The College extended room party hours to 2 a.m. yesterday, although most partygoers may not be able to take advantage of the privilege for a couple more weeks.

The decision by Dean of the College Benedict H. Gross ’71 means that House Masters, who approved a trial extension Feb. 5, can begin implementing the later party curfew as early as this weekend.

“A lot of people felt that there wasn’t enough of a social life on campus, and that they’d make a last call in bars or in finals clubs,” Associate Dean of the College Thomas A. Dingman ’67 said. “We hope we’ve created an incentive to stay in Harvard buildings.”

Cabot, Pforzheimer, Kirkland, Lowell and Eliot houses will allow parties to run until 2 a.m. beginning this weekend, while Currier, Winthrop, Adams and Quincy will implement the curfew at a later date. Officials from the other three Houses could not be reached for comment last night.

Dingman said this spring will serve as a trial period for the longer hours and that the masters will meet to re-evaluate the extension at the end of the semester.

“Please remember that this is an experiment, of which the neighbors are wary,” wrote Cabot House Master Jay Harris in an e-mail to the House announcing the change. “The 2 a.m. curfew will only remain in place if all of you remember that this is a residential neighborhood, and behave accordingly.”

Although Harvard University Police Department spokesperson Steven G. Catalano said the later curfew would not affect police officer shifts, Dingman said students returning late from parties could take advantage of extended night shuttle hours and the new escort system.

House Masters and senior tutors said they will need to convene with their resident tutors to determine the room party policy for each House, and for some Houses this will likely take a few weeks.

“I’m basically on-board with the experiment as an experiment,” Currier House Co-Master Joseph L. Badaracco said. “If students conduct themselves responsibly this could be extended beyond the spring.”

But he said that Currier would not implement the new policy immediately.

“Before we give a final go-ahead at Currier we want to hear what our tutors think,” he said.

Adams House Senior Tutor Michael Rodriguez said that Adams has not decided when to start permitting the new curfew, while Quincy Senior Tutor Maria Trumpler said that since party forms for the weekend had already been signed, it is too late to implement the extension.

Undergraduate Council President Matt W. Mahan ’05 said that the decision marked a shift in the attitude of University Hall toward the social scene at Harvard.

“The point is that now they want to know what is good about social life on campus and what could be better, which shows a real willingness to change,” he said. “In the past, the College has conflated extracurriculars with social life. You just can’t do that.”

Mahan said that the council proposal to delay the shutdown time an extra hour began with a 2001 report by Brian R. Smith ’02, a former council member who conducted a survey of 300 undergraduates, and found that 91 percent favored a one-hour extension of party hours.

The study showed that students did not typically go to bed on a Friday or Saturday until 3 a.m.

“Most parties at Harvard really only get underway at around 11 p.m.,” Mahan said. “We’re roughly adding a third to what we already have. Now that’s substantial.”

Mahan led a Committee on House Life subcommittee of three other students, three senior tutors and an assistant to the Masters to revise and standardize the party request form across Houses.

“I’m really impressed with the student leadership on this issue,” Dingman said. “The subcommittee that revised the party form has shown a real maturity for what some of the problems might be.”

The party form consists of a list of regulations, a registration form—which requests the signature of a residential tutor as well as the senior tutor—and a list of tips for being a good host.

These latter strategies include notifying dorm neighbors about a party and providing a phone number that they can call before filing a complaint with HUPD.

“The separate strategy section on the form is not something that you’re going to be punished for violating, it’s just some things you could do to be a considerate host,” said Mahan.

Students reacted with surprise and elation to the announcement yesterday.

“I think it’s really great, since people often want to have parties after concerts or events, but it’s difficult to do this with a 1 a.m. curfew,” Susan M. Erenda ’07 said. “Instead, people end up just drinking quietly with no music.”

She said the later curfew was a step in the right direction towards improving the College party scene.

“People like to stay on campus, where you know all your friends will be,” she said.

Others felt that the room parties would themselves improve with the extended curfew.

“This extra hour really gives people the opportunity to take the sketchiness level up a notch or two,” Rebecca J. Hammer ’06 said.

Dingman added that the 2 a.m. rule did not extend to parties in common areas and said that Master-sponsored events—like the Leverett ’80s Dance—would retain a 1 a.m. curfew.

Mahan expressed hope that the trial period would eventually be made a permanent College policy.

“I really hope the UC reps will be responsible leaders within their Houses. It’s important that we articulate to the students that they can’t be running through people’s yards at 3 a.m. and still expect to have 2 a.m. party curfews,” Mahan said.

—Staff writer Josh P. Rogers contributed to the reporting of this article.

—Staff writer Elena P. Sorokin can be reached at sorokin@fas.harvard.edu.