<p>I've been hearing mixed things about Balch hall and am unsure whether I should request it or just put my name in the regular, random pool. So I've turned to the CC community to help me. What do you think I should do? And what should I take into account (pros and cons)?</p>
<p>Thank you so much!</p>
<p>Well don’t take what I say to be 100% accurate, because everything I know is based on what I learned at Cornell days.</p>
<p>Pros: It’s supposedly slightly more spacious and maybe more aesthetically pleasing. I know that the outside of it at least looks gorgeous.</p>
<p>Also, it’s a lot quieter since it’s all girls… that could be a pro or a con depending on your personality.</p>
<p>I thought it was a great place to live. the rooms are bigger, there are many singles, the common rooms are beautiful, it’s convenient to campus. I would definitely live there again if I could.</p>
<p>I suggest that you don’t do it unless it’s for a religious reason. It just puts you behind socially than other girls because you don’t have much time to spend with men.</p>
<p>I suppose that it would also depend on what major you are pursuing whether or not it would mean less time spent with men. If you are majoring in chemical engineering you are more likely to have more male interactions than women’s studies. So, perhaps you could be all right in Balch, even if it is all female. </p>
<p>I know my sister loved it for its location and atmosphere when she lived there. She would get together with friends often in other dorms, but loved that she had a relatively quiet dorm room to return to.</p>
<p>Good luck with making your choice!</p>
<p>Well I am an engineering student, but frankly, it’s not about the guys, it’s about the quality of the dorm. Seeing as it is one of the nicer dorms I think I’ll still consider it.</p>
<p>i lived in a balch single and i loved it! let me know if you have any questions!</p>
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<p>what is this even supposed to mean?!?!? that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen on the internet in a couple of days. I don’t even know what to say.
although I can come up with this: if you’re going to call 18 year old freshmen men, then refer to the residents of Balch as women.</p>
<p>I live in Balch right now, and I think it’s been the best thing that’s come out of Cornell Housing for me! At first, I was wary of what the atmosphere would be like since many people said that Balch was “quiet” and sometimes “anti-social” but I have never come across that problem in my stay here. The girls are very friendly, the rooms are very spacious (single=12x14!) and it’s a really nice building. If you have any specific questions, feel free to PM me!</p>
<p>I also lived in a Balch single last year and loved it, and would be happy to answer questions as well :)</p>
<p>Also: Kudos to faustarp for post #8!</p>
<p>
Referring to women as girls is a habit of the society, not just me. I did not meant to be denigerating or anything. </p>
<p>Do you say “girl’s night out”? or “Women’s night out”? Even one of the poster (bumblebee2010, a Balch resident) comments that
</p>
<p>I’m not trying to be sexist.</p>
<p>mostly it was calling the freshmen boys “men” that struck me as weird. since they’re all teenagers, I’d have been fine with boys and girls for everyone. (if you were referring to some other men, then they’re not living in the freshmen dorms, and Balch residents are just as likely to interact with them as anyone else.)</p>
<p>that’s not really why I reacted so strongly…I was really more surprised to see the implication that women need to live in close proximity to men in order to be socially mature. that’s pretty patronizing, and also not true. no matter how you define social maturity, I’m sure that living in Balch is not going to hinder anyone’s developing it.</p>
<p>Well at first when I read your comment, I could not understand where the anger came from.</p>
<p>But I believe the reverse as well, that it’s also beneficial for male to live in proximity to females.
In fact, my suggestion was not related to gender at all. I would also caution people against living in racial groups (such as all Asian, all Hispanic, or all White housing, if there are any) since it does not open them up to diverse views, and might grow complacent in his/her own group. Living with people much different from you in general helps you in life.</p>
<p>As you can see even from this issue, diverse views can lead to some great discussions.</p>
<p>ah. I do see your point…sorry for being vague before. I agree that we were just coming at this form a different perspective.
since coming to Cornell, I have been convinced that sometimes living in gender or racial groups can be beneficial to some people, but I am also paying close enough attention to realize that that’s not a universal opinion, so I’m not worried that we disagree about that.</p>
<p>I appreciate your suggestions everyone! I think I’m going to go ahead and choose Balch. I think I’ll like it and even if I don’t, it’s only for a year anyway.</p>
<p>I’m considering Balch… my mom says I should get a quiet dorm and she thinks the serious students will be here. While I am a serious student, I do enjoy the thought of living in the same dorm as guys. Opinions? Should I just go with regular? Also I need a triple so… Balch’s triples looked the best.</p>
<p>I can’t speak too much on Balch (since I’m a guy), but the quietest dorms are probably the low/high rises because their configuration is not conducive to social interaction. I don’t think you’d find Balch has especially serious students, since many are put there and don’t request the building. If you end up in a triple, I would guess Balch’s would be the best since the rooms in Balch are generally larger. </p>
<p>I don’t think it matters all that much where you are placed. All my female friends who were in Balch loved it, even if they didn’t request it. </p>
<p>I believe the consensus advice is that you shouldn’t study in the same room you sleep in (I forget the reasons and it depends on the person I suppose). All the dorms will have common rooms to study in, or better yet, get used to the library, so it shouldn’t matter where you are placed. I never found any of the dorms to be particularly loud and if they ever do get loud, it’d only be on a Friday/Saturday night. If you require absolute silence to study, I’m sure you’ll find a favorite spot on-campus.</p>
<p>hehe, I’m OP for this and was browsing to see if results would come out today when I found this. </p>
<p>So I live in Balch now, and after dealing with the disgusting housing lottery system to get housing for next year, I realized one thing. Balch has the nicest rooms. I have a friend in a triple and it’s huge (and has it’s own sink etc. and four closets). I have another friend in a different triple, but it’s forced into a double so there are bunked beds. It can go either way. Balch singles are guarenteed to be pretty huge. But doubles and triples might be forced. Either way, the probability that you would get a much nicer and bigger room than normal is much greater in Balch. Even the worst rooms aren’t that bad. I personally know three people with their own bathrooms (toilet, shower, etc.). You can’t luck out like this in any other dorm. </p>
<p>Also keep in mind that studying in the room is tricky if you are in a triple (or even a double). Your roommates will be on different schedules and may have different social activities from you. So learn not to depend on that (if you want serious, get a single). But the lounges in Balch are very nice (with relatively few distractions) so studying there is always an option (good alternative to the library if it’s late at night). </p>
<p>Another positive is that it houses the Tatkon center, where you might have some classes, and if not you can grab snacks and some food items drinks etc. Very convenient. </p>
<p>Also, Balch is the closest dorm to central campus (but the dining halls aren’t too far either). You will appreciate it on cold days. </p>
<p>Fun fact — there are in fact a lot more guys in balch than one would expect as the year progresses. Take from that what you may. </p>
<p>One thing to consider…would you rather guarantee yourself nice housing, or would you rather keep it random and have chances of ending up in extremely far dorms, or smaller, less clean ones? This is what made me really choose balch. All other positives were realized after I got here. </p>
<p>Hope this helps anyone with questions!!!</p>
<p>I’m the type who likes to lay down in complete quiet and study… Sounds like I have an issue. So you guys think I should just go with Balch…?</p>
<p>If that’s the type of person you are, you either need a single (any dorm) or figure out a different place to study. Given Cornell is a large campus, you will have no trouble finding quiet places to study.</p>