Best dorm/floor for quiet student

My daughter is 85% sure she wants to attend Umass. She is an OOS band kid who is very quiet and shy - non drinker or partier. She did not get into the honors college. What is the best living situation for her? Are there 24 hour quiet floors for freshman? An advice?

That is a tough one. It used to be that Sylvin (spelling) was the quiet dorm area. Not sure if that is still true. Maybe one of the recent grads or current students can chime in.

UMASS is considered a pretty loud campus. My son mentioned yesterday that it was on the list of colleges with the most sleep deprived students. lol. No shock there!

Is there a smaller local option for her? UMASS is huge. Does she want that big? If so, she needs to understand that a city is louder and has more action than a small town meaning a huge college is going to have more happening than a small school.

Thanks for the reply…we are out of state and almost all of her choices fall in the range of large state schools due to her major (public health). Her other choices are Rutgers (we live in NJ) or Temple. Not sure if either of these will be quieter! Hopefully, some current students will weigh in.

Think about Orchard Hill or Central. They don’t have the reputation that Southwest has. Avoid Southwest at all costs!

Thank you!

D is currently a sophomore at UMass. She’s quiet and pretty reserved, not a partier. As a freshman she signed up for a RAP that happened to be based in Southwest, the residential area with the party reputation. And while that reputation is not undeserved, D lived with a group of kids with whom she shared an academic interest and, it turned out, plenty of other interests as well. Yes, there were kids in her dorm who were partiers, but she found friends who aren’t. Several of them chose to live on the same hall again this year, also in Southwest, and they’re making plans to live together off campus next year. Although she doesn’t live in the honors dorms and has no wish to live there, she has been in the Honors College since her second semester of freshman year. She loves UMass.

I guess my point is that if my D could find her people at UMass, yours probably can, too.

My daughter’s roommate is in the marching band and is quite happy at Orchard Hill. The dorm is sociable and kids there do drink, but not all of them and it’s not crazy.

Thank you…looking at it on the map right now. It looks to be out of the way of everything which might be a good thing!

Does UMass have substance free housing or quiet floors?

@redpoodles Not that I am aware of.

@redpoodles It looks like they have substance free housing–
“Wellness Community–Orchard Hill Area–
Students join this community for a variety of emotional, physical and spiritual reasons related to broad, holistic personal definitions of ‘Wellness’. This is a strictly substance-free community (including alcohol, even for those who are of legal age). We mean to offer residents of the Wellness Community a safe space from substance use behaviors and culture of all kinds while being supportive of individuals’ needs and differences. Respect is a key component of the Wellness Community. Wellness students work together to create safe, healthy, and inclusive communities. They participate in a shared living experience through educational programming, optional academic health and physical education courses, and community-building through collaboration and communication.”

I don’t know if freshmen can live here, but here’s more info. from website–

"Alcohol-Free Residence Hall
Central Area: Brooks Hall

Brooks Hall is an alcohol-free residence hall. Students and their guests may not possess or consume alcoholic beverages in this residence hall. The commitment of all residents to maintain an alcohol-free environment forms the basis of a respectful and encouraging community.

24-Hour Quiet Floors
Central and Southwest Areas

Residents of quiet floors live in an environment that has the maximum number of study hours. All noise (television, music, talking) must be maintained at a level agreed upon by quiet floor residents. Consideration for others is essential on quiet floors and forms the basis for a cohesive community."