Are there going to be forced triples for the incoming freshmen?
@gocats123 No, they are no longer forcing freshman into triples! Instead, some freshman will live in dorms on Main Campus, but the majority of students will be on South Campus in doubles.
Hi! I am considering Villanova for this fall and have some questions, thank you so much for doing this!
I know you have answered a lot of questions about honors, but do most of the students who are accepted into Honors live in the Honors housing? If I choose to live in the Honors housing, does that separate me a lot from the rest of the class of 2023?
Is it easy to get basketball tickets? How does that lottery system work, is there a good chance I will get shut out of tickets?
Also, this is a really small thing, but do people dress up to attend class? That’s just something I hear and wanted to know if it was true (:
Do you find that you need to leave campus to have fun? Or are you busy enough on campus that you are able to stay on and enjoy it? Also, how easy is it to leave campus?
Thanks so much, making this choice is so so difficult!
Hi @ccms12345 ! First of all, congratulations on your acceptance to Villanova! I apologize for the late response to your questions, but I hope this helps!
I believe that most of the students accepted into the Honors program do live in the Honors dorm. Last I heard, the Honors students will live in St. Monica’s Hall next year on South Campus, so you will be in the same area as most of the students in the Class of 2023 (although some will live on Main)!
Basketball (or any sport) tickets can be acquired through a lottery system run by Villanova. All you have to do is download an app called “Nova Athletics Student Tickets,” sign in with your Villanova ID, and enter the lottery when it opens. If you enter the lottery early, you likely have a good chance of getting a ticket. Also, the more games you attend, the more points you build up, and the easier it is to get tickets. The lottery system also tends to reserve certain tickets for freshman and seniors. The only other factor is how popular the game is; for example, if you want to get into a basketball game but many other people enter the lottery, you may have a harder time since the Pavilion has a rather small student section.
For attire for classes, it really doesn’t matter what you wear as long as it is appropriate! Many people do like to dress up/look nice most days (especially when the weather is nice) but there are days when you are just going to want to wear sweatpants/athleisure and be comfortable, and that’s perfectly fine!
Unless you are referring to attending parties (no frats/sororities on-campus so most parties are off-campus), you really don’t need to leave campus to have fun! Of course sometimes it is nice to just get off campus and go to the mall, go to a movie, go mini-golfing (etc), but there is a lot to do on campus too. Classes will keep you very busy, but there are many clubs/sports/intramurals that you can join, social/volunteer events (Day of Service, Special Olympics, etc) and much more!
Since students aren’t allowed to have cars until junior year, it is a bit inconvenient to get off campus, but Villanova offers many services to help! There is an Off-Campus Shuttle Monday-Friday that takes you to Suburban Square shopping center and CVS, and the Main Line Shuttle on Saturdays takes you to the grocery store and Suburban Square. Also, on Friday and Saturday a bus drives back and forth to King of Prussia Mall (which has every store you need) from 4-9:30PM. Finally, there are two Zipcar’s on campus. Zipcar is a program that allows you to reserve and drive a car for whatever period of time, and you can take it anywhere as long as you return it on time. Students get a discounted membership per year, and each reservation of a car is about $11/hour.
Let me know if you have any other questions or if you would like me to elaborate more on anything mentioned above!
GO CATS!
-novanationer12
@novanationer12 - Thanks for all of your thoughts and feedback. I hear about a mold issue in the dorms this past year. Is that still a concern or has it been taken care of?
Hi @nws2023 ! I believe the mold issue has been resolved as I have not heard of any incidents since the fall. The cause was believed to be the unusually large amount of rainfall this past fall. The incident was isolated to a few dorms and the University worked very quickly to resolve the problem.
How good is the engineering school? I am deciding between Villanova and uconn(honors program) and am wondering how well the students do after graduation and what the overall reputation of the engineering school is.
Hi @bhance2001 ! Unfortunately, I am not in the College of Engineering so I do not know much about it, but here are some links that you may find useful. These websites show some statistical information from the Class of 2018 including successful placement rate, average starting salary, and featured employers.
https://www1.villanova.edu/university/engineering.html
https://www1.villanova.edu/villanova/engineering/undergrad.html
https://www1.villanova.edu/content/dam/villanova/careers/Outcomes/2018/2018%20Outcomes%20Brochure.pdf
I’m sure the staff at the College of Engineering could provide you with a more detailed response if you would like more information! Sorry I couldn’t be of more help!
GO CATS!
-novanationer12
Just wanted to pop in here. My daughter is a junior at nova. She rushed 2 times and both times did not get a bid from a sorority she wanted. Side note, I am a legacy at nova and a legacy
with one of the top sororities. She was devastated both times. And she’s a very normal outgoing pretty girl. She still loves nova but my younger daughter is apprehensive on attending nova next year because she wants Greek life as well.
@LBIMom what do you mean she wants Greek life? Does that mean that Greek life at Nova is almost non existant, or it’s just very competitive?
@LBIMom Hello! I’m sorry that your daughter was unable to join the sorority of her choice. For your younger daughter, it’s a personal choice for each candidate but I made my decision solely on academics and an environment that fit me. During my decision process, I considered my desire to play softball in college and I had many offers through other schools. However, I sacrificed this desire in order to choose the school that would give me the best opportunities in the future. Good luck to you and your daughter with her decision!
@kyir11 There is Greek life at Nova, it’s just different from many other universities as there is no separate housing for Greek life on campus. As stated on the website, Villanova is “home to 24 different fraternities and sororities, [and] the Fraternity and Sorority Life community makes up approximately 32% of Villanova’s student body.” Rushing for fraternities/sororities is rather competitive so some may not be able to join Greek life, but as I said there are many different fraternities/sororities which improves your chances!
@kyir11 (sorry don’t know how to highlight)
My daughter is a freshman. She and her friends joined sororities - I think not the top ones, and not the ones they initially thought they wanted, but they kept open minds, and each ended up in a sorority they are happy with. (I am also a legacy from one of the “top” sororities, and from what I’ve seen around campus, I am MUCH happier with the girls in the sorority my daughter joined then in my legacy). I think that most girls can join a sorority, but if they are only interested in a couple, it may not work out.
Hello! I have a few questions about residence life at Nova. First, where do you guys do grocery shopping? I like having fresh fruit to snack on, so I was curious where people go to get that sort of thing. Secondly, are there communal kitchens in the dorms? I applied to the leadership learning community so more specifically, is there one in Good Counsel? Finally, what meal plan would you recommend for freshmen? Can you explain the difference in MPE usage for the 21 Meal plan and the unlimited? Is the 375 dollar upgrade for the Exchange to count as an MPE worth it? Thank you so so much!
hi @isleslover !
There are three convenience stores on campus, one per “section” (South, Main, and West), where you can buy simple groceries like snacks, milk, ice cream, salads, fruit cups, pizza, etc. The West Campus market also has a small variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. There are multiple grocery stores on Lancaster Ave such as Acme, Giant, and Whole Foods. A few are within walking distance if the weather is nice, or you can rent a Zipcar to drive. Villanova also offers a shuttle to Giant Supermarket on Saturdays.
Unfortunately, the dorms on South and Main Campus do not have communal kitchens and you are not allowed to bring any sort of cooking appliances such as toaster ovens or hot plates.
The selection of a meal plan should be based on your personal preference and needs! I chose the unlimited plan for my freshman year so that I could take time to judge how often I go to the dining hall, how much I eat, etc. for future years. However, I know many people who chose the 21 Meal plan and were perfectly happy!
When selecting a plan, a “meal” in general is used anytime you eat from one of the food locations on campus. However, there is a difference between meals used at the normal dining halls (Donahue Hall, Dougherty Hall, or St. Mary’s Hall) and the meals used at the A La Carte locations (Cafe Nova, Belle Air Terrace, Holy Grounds, etc.), which are called MPEs but are still deducted from your total block of meals. With the “Unlimited” meal plan, your overall block of meals is unlimited. This allows you to go to the dining hall as many times as you would like during the week, but you may only use a meal at an A La Carte location 10 times per week. With the “21 Meal” plan, your overall block of meals is 21 meals per week, but these 21 meals can be from a dining hall or from an A La Carte location (there is no A La Carte restriction like on the unlimited plan).
The Curley Exchange is an A La Carte location in Bartley Hall (the business school). Therefore, most business students purchase this upgrade as they are in Bartley Hall for the majority of their classes and using a meal is more convenient that having to pay cash or use a credit card. This is similar to the Driscoll upgrade, which many Nursing students purchase in order to use a meal at the Holy Grounds in Driscoll Hall (the nursing school). If you are not a business or nursing student, these upgrades may not be worth it unless you decide to eat at these locations multiple times per week.
I hope this helped! I’m sorry that the meal system is a bit confusing, but it will make more sense after you start the semester!
Let me know if you have any other questions! GO CATS!
-novanationer12
So it looks like most of the freshman are in triple rooms - but the fees seem the same for the triple as a double? And yet minus a closet/wardrobe, etc…? $3852 if being in a forced triple (without your own storage) intended for a double OR $3852 for a double doesn’t seem quite right? I know forced triples are becoming fairly “Norm” these days but the price point shouldn’t be the same? Am I not finding the correct information?
My daughter was in a (large) forced triple last year, and each student got 1/3 off the normal room price. My understanding is that there are no forced triples this year, so no reduction in room fees.
Maybe forced triples isn’t the correct phrasing on my part - Villanova shows triples on its website for this year, with pricing for this year, and it indicates a triple does not get a third wardrobe, beds have to be bunked (at least two) and pricing is the same as a double. I can reach out to admissions but just found this a bit surprising if the pricing holds true?
hi @TestRun and @Beenthere22 !
The freshman dorms used to be tripled (three people in a room meant for two people) for most students. However, as of this year, freshman dorms are NOT tripled. The students that were in triples did receive a discounted price, and all students received a bed (one loft, two bunked), a desk, and a dresser. The only thing that the third student was missing was a closet to hang clothes on hangers, but it was possible to put a collapsable wardrobe/closet in the room or store the rest of the clothes under the bed.
@TestRun , there are certain rooms in other residence halls that are actual triples, or in other words they were built to accommodate three people. There is no discounted price for these rooms, and they are the same price as doubles. These rooms also have a bunk bed and a loft bed, three desks, and three wardrobes.
I hope this helped clear up some of the confusion! Let me know if you have any further questions!
GO CATS!
-novanationer12
Any feedback on the honors program and honors housing?
Hi @TestRun !
I don’t have any personal experience with the Honors program/housing, but I do have some friends in the program! I have heard that living in the Honors housing is excellent because most (if not all) freshmen entering the Honors program live together on South campus and therefore you are able to form close relationships with others in the program. Also, Honors students have many classes with other students in the program, especially during freshman year.
I responded to a similar question a while ago and posted a comment from one of my friends if you would like to take a look! I believe it is on page #3, post #44.
Hope this helps!