Thrilled that my In-state DD was admitted to UT last night. It is one of her top choices and she very well may decide to attend, however she wants to wait to hear from other schools that will not release decisions until April 1. We have deposits at Hardin and SRD. I believe Hardin is already full. I am also not excited about putting down a non-refundable deposit of $2K+ and then have her decide to go to another college. What other Austin housing/dorm options should we be considering? (Castilian? Calloway? Any others?) If she waits to commit to UT in April, will all of the best housing options be full? Should we bite the bullet and just pay the massive non-refundable deposit somewhere? What are the best resources for finding roommates?
A few details for context: female, in-state, few from her private high school attend UT (few connections), non-honors, Moody admit, not interested in living in the campus dorms, very studious/academic minded, will Rush.
Thanks!
I lived at Hardin House a million years ago. If she doesn’t know anyone else living there, she needs to be willing to make an effort to meet people and mingle. Lots of friend groups from hometowns and summer camp will already be in place. SRD is nice, a little quieter and still the majority of girls will rush. Callaway will be louder and more party oriented with all of the fraternity guys that live there. I don’t know much about Castillian anymore but back in the day, it was more of an even split or even 60/40 non-Greek. Callaway and Castillian both use RoomSync to help with roommate matching. If she changes her mind about on-campus housing, Kinsolving would be a good choice for an academics/but still some Greek life balance.
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This is so helpful! I hadn’t really thought about how much the vibe would change with boys in the mix at Callaway. My daughter is outgoing and should make friends easily. Based on your descriptions and her personality, it seems Hardin and SRD are the way to go. I will absolutely look into Kinsolving though. We only toured Jester when we visited and were really unimpressed. Glad to hear there are good options on campus.
I’m not sure if you’ve made a decision, but I’ve had daughters at Hardin and at Castillian. Based on your description, I’d suggest you look closely at Castillian. It’s the best price, best location, much better food than Hardin (but not as good as SRD), and has opportunities to make friends with both guys and girls. Both sorority and non-sorority girls. I think SRD is also a great option but the location is not as good. My third is a boy who will be living at Callaway - not sure I’d want my daughter there, just because it’s such a fraternity vibe. My daughter’s friends that lived there didn’t make as many friends - because Callaway has living rooms and kitchens or kitchenettes, the students mostly keep to themselves and keep their doors closed, unlike Castillian and SRD where doors stay open. Just my two cents!
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I second Castilian! Daughter lived there freshman year and went through recruitment. She lived in sorority house sophomore year. She’s now in a West campus high rise and has re-signed for senior year. It’s flying by!
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