I have made my list of colleges I plan on applying to. ( 3.83 GPA 1280/1600 SAT. 26 ACT. Mech engineering major)
I am pretty interested in dorm life … It actually concerns me a great deal.
My list is as follows:
UC Merced
UC Davis
CSU San Jose
CSU Chico
CSU San Diego
Cal Poly SLO
Cal Poly Pomona
CSU Sacramento
How do I find out what housing is really like at each school?
I am a guy who isn’t a partier, I’m a drama nerd, PS4 nerd, not a jock, and I like Sleep. Do colleges have designated dorms for kids like me? How can I find this information?
Many colleges offer designated Quiet dorms or Substance free dorms. There are also many dorms that have living/learning communities/themes where students with like interests can apply to live.
If you search through dorm threads for each school of interest, you will find some information from the students/parents perspective of what some of the dorms are like. Also check the Housing website for each school which should have a description on the types of housing. Many of the special interest/living and learning communities will switch dorm locations, so there is no guarantee that it will be in the same place each year.
As a parent, to be truly honest other than special dorm types mentioned, there can be parties anywhere. I can only give you some information regarding UC Davis and SDSU, since both son’s attend.
Some schools send you a roommate survey with a list of questions about likes/dislikes to help match you to a compatible roommate such as SDSU. You can also select a specific roommate if you know anyone attending. You also rank the type of Living/Learning communities you might be interested in, but there are no guarantees you will get your top choice and they are tied to specific dorms on campus. My younger son went with a random roommate and got his last choice for an LLC but he got lucky and everything worked out great.
For UC Davis, there is no questionnaire for roommate preferences other than location and if you want an LLC or not along with a single/double or triple roommate. Again, if you know someone attending, you can list them as a roommate. My older son met one of his roommates during orientation. He was placed in an apartment for Freshman year with 5 roommates. His roommate from orientation was great and they got along very well, but he ended up dropping out Winter quarter. My son’s other 4 roommates were International students and very anti-social. His apartment offered little interaction with other students and he did not have a good year. 2nd year, he was in a more social suite style dorm, made so great friends and a much better experience, again random roommates.
My best advice is if an LLC is available, put that down as a priority along with anyone you would like to room with for the year. Also learn the fine art of compromise. Learning to live and deal with different personalities is part of life.
I will start my research now.
It just seems to me if I am going to pay 13-18k a year to be housed, I should be able to get acceptable accomidations. My guess is some places are less bonkers than others.
Campus tours generally include housing and offer some Q/A opportunities with staff and students. They will research your questions and get back to you and, typically allow you to contact them directly with questions going forward.
At most campuses, housing is first come, first served. They take your deposit then try to match your stated preferences. It is possible you won’t get your first choice, the longer your delay sending your deposit, the more true that is. By the time you know for sure, you have probably turned down the other schools that accepted you.
Most on-campus freshman dorms are officially Dry and non-smoking (of any kind). First level enforcement is largely done by the Resident Advisor who is also a student - it varies widely.