<p>So I’m applying to University of Alabama and I want to see ahead of time what kinda dorm I should go for. They don’t seem to have a lot of options from what I’ve seen on the website. So if anyone could tell me what some of the dorms are like and which one I might want to go for? Also which ones are by sorority row?</p>
<p>“Best” is obviously subjective, so it depends really what you’re looking for.</p>
<p>Aside from a couple outliers, which probably only attract a select few (anyone feel free to correct me if I’m wrong on that), there’s only a couple different styles of dorms.</p>
<p>More than likely, you’ll want either traditional or suite style.</p>
<p>The traditional dorms are basic college dorms - you share a room with one other person, and you use communal bathrooms. You mention wanting to be by sorority row. If this is a goal, you will be most interested in Tutwiler. It’s an all girls dorm that is incredibly close to the row, and a majority of the girls living there are freshmen girls in sororities. This obviously has its merits- being close to a place you will spend a lot of time, being relatively cheap, and being near many people going through the same experience as you, as well as some drawbacks- lack of personal space being the biggest. Lots of girls like it for the traditional college experience; everyone I have talked to really appreciated being there.</p>
<p>The suite style dorms are all located much farther from sorority row, but if you don’t mind a bit of walking daily, are more spacious and “nicer” than a typical dorm room. In the four person suite (the most popular), there are four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a kitchen/living area. There are also two person suites I believe, but I do not have any experience with those. These dorms are more expensive. There are honors and non-honors suite style dorms. Honors students may live in either, but non-honors students may not live in the honors ones. Honestly, it doesn’t make much of a difference- I will be an honors student living in non-honors suites (myself and my roommates are also all going through recruitment, so yes there are students in sororities that choose to live farther). However, if you are in honors and prefer to live with other honors students, you have that option. As far as specific buildings for these go, they are all very nice and pretty similar from what I can tell. Different ones have different amenities attached (pool, recreation center, dining hall), but they’re all so close it doesn’t really matter. The downfalls of these dorms, like I mentioned, are cost and distance. Cost wise, about $1500 a semester if I read correctly (helpful towards sorority bills if that is a concern). Distance is personal- you will be going to your sorority house for 2-3 meals a day, as well as meetings, so it’s up to you whether or not you see it as worth it.</p>
<p>Hopefully that helped a little! I’m sure someone who knows much more than I do will add on, but feel free to PM me if you have any questions!</p>
<p>suite dorms are $4400/semester- not sure about Tutwiler- Much less to live off campus after freshman year in apartments/houses…</p>
<p>Parham and Burke are also right next to sorority row. They are traditional dorms, rooms are ever-so-slightly bigger than Tutwiler (more like an inch or two max!). They do have some rooms that are a little different from the standard 2-person rooms.</p>
<p>Here’s the price sheet PER SEMESTER for the current year to give you an idea of the range of costs for housing: <a href=“http://housing.ua.edu/pdfs/2014-2015%20Residence%20Hall%20Rates_Approved.pdf”>http://housing.ua.edu/pdfs/2014-2015%20Residence%20Hall%20Rates_Approved.pdf</a></p>
<p>And you can get a pretty good description of each of the housing options (including layouts and photos) here: <a href=“Halls - Housing and Residential Communities”>http://housing.ua.edu/halls/</a></p>
<p>I can say Paty Hall isn’t the best…</p>
<p>Thanks! Yeah if I do go I would most likely live in a suite- style cause we have GI bill to cover it. About how far do you think most of those suite style ones are from the sororities? Cause I don’t mind a little bit of a walk but if it’s the complete opposite side of campus that may not be great.</p>
<p>Also I don’t think I would be an honors student</p>
<p>@taylorjadeenos My son is a freshman - moving in a few weeks - and also is using his Post 9/11 GI Bill. He will be living in a “traditional” dorm. While using the GI Bill, you will receive a “housing allowance” that is used to cover the cost of housing. The housing allowance is based of the zip code of the university. The housing allowance will not cover the total cost of living in “suite style” housing. It barely cover the cost of the traditional style dorm. </p>
<p>suite style apts(lakeside, riverside, ridgecrest) are far from sorority row… It’s probably a 15 minute walk maybe 10</p>
<p>@taylorjadeenos The suite dorms are on the other opposite side of campus from the sororities. The closest dorm to sorority would be Tutwiler, an all women’s dorm.</p>
<p><a href=“Julia Tutwiler - Housing and Residential Communities”>http://housing.ua.edu/halls/tutwiler/</a></p>
<p>Yeah me and my parents already looked it up and between what the gi bill covers and our own money we can afford it.</p>