How does the Harvard housing system work?

First-Year students live in one of the seventeen dormitories located in and around Harvard Yard. Rooms are assigned based on a brief survey sent to admitted students. The survey asks questions like “How many roommates do you want?”, “How comfortable are you with noise?”, and “What type of music do you listen to?”. After the first year, the majority of students move into one of the twelve residential Houses. Houses are assigned in March of a student’s first year. Rather than randomly assigning individual students to houses and scattering close friends, students can assemble into “blocking groups” of no greater than 8 students and each group is randomly assigned to a House. If 8 friends aren’t enough, two blocking groups can link themselves in the lottery. Linked groups will not be assigned the same House but are guaranteed to be assigned the same Neighborhood (e.g. The Quad).