Suzie | June 9, 2010

"Choosing your Dorm"

With the housing deadline coming up, the decision of where you want to live becomes a bit more stressful. Every dorm has its own personality and every freshman is trying to figure out where he or she would best fit. When you're making your decision, exhaust all your options for information. Everyone should have gotten his or her Residence mailing with the I3 video. These videos were made by the different dorms to try to portray their personalities. They'll give you a good sense of what sort of attitude each dorm attracts.

Keep in mind though, that the dorms have different wings and/or floors, each with their own personality within the dorm. In-house rush and lotteries will help you decide where in each dorm you want to live. With 200-400 people in every dorm, you are bound to find a community that you like. 

In addition to the mailing, there are the dorm websites, all of which can be found here: http://web.mit.edu/dormcon/dorms/. The housing office also has information on each of the dorms here: http://housing.mit.edu/undergraduate/residences.

Probably the best way to get info about the dorms is to contact the upper classmen you met during CPW. Ask them what they think about their dorm. Ask them questions about dorm activities (ski trips, sushi dinners, formals, ect), about dorm life, how active their dorm is, how social their dorm is, ect. Try to get a good idea of whether or not you would fit there. You can also talk to your fellow freshmen about the impression they got from their temp dorms during CPW. Or you can send us your questions.

The bottom line is be proactive. Talk to people, do research. Being happy where you live really helps with your MIT experience. And once you get here, go around and meet people! Find people that you click with. The more people you know, the more potential friends you will meet (or potential roommates) and the more fun you will have. So don't be shy! Good luck with the housing lottery!

The author has filed this entry in the "Housing" section; check it out for further reading on this topic.