<p>alexcuad, students do not rotate dorm rooms every quarter. The only scenario in which that might occur is one in which you are away from campus for a succession of alternating terms. As in, in residence F sophomore year, away on an internship W, in residence S, in residence for sophomore summer in a different room, abroad F junior year, in residence W junior year. In that case, you would get a new room when you returned each time, since obviously the college is not going to be holding an empty room for you while you are away. If you are in residence for all of freshman year, for example, you will have the same room the entire time. There is some method by which friends can “pull” you into a room or suite with them, but I don’t know exactly how it works.</p>
<p>The potential for dislocation is a downside of the flexibility offered by the D plan, no doubt. It is probably one reason why so many kids at D decide to go Greek: the house provides a long term home base.</p>
<p>I do agree that the residential college system at Yale is one of its greatest strengths, and a very attractive feature. Too bad more schools don’t follow that model. Some schools try to set it up–Princeton and Williams, for example–but lack the physical plant actually designed for the college system. Harvard and Rice are two other schools that are known for their residential colleges.</p>