I have decided to accept my offer of admission for UT Austin and I’m going in as an engineering major. Many I know who already attend this school pick Jester for its location but it seems very crowded. Is Jester a good dorm for an engineering major? what are other dorms that are close to the engineering building?
Engineering buildings are more on North Campus. So the Honors Dorm is nearby, Kinsolving as well as Duren. UT doesn’t have enough Dorms for everyone and a large majority of students live off-campus. That’s why getting a housing application in very early is critical. Jester is more on the South end of campus closer to business school and gregory gym.
@katalinablues , what did you decide on for the dorms. I am also thinking of accepting UT admission to COE. Also, are you going to the orientation/shadow a current engineering student day?
My oldest son in a junior engineering student. He was in an on campus dorm only his freshman year and he lived in Jester West. However, as a freshman, not all his classes where in engineering buildings. At least one semester he had an early morning class at Jester and that was convenient.
Kinsolving has a special group of engineers in it (all girls), and many female engineers live there. SRD (all girls) is near the engineering or Duran (co-ed). I would steer clear of Jester (in my humble opinion). Calloway is another great option, but the private dorms may already be full (Co-ed and slightly partyish vibe).
@grlgotexas Jester- why should we steer clear…
Too crowded, resembles a jail, wait for elevators on many days, and everyone who I know that has lived there didn’t like it. For girls, Kinsolving for sure, and Duran is a good option and is co-ed for UT dorms. If you get into the Honors housing, that is a good option too.
Thank you @grlgotexas
@Embeechristmas Duran is one of the newer dorms where the bed can be lofted and desk put underneath. You’ll have your own bathroom which you will have to clean. Honors housing is older dorms, very small closets, rooms and you’ll need to purchase those lifts for beds to actually store anything under. I know for Caruthers the beds can not be lofted. They do have a small sink area but bathrooms are down the hall. It’s highly recommended to go visiting the dorms and look around to see what you are willing to compromise on with regard to pay. When you start paying for Duran (which you may or may not even get into depending on demand and previous student requests) - you are easily hitting off campus pricing for a full year. Remember UT pricing doesn’t include full meal plan money so depending on how you eat will depend on how much ‘more’ you spend. A good thing to do is see how this translates by looking at lunch and dinner prices. Austin is no longer inexpensive. The nice thing is as a freshman there are plenty of events to go to with free food to stretch that budget.
@comptechmom, that was thoroughly detailed! Thank you. I will make sure to go and take a look at each when I visit next month. I applied for housing as soon as they opened up, so keeping my fingers crossed on getting what I request…
@Embeechristmas Just understand those dorms can get pretty loud at all hours so make sure you have some noise canceling headphones - it’s almost a requirement certainly for engineering students. Also the rooms are pretty small so most students find another place to study and also group study. Never ever ever leave anything out of your sight or look away for a moment even at libraries, etc. You’ll thank me later for that piece of advice! The location of UT and the fact it is public makes it easy pickings for people looking to take advantage of students not paying attention.
Thank you again @comptechmom
in 2016-1017 when my son lived on campus, the meal plan that came with the housing contract came out to be about 7 meals a week (in the cafeteria). My son never had to add funds and carried over about $300 that he was able to use or lose by the end of the next long semester when he had moved off campus. Jester is fully renovated so should have all loftable beds. The year my son lived in Jester West there were a few floors that had not been renovated but his floor was fully renovated. I would think being close to a cafeteria would be convenient so for a gal, Kinsolving would be convenient with the cafeteria in the dorm and Jester has it’s own cafeteria and Moore Hill is across the street from Jester so convenient . San Jac is right behind Jester so near Jester’s cafeteria but it, along with Duran, are newer so pricier if that is a factor.
I lived in Jester West in the late 80’s. The elevator waits were long, the rooms dated, and the atmosphere rather oppressive. However, most, if not all, of Jester East and West floors have been completely renovated over the last few years and are MUCH nicer. That oppressive feel is also gone. I imagine the elevator waits are about the same, so I would recommend a lower floor that makes the stairs an option. Last year my son lived in San Jacinto, which is next to the Jester dorms, very new/nice , contains rooms with a bathroom, and is relatively expensive. Most of his classes were close, as was McCombs (finance major), so he loved it. For an engineering major, I would recommend Duren, which is comparable to San Jac (I think) but on the north side of campus closer to the COE and RLM. As others have mentioned, Kinsolving is a good option as well.
Like TXFatherOf3 I also lived in Jester West in the 1980’s and liked the location since I was a business major. I lived on the 3rd floor so hardly ever used the elevators. As I mentioned before, son who lived at Jester is an engineering major. His room was on the 11th floor and when I asked him about the elevators he said they weren’t bad. A friend’s son (currently a freshman) originally wanted to live at Duren and when I mentioned this to my son, his reaction was, “Why live there? It isn’t close to anything.” I’m thinking that he meant the convenience to a cafeteria was lacking? Friend’s son ended up living at Jester and friend said he has no complaints. If the University still does not provide cleaning services in the connecting bathrooms, community bath might be preferred. My son didn’t like that idea at first, but I pointed out that he would have to clean his own bathroom unless he was in a community bathroom. He said that might be why someone he knew had a connecting bathroom but preferred to use the community bathroom. I think the community bath is cleaned a couple of times a day. Son said hardly anyone was ever in the bathroom at the times he showered. Jester has sinks in the rooms. Jester generally has a bad reputation so just thought I would share some other experiences if San Jac/Duren are not possibilities due to finances or being unavailable.
Thank you @parentof3kids & @TXFatherOf3
Duren is a very nice dorm in terms of amenities; however, its quite a hike from there to the 6-Pack, Gregory Gym, or PCL. I think its a perfectly fine choice for say an upperclassman who wants to be in a less crowded part of campus; however, for freshman Jester, with all of its foibles, is an excellent choice located across the street from the Gregory Gym; PCL library; and having the largest dining hall on campus. I didn’t stay at Jester my freshman year at UT; however, I constantly found myself there on a regular basis visiting friends or attending class in one of the academic rooms. My son will be an entering freshman at UT this fall and we are strongly recommending that he stay at Jester; and I agree with @parentof3kids that the community bath arrangement has way more pluses than minuses - chiefly do to the fact that its cleaned twice a day by UT staff.
fatherof2boys congrats on your incoming freshman! I have a current high school junior who wants to attend UT Austin so I came back to this board since high school junior son remarked so many seniors he knows got CAP-ed. My older son did not spend much time in his room at Jester so maybe that is why he didn’t have complaints. He is generally “easy going” though. One thing that surprised me is how early you can secure off campus housing (for a current UT student). My older son approached us at the end of September, freshman year, to say that friends one year older than him wanted him to be their roommate in off campus housing. That arrangement was settled by the end of October his and back in my day, we didn’t do that until the Spring semester. My son would have been perfectly happy spending another year at Jester but with him spending the last 2 years (and a 3rd year planned) in the same off campus condo, it has been convenient not to help him move in and out between school years. One change from when my son stayed in on campus housing is now residents can choose their room. I’m not sure how they assign who picks in what order, but that is a nice option to have. For Jester, lower floor and “cubbyhole” rooms are nice. I was randomly assigned a cubbyhole room and so was my son. A “cubbyhole” is a smaller hallway (of 3 rooms in both my and my son’s case) that is off of the main hallway so it tends to be quieter and if it is close to the bathroom, your walk to and from the bathroom to shower is shorter and more private.