Answering Questions about Housing/Overall Opinions from a current Freshman

<p>i sent in my housing app last week and the housing office said i was about 50th in line. i put my first choice as birnkrant, and the guy said there was no guarantee that i'd get it. i put the rest of my choices as new/north. i'm a mechanical engineer and i'm really starting to worry that i won't be able to get any work done next year if i end up in new/north. so do you think it's pretty much guaranteed that i'll get birnkrant, or will i be fine in new/north?</p>

<p>Hopefully you'll end up getting Birnkrant. I chose that as well but didn't send my app in til a couple of days ago. =/</p>

<p>Sam87: Fluor to Popvich/Hoffman would take 10-15 minutes if you walk. I walk from Birnkrant to Seeley G. Mudd/Ahmanson Center every day and it takes me that long. At first it's a pain, but you'll get used to it eventually. Remember to bring an iPod or something for the walk. :)</p>

<p>cynicalowl: Mid-April is most likely too late to get the building you want. For a social science major, I think Birnkrant would be a lot closer to your classes. I know that the Political Science department is in VKC, which is ~2 minutes away. A lot of the courses are held in THH, which is <5 minutes away.</p>

<p>sparklingcider: I have a friend who lives in Trojan Hall but is not part of Dean's Hall, and he absolutely hates it. I visited his room a few times, and I noticed that people tend to keep their doors shut, even if they're in the room. That being said, there's not much noise besides the guttural grunts from the guys while they play Mortal Kombat.
There's not much difference between co-ed floors and single-sex floors. I live on a co-ed floor and while it's easier to talk to someone of the opposite sex, it's also not incredibly difficult to walk down a flight of stairs. Oh, walking around with a towel/boxers is awkward the first week or so, but once people know you, it's not that embarrasing at all.
Birnkrant and Pardee are good dorms for those who want to study yet socialize as well. Each floor's attitude depends from year to year but Birnkrant sounds like a good fit.</p>

<p>bluebeard: I'm not sure what 50th in line means, but on every floor there's about 20 guys. Multiply that by Birnkrant's 5 floors and you get a grand total of 100 guys, so I think you still have a very good chance of getting Birnkrant.</p>

<p>a few important things about meal plans if you're considering Cardinal or Gold: unless you live in Fluor, you don't have a choice. Gold for Parkside, Cardinal for Southside Complex/Birnkrant/New/North. that aside, here's probably the more important thing...they overhauled the meal plans at the beginning of this semester to make meals count for dinner at Parkside AND EVK...i'm assuming they'll keep the changes for next semester. so basically, the difference between Cardinal and Gold plans essentially disappeared.</p>

<p>Birnkrant...i have a lot of friends there and i'm always on their floor. pretty much it's social while not out of control. my friend always did his reading there. and engineers don't have to congregate/avoid certain dorms because of the hard workload. i'm an engineer and my floor in Marks Tower is really insane...i didn't think (and i still don't think) Marks Tower has a partying reputation. but i will say that it's nice to have the experience and access to a floor that knows how to have fun...in my opinion, it's easier to study on a party floor than it is to party on a studious floor. in my experience, if you need to study and the people are getting crazy, you can: </p>

<p>-use good headphones (even better...noise-canceling ones) and close your dorm door, because under "normal" non-studying situations, you're supposed to have your door open (not so much a rule as a good guideline...you don't want to look antisocial)...so closing it shuts out a lot of noise
-go to the lobby of your dorm (or floor common room, if your dorm has it)
-go to Leavey Library</p>

<p>i can't say this would have worked in New/North, but it worked well for me on a fairly rowdy floor.</p>

<p>will all the good housing already be taken by the time the later admits put in their requests? also some people might want to wait and see if they get into UCLA or UCB...</p>

<p>Will probably put Birnkrant as my first choice...anyone know anything about Pardee?</p>

<p>Okay, I'm having the same trouble with payment verification, and I completed it in about 10 seconds...should we call and ask?</p>

<p>I have no idea about the payment verification stuff but all I can tell you is that in all honestly, no matter where you guys end up living, you get the most out of what you put into it. I know some overly social and happy people living in Parkside who don't fit the "type" to be living in there but they still go out and have fun. And other way around people I know in New/North who are quieter still enjoy their year on campus even if those around them are louder than they would like. It depends on who you are and how open you are to learning more about yourself and others, overall it's a great learning experience in general to build upon. So I can't say much more about specific people and their characteristics as to how they would fit in somewhere, but just try to make whatever you get work (and don't sacrafice going to another college just to get better housing, thats just lame).
Also almost the entire campus is walkable in about 15 minutes, its a relatively small, compact campus with everything localized. And if you have a bike or skateboard (etc.) you can get around even quicker whether or not you live on campus or not</p>

<p>Engineers can live anywhere! You will be with engineers in most of your classes - do you really want to live with them all the time, too? Branch out, meet new people. I thrived quite nicely in North, even though sometimes it seems like I am the only guy who has work to do around here!</p>

<p>wecandothis: You can submit your housing application anytime after you receive an acceptance. You do not need to accept their acceptance to apply, however.</p>

<p>
[quote]
How is Marks Hall compared to Trojan Hall? Is it equally cramped/dark/warm? And is Marks Hall single-gender floors? Are there any disadvantages to living in a Dean's Hall?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Marks Hall is actually quite different from Trojan Hall. While the rooms in Trojan Hall are all the same size and (symmetrical) layout, the rooms in Marks Hall are all different sizes and layouts. It's not dark (the lighting is reasonable). It's comfortably warm. Both Marks Hall and Trojan Hall have single-gender floors. Disadvantages: one of the oldest buildings (built 1953, I think), nearly all freshmen (you might want more diversity after a while), relatively small rooms, and it's very far from the engineering school (opposite side of campus).</p>

<p>can anyone tell me about the century apartments as a freshman?</p>

<p>I heard that Century isn't being offered to freshman anymore because the upperclassmen want it...is this true?</p>

<p>Hmmmmm, noone has really talked about Birnkrant (or maybe I scanned too fast on this forum =), can someone tell me how that building is?</p>

<p>Mix of social + study. Is next to New/North which is very social, but has the big library right across from it. A popular choice for people who want social but don't want New/North.</p>

<p>thanx =) I have another question though...most of the dorms don't have A/C, is that a big problem? I'm from Houston, and if you don't have A/C in the summer, you really would die in your house lol...I know LA has really nice weather, but like this past weekend was pretty hot since I was there on a school trip =\ I was wondering if people could deal with heat in non A/C dorms >.<</p>

<p>It's not too bad. At least in New/North, the windows are huge so you can get a pretty good draft. Most people also have a fan or two in the room. </p>

<p>A powerful fan definitely comes in handy.</p>

<p>what is better new or north? are the rooms with sinks better than those without?</p>

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<p>does anyone have any experience living in a single? is it a lot harder to meet people on your floor?</p>