
- • Extracurricular activities
- • Talent/ability
- • Volunteer work
- • Alumni/ae relation
- • Geographical residence
- • Work experience
- • Level of applicant's interest
- • First generation status
- • State residency
- • Religious affiliation/commitment
SAT and ACT scores Haverford College typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 640–730, with an EBRW midpoint near —. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 29–32. A score at or above this school's 75th percentile materially improves your child's odds, particularly when paired with a rigorous course load.
| 25th percentile | 1330 |
| 50th percentile | 1380 |
| 75th percentile | 1430 |
| % submitting SAT | 25% |
| 25th percentile | 30 |
| 50th percentile | 32 |
| 75th percentile | 33 |
| % submitting ACT | 9% |
- • Test-optional: Standardized test scores are not required, but may be submitted and considered.
- • Policy detail: Considered if submitted
Where admitted students ranked in their high school class
Class rank distribution gives parents a clear sense of how academically dominant a typical admitted student was within their own high school cohort — often a more meaningful signal than absolute GPA.
| Top 10% of class | 50% |
| Top 25% of class | % |
| Top 50% of class | 97% |
| % submitting class rank | 23% |
How much does Haverford College actually cost?
Published tuition is $68,380 for in-state students and $68,380 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $15,568 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $39,061 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 17% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
| In-state tuition | $70,566 |
| Room and board | — |
| Average net price (after aid) | $39,061 |
| Application fee | $62 (waivers available) |
Application deadlines and early decision data for Haverford College
| Regular deadline | January 6 |
| Notification date | April 1 |
| Reply deadline | May 1 |
| Offers Early Decision | Yes |
| ED deadline | November 15 |
| ED acceptance rate | 28% |
Will my child graduate from Haverford College?
Retention and graduation rates are the most overlooked numbers in college planning, but they predict actual outcomes far better than acceptance rate. They tell you whether admitted students stay and finish on time.
Other colleges in Pennsylvania parents ask about
- University of Pennsylvania6% acceptance
- Carnegie Mellon University54% acceptance
- Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus50% acceptance
- Lehigh University78% acceptance
- Drexel University11% acceptance
- University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus32% acceptance
- Temple University79% acceptance
- Villanova University83% acceptance
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like Haverford College
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like Haverford College recalculate it, and ask an AI college counselor specific questions about their teen's odds. The platform is built for parents — not students — and turns what's usually a fragmented planning process into a single dashboard.
Common questions parents ask about Haverford College
What GPA do I need for Haverford College?
Admitted students at Haverford College typically present unweighted GPAs in the 3.6–3.9 range with several honors or AP courses.
What SAT or ACT score does Haverford College typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 640–730, with an EBRW midpoint near —. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 29–32.
How much does Haverford College actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Haverford College after grants and scholarships is $39,061 per year. That figure is more useful for budgeting than the published sticker price, because it reflects what families actually pay after aid is applied.
Is Haverford College realistic for my child?
Compare your teen's current unweighted GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against the ranges above. If both numbers fall inside the school's middle-50, Haverford College is a target school. If both fall below the 25th-percentile mark, treat it as a reach and balance the application list accordingly.
Data sourced from the 2024-2025 Common Data Set submitted by Haverford College, and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Solyo extracts admissions data from official Common Data Set publications and refreshes it annually.