Housing

Princeton's residential campus ensures that even in a student body of 5,200 undergraduates, first-year students, sophomores, juniors and seniors develop a sense of home within a tightly knit community. Princeton guarantees on-campus housing for students for all four years. First- and second-year students are required to live on campus, and nearly all juniors and seniors choose to live in on-campus housing. All residential colleges house students from all four class years as well as some graduate students. The residential colleges offer a welcoming environment and a host of social and intellectual opportunities throughout the academic year. Juniors and seniors can take advantage of these opportunities even if they choose not to live in the residential colleges.

Entering first-year students are randomly assigned to a residential college: Butler, Forbes, Mathey, Rockefeller, Whitman or Wilson. First-years typically take on the identity of their college with pride early in the first semester. Each first-year has a junior or senior residential college adviser who is on hand to answer questions and help with the adjustment to college life. Each college has a faculty head of college, faculty fellows, dean, director of studies and a director of student life.

At the end of their sophomore year, students may choose whether to live in one of the residential colleges or remain affiliated with their college but make other living and dining arrangements.

Freshman seminars and writing seminars often meet in residential college classrooms. In addition, residential colleges organize many out of class learning opportunities, such as shared meals with prominent professors, foreign-language discussion tables, film series, topical speakers and trips to the theater, opera and ballet.

Colleges also organize dances, barbecues and movie nights. They compete against each other in intramural sports such as soccer and volleyball. And most importantly, they give every student a home base from which to explore new and exciting opportunities.