<p>What dorm are you putting down on your survey form for next year? I was thinking about Kamine…but I’m not sure. Are we only allowed to request the dorms that on Laf’s website say “first year house” or can we look at others too?</p>
<p>thelogicalchoice,</p>
<p>Just in case you have yet to answer your own question, you can request residence halls other than the “first-year houses”. Conway House and PT Farinon House are entirely reserved for about 30 first-year students each. Keefe Hall is NOT an entirely first-year residence hall; rather, only about 16 of the 117 spots are reserved for freshmen. Kamine Hall, one of our four new residence halls, is reserved for 90 first-years.</p>
<p>I am sure you are gathering your information partly from this webpage on the Lafayette website (<a href=“http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~reslife/residence_halls_grid.php)%5B/url%5D”>http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~reslife/residence_halls_grid.php)</a>, but some of this information is misleading and some numbers are inaccurate/missing. I will try to convince someone in admissions to work toward publishing some kind of booklet for accepted students to help them make their residence hall choice slightly easier. As it is right now, incoming students such as yourself (did you decide on Lafayette over Washington College?) have few resources for housing information.</p>
<p>J</p>
<p>When will we know what halls we will be assigned to? I requested Keefe, but I’m thinking it’s possible I might not get it, considering that only 16 firstyears do. Thanks.</p>
<p>Kyle</p>
<p>Kyle,</p>
<p>The Office of Residence Life is currently VERY busy trying to accomodate the housing preferences of current Lafayette students. I believe that incoming students receive their housing/roommate decision sometime in the summer months. I am trying to remember from my own experiences…I may have received it sometime in June???</p>
<p>You are right that it is quite difficult to get into Keefe Hall as a first-year student. What were your second and third choices?</p>
<p>Whether you get your first choice depends solely on when you sent in your $500 admissions deposit to reserve your spot in the Class of 2010 (it is due by May 1). The earlier you sent in that check, the better your chances will be that you will live in Keefe next year!</p>
<p>Let me know when you get your housing decision.</p>
<p>J</p>
<p>My S decided on Ruef. He didn’t want an all freshman dorm and he didn’t care about the lack of A/C or carpeting. Its close to classes (business and economics) and the Marquis dining hall. I thought I’d share with the other CCers two of the e-mails he received from current Laf students with their advice on housing but first I would refer anyone who needs info to two of Justin’s posts with extensive info on the various choices:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?p=1784974#post1784974[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?p=1784974#post1784974</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?p=1741371#post1741371[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?p=1741371#post1741371</a></p>
<p>S received this advice in an e-mail from a student currently living in Ruef:
Ruef has been a pretty good dorm to live in. A fairly decent amount of
partying goes on in Ruef, but I’ve always been able to study in my room
without any problems at all. Overall, Ruef has been a good living experience
for me. It’s very convenient to have the Marquis dining hall right next door,
especially in bad weather. Also, Ruef is pretty close to most of the buildings
where classes are held. As far as other dorms are concerned, Easton Hall is
fairly similar to Ruef. South has the reputation for being a party dorm, and
the vast majority of room partying does go on in South. It can get very loud
over there on the weekends, but in general it is still quiet enough most of
the time to get work done in my opinion. Gates and McKeen are fairly run-down and not very nice inside, I think McKeen is being redone sometime soon, but they still aren’t that bad. I don’t really know much about PT Farinon or Conway, all I know is that they house only freshmen and probably promote a fairly tight-knit community atmosphere. I’ve also never heard of any real partying going on in them. Keefe and Watson Halls both have wellness lifestyle floors in them if you are interested in that, but apparently the other floors in those dorms are nice too. I hope this helps you decide, I’m sure you’ll really like Lafayette no matter where you decide to live.</p>
<p>This e-mail is from a member of one of the a capella groups that S contacted:
While there may be opportunities to live with singers in your later
years at Lafayette, there is not a designated residence hall for
musically inclined freshmen. One thing you may want to take into
account is that the majority of the a capella groups practice inside the
Kirby Dorm (which is very nice, newly renovated w/ marble floors etc.)
and it is right across from the Williams Center (the arts building where
professional groups perform, the music classes are taught and the
ensembles rehearse). Kirby is also air conditioned and all male. Kirby
however is in the process of being renovated due to some minor
structural problems and I am unsure if it will be ready or not for the
fall. I however would strongly suggest living in Ruef hall. Despite
its somewhat dingy appearance and confusing architecture, it houses over
100 freshmen (co-ed), and is a great way to meet people and make
friends. The rooms are also a decent size, and if you come up with a
medical excuse (allergies, asthma or something of the sort) you could
get an air conditioner for your window. I lived in Ruef my freshman
year and loved every minute of it, as does just about everyone who has
ever lived there. While Ruef is located more towards the back-central
end of campus, it is really a 5 minute walk to just about anywhere else
on campus. If you’re looking for a smaller, more intimate setting, I
would choose either PT farinon or Conway.
I hope you find some of that information at least a little bit
helpful in choosing a residence hall. I wouldn’t worry about
necessarily living with singers because you will have many opportunities
to meet them during rehearsals. If you have any more questions, don’t
hesitate to drop me an e-mail. I look forward to meeting you and
hopefully I’ll see you at one of our shows.</p>
<p>joinville,</p>
<p>I just wanted to thank you for sharing those very informative emails from current Lafayette students. I hope that others see this information and make good use of it.</p>
<p>This is what is so great about a website like CC.com: people searching for answers may find what they are looking for thanks to the efforts of posters such as yourself.</p>
<p>I really didn’t have a point to this post other than to thank joinville for sharing with us these “pearls of wisdom”.</p>
<p>J</p>
<p>I thought I would reactivate this thread to help the incoming freshman make their choices. One thing to consider is whether you want to have to move out during interim in Dec/Jan. Per Lafayette:</p>
<p>Interim Session
South College and Watson Halls will be used to house students during the 2008 Interim Session. Residents of these buildings will be required to remove their possessions during the semester break.</p>
<p>My son is in Ruef this year and has been happy there with the exception of just a few very hot days in late August (Ruef has no air conditioning). But he’s very close to his preferred dining hall and to all of his government and economics classes. The rooms are sizeable with a nice size open walk in closet/dressing area for each roommate. The rooms are not carpeted but an inexpensive rug from Home Depot worked just fine. There are two resident lounges, one very large and one small both with TVs. S and his friends tend to gather in the smaller lounge to watch sports or just hang out. </p>
<p>If any freshman/freshman parents are still following this board perhaps you can add your own first year housing experiences to help the incoming freshman make their choices.</p>
<p>Fellow CCers:</p>
<p>FYI, the room preference questionnaire has changed slightly since I used it myself to choose first-year housing. It does not ask for the ranking of specific buildings anymore. So if you wanted a certain building, you’d have to do a little research via this webpage: <a href=“http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~reslife/residence_halls_grid.php[/url]”>http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~reslife/residence_halls_grid.php</a> before filling it out.</p>
<p>The front side of the questionnaire now asks for the individual to mark certain criteria for housing. For instance, size of the building provides three options (small = less than 60 residents, medium = 50-100 residents, large = over 100 residents). BTW, I just made up those numbers because I do not have the questionnaire in front of me.</p>
<p>Another question asks about gender preference (co-ed by room, wing, floor, entire building).</p>
<p>So, if you wanted to live in Ruef Hall, you’d have to do enough research so that your indications narrow down the options and leave only Ruef as a viable option. Of course, this does not guarantee there is still space in Ruef, but it at least accurately reflects your preference.</p>
<p>All the best,</p>
<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>
<p>I am laughing about the a/c and carpet coments, NONE of the dorms had them back in my day!</p>
<p>S is still waiting to hear on RD. </p>
<p>Back when I was a student and dinosaurs roamed the Quad, Lafayette had frosh orientation in June and they let us tour all the dorms and talk to upperclass “advisors” before picking rooms. I don’t see anything on the website about a June orientation, has Lafayette switched orientation to a few days before classes start? I have a hard time believing they wouldn’t have frosh register for classes before then, but kids need some advice before picking classes. Can anyone tell me who got in ED tell me about orientation dates? We are planning a vacation in June and don’t want to book flights if S may need to be at orientation on those dates.</p>
<p>Lafalum81,</p>
<p>First-year students have orientation for the three days before classes start. Here is the orientation itinerary for last year’s incoming students: <a href=“http://www.lafayette.edu/press/orientation/index.html[/url]”>http://www.lafayette.edu/press/orientation/index.html</a></p>
<p>First-year students choose their classes and meet with professors and advisors during the June Academic Advising Program. Although the dates for this program have yet to be formally set, you can visit last year’s June Academic Advising site at: <a href=“http://www.lafayette.edu/admissions/academic_advising_program.html[/url]”>http://www.lafayette.edu/admissions/academic_advising_program.html</a></p>
<p>For those students who can’t make any of the scheduled June Academic Advising days, they must simply send back their course choices by mail.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the college really does not provide help with choosing residence halls. A first-year student must rely on information contained within the Residence Life webpage to make an “informed” decision.</p>
<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>
<p>Thanks, Justin. The site indicated that much about the day’s event for academic advising in June but not last year’s date (Thursday, Friday, Saturday)
Would it most likely be the 6/21,22,23 or 6/28,29,30.</p>
<p>bluejay,</p>
<p>I believe the academic advising days usually fall in early June. In previous posts, the user “joinville” indicated that she attended one of the days with her son on June 9th, 2006 (Friday). I imagine the other advising days surrounded that date. Just keep in mind that the program falls on slightly different days in June each year.</p>
<p>I hope this helps.</p>
<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>
<p>Thanks Justin, that was very helpful. You’d think they’d have this info on the website…</p>
<p>The calculus test placement test sounds like a good idea. My son’s intro to Calc teacher died suddenly in January. When a sub came in and they looked for lesson plans, the dept head realized the teacher had been teaching from the Algebra III cirriculum, not Calculus! It took 6 weeks of subs before the school was able to find a “qualified” math teacher to hire. She’s 3 weeks out of college, and my son says she’s moving even slower than the sub.</p>
<p>So, I think he’ll be signing up for the most basic calculus course his college offers! Maybe we don’t need to bother with a placement test!</p>
<p>For those applicants who have visited the dorm and all current Lafayette students: </p>
<p>I have a question about housing. I’m trying decide between Ruef and South and haven’t visited either? I have read the previous posts about these two dorms but thought that I would ask about distinquishing features one more time. The question is which is better for freshman. How much of a party dorm is South? Fun or wild and noisy to the extent a student might wish they lived somewhere else. Also, how much of a hassle is it to move out during the interim session in January. Does co-ed by room vs co-ed by floor make much of a difference as far as interaction is concerned. Lastly physically, which dorm is less run down. Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>almostover,</p>
<p>Check your email for a response.</p>
<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>
<p>in your guys’ opinion, what are the best dorms on campus?</p>
<p>Boonies13,</p>
<p>Check your PM inbox for a reply.</p>
<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>
<p>almostover,
My recommendation would be to stay away from the dorms where you have to move out during interim since you come from the west coast. There is some storage offered during that period but my observations when picking up my son at the end of the first semester was that the kids leaving South were taking a lot home with them. All my son had to bring home when leaving Ruef was one duffel bag (of dirty clothes of course).</p>
<p>I wouldn’t call Ruef rundown but neither is it luxurious. If you are looking for new you should consider the freshman dorm Kamine which has A/C and carpeting. As far as partying, that does happen mostly on the weekends both in Ruef and South. My son goes to library to study if its noisy when he needs to prepare for an exam. Ruef is co-ed by section. Its set up kind of like a split level. One half of a floor would be men and the other half (which is half a flight up or down) would be women. There seems to be plenty of social interaction though between the floors.</p>
<p>joinville,</p>
<p>Thanks for your input. On the ball, as always!</p>
<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>