HoldenMCaulfield

i see that vassar has 9 residence halls. according to the vassar website "Each house is distinctive in nature, from its physical characteristics and history to the personality of the residents and the coeducational atmosphere they choose to create within the house".

could someone please enlighten me as to what type of people stay in which halls. which hall is generally regarded as the "best", that is, the one that everyone wants to be placed in given its superior rooms, etc.?

thanks

ornbarn

The 9 dorms are Cushing, Noyes, Jewett, Joss, Main, Strong, Raymond, Davison, Lathrop.

Although i'm not a current vassar student (going there in fall!), this is summarized from multiple livejournal posts regarding (I got placed in (insert dorm here). What do i do?!?!)

There are certain stereotypes including, Lathrop being for alcoholics, Raymond being for Social Rejects, Main having no community, but for the most part, there's no need to listen to them.

Main: It's SO central, you can go downstairs to meetings or for food in your slippers, and it's never more than a five-minute walk to any class (not so true of the other dorms). High ceilings, big rooms, and a pretty awesome social scene. Has a lot more people than most other dorms, which may or may not be a good thing to you.

Davison: Davison is a standard quad-dorm idea. t's the "Family Dorm" in the best ways possible, but don't let that fool you: people there still have a great time... "and they go through a lot of condoms" (just to point out that I didn't write that). It has a great sense of community.

Joss: Joss is one of the other bigger dorms on campus, and though it's far away from classroom buildings, it's super-close to CollegeView Ave and ACDC. It has big rooms and superb bathrooms... but mostly, there are good people there.

Raymond: Trying to lose the social-reject stereotype.

Noyes: Not an old-fashioned building. Very new-age archtechture, lots of glass. Home to many international students.

Cushing: Big Rooms, large bathrooms. A bit removed from some of the other dorms, (not horrendously far away, but you're not going to visit someone in Joss when it's snowing.) Because of this, they have more dorm community than others.

Lathrop: Wild Raucous parties. Generally a fun place to be. Small freshman doubles. Smallest dorm (i think), sophomore singles available.

Jewett: Recently remodeled, 'smells like a new hotel'. Lots of fire alarms go off during the night (though they're working on it)

Strong: all female, lesbian reputation, but on any given night, there are probably 1 guy for every 2 girls. Lots of singles, even a couple for freshman.

However, on a larger scale, nearly everyone gains dorm pride almost immediately and will argue their dorm's virtues. this is good because it means you'll have a good time wherever you're placed. There's a lot of dorm pride, and everywhere is a good place to be.

(But that's just my take on it. You could ask a real vassar student too...)

HoldenMCaulfield

thanks for that great response. any one else?

oh, and bump.

sullenmoon

Davison people always say their dorm is best...and they really feel it!!! The rooms are great, the annex is cool... and it's kinda between joss and jewett, which also rock. And don't worry about the snow...people trek in the middle of the night from joss to the terrace apartments, even in december. Most are too happy to feel the cold.

HoldenMCaulfield

ic. does vassar allow students to request a particular hall or are students just placed in halls randomly?

heatherly17

nice summary ornbarn....****e, I can't wait till dorm assignments go out! I hope I'm in Cushing or Joss or Main

Any more info on <i>physical</i> characteristics? That is, which ones are the most aesthetically pleasing? From what I've heard, Cushing is the prettiest (like a miniature castle, even with "secret passageways"...) and Jewett is very Holiday Inn-feeling...

heatherly17

Holden, unfortunately, I don't think freshmen can request specific houses. But we do fill out a form with interests/lifestyle info so they can match us up with compatible roommates.

sullenmoon

I remember something about freshman being able to list their top three choices of dorms according to preference, and Vassar doing its best to accomodate one of those choices. This was the way it worked in the past, and I'm pretty sure the policy sticks.

About the dorms...Cushing is truly beautiful...like an English manor house, complete with the requisite passages and offshoots. It has cool windows, spacious rooms, and is the closest to Blodgett Hall (another awesome building), which is cool if you're studying psych, anthro, econ, soc, or religion. It's a quick jump out of your bed in the morning. Cushing is really not removed from the rest of the campus...it's the closest, i think, to the infirmary and to Metcalf, if you're having a mental meltdown. Jewett's tower is pretty riotous, and if you're lucky, you might end up in Edna SV Millay's room (think that's where she lived). Joss is also another gorgeous building. The rooms are big and it's kinda like the jock/party dorm. People celebrate there...a lot. There's a gi-normous lawn in front where anything can be played. I've heard people call it Joss Beach because everyone vegges out in the sun there.

Vassar trumps most schools, dorm-wise. Freshman doubles and triples are larger and nicer than a lot of what we saw when we were looking at schools. The dorms are so much more than bland cement blocks...they all have character... even Noyes, which makes me want to throw up (apologies in advance to Noyes residents... i just think it looks like a virus from outer space, but I know there are people who love it). You really can't go wrong.

sullenmoon

If you're confuzzled and don't know where to live, check it...
http://quizilla.com/users/rerunned/q...0are%20you%3F/

heatherly17

I hope you're right about being able to list our top choices...

HoldenMCaulfield

so after reading through the above posts, as well as the opinions expressed on that livejournal website, i have one last question: which hall is considered to be the absolute biggest party hall? i am someone who definitely enjoys their alchol and marijuana (no judging/comments) and the overall party atmosphere. which hall(s) would you recommend for me??

sullenmoon

My votes: Joss (if you like bigger) or Davison. I doubt you'll be sorry.

archit

HEY!!! Raymond is NOT the social rejects anymore!! That was back in the days when we had the anime fan club people living here. Raymond is now the musical dorm (there are SO many musicians here, including me) and we are the united dorm (ie we have more dorm pride and are more familiar with each other than more or less any other dorm). Unity is actually one of the 'stereotypes' currently attached to Raymond. I'll post on the other dorms soon.

heatherly17

sweet, do you have all night jam seshes with everyone in the dorm?

classact14

Dorms you can party and smoke in: all except Noyes and Strong.