I’m a rising first-year who has chosen Burton-Judson as her first-choice residence hall next year. I post this discussion not because I’m lacking in the broader details about BJ, but rather because I am so in love with this dorm and I cannot find a single word more online about BJ which I have not read.
I have such a desire to know more about Burton-Judson — so really, literally anything you could tell me would be much appreciated! To start off, I’ll provide some of my own questions:
-What are each (or any) of the houses like?
-How connected to each other are the houses?
-I’ve heard that BJ is super gay — could you tell me about the lgbt scene there? (I’m gay)
-Any idea of the ratio of doubles to singles? Of course, there are many more singles; I’m hoping for a double.
-Are there any cool facts about BJ or the houses that you could tell me?
I’d love to hear your feedback on anything I’ve asked here or anything else that comes to mind. I’m new to College Confidential and I don’t think that posting photos is an option, but if you have exclusive photos, I’d love to see (bc I have been through every inch of the Internet and have exhausted them all. House culture is getting to me). MANY THANKS!
You need to beware of law students invading the first floor common rooms in search of pelf. One of them was once in the habit of poaching the Chamberlin House copy of the NYTimes. The great minds of Chamberlin formulated a plan. The guy was accosted one morning on the first floor landing just below the stairwell and asked for a light (those were ancient times). As he fumbled for his lighter, Times tucked under his arm, our secret agent stepped away from him, which was the signal for the release of 300 gallons of water down the stairwell from all six levels of the House, each floor of which contributed its own garbage-can-filled donation to the cause. The thief and his (rather our) Times were well and thoroughly drenched. The would-be legal beagle fled and was never seen again. The honor of Chamberlin House was restored, and the Times never again disappeared from the common room.
oh gosh. this is like reading a post written by me 5 years ago
This is not an answerable question. If you’re involved in your house life it’s going to change by virtue of the fact that you’re involved. It changes year to year with different crops of first years.
Depends. Mostly very little. If you want to be the change you want to see in BJ feuding go ahead and good luck.
Linn-Mathews is super gay, the other ones aren’t really. “The lgbt scene” is very broad, what in particular do you want to know?
I actually used to have an excel spreadsheet with this exact figure but I lost it Ranges from 0% doubles (Vincent) to ~20% doubles (Dodd-Mead, I think). Most people are there cause they want a single, I think it’s relatively easy to get a double (compared to get into the dorm in general).
The Scav Nuclear Reactor was in BJ :o specifically Mathews.
@JBStillFlying Secret codes? How fun! I cannot wait to start figuring mine out. And I’ll be sure to take a look at some maps – I LOVE finding new routes Thanks!
@marlowe1 Wow, that’s an amazing story and I’m excited to be around these water-dumping warriors of justice over the next few years. Gotta save the Times from the law sneaky kids. Thanks for sharing!
@HydeSnark First of all, HydeSnark, I see you all over UChicago’s realm of College Confidential so it’s an honor to receive your words of wisdom (thanks!).
Good point about the ever-changing house culture. As for particulars about the lgbt scene, I guess I’m just trying to get an idea of how gay the houses are. I come from a small town with few gays, so I’m hoping for a larger community at BJ. Linn-Mathews has the coolest crest and everything I’ve heard about it has been awesome (but really, all of the BJ houses are so awesome). I really love the goose and would like to paint him on everything!
I submitted my enrollment deposit literally minutes after my ED1 acceptance and listed that I’d like a double as my top priority (the suite-like floor plans sound awesome, and I think it’s good to learn to live with another person), so hopefully that works out. Thanks for your input!
In the past few years, L-M has had the reputation for being the queerest house, but who knows about next year: first years change this stuff. L-M just has the least gendered floors. No matter which house you’re in I promise you won’t 100% be surrounded by straight people, though.
I wouldn’t worry about getting into BJ. It has gotten less popular after North opened b/c there are now more opportunities to dorm close to campus. IMO you are likely to get what you want.
“I submitted my enrollment deposit literally minutes after my ED1 acceptance and listed that I’d like a double as my top priority.” DD is a rising second year in a BJ House. We also put down deposit within an hour of ED1 admission decisions coming out, and she put being in a double as her highest priority. Spent counting the days to find out who her roommate would be, to contact her, and then … she ended up being placed in a single. Said she felt weird, like they were “hiding my roommate from me” lol. Was worried, because she’s shy and was afraid she’d have trouble making friends, would hide in her room during O-week or something. It turned out to be FINE. She has tons of friends and one very close friend in her House. Absolutely loves her House. Agreed with her parents, as soon as she got through O-week, that it’s better, even for a shy but extroverted kid, to have a single, for all of the obvious reasons (sleeping when you want and staying awake when you want being the most important). So just in case you don’t get a double: don’t fear. The O-week stuff makes it so easy for kids to meet each other, even if you barely put yourself out there at all. Even just the mandatory activities make it almost impossible not to get friendly with people. You can leave your door open and people will stop in to say hi. Kids hang out in the lounges all the time. DD goes to to the BJ study rooms too (even though there’s no reason she couldn’t study in her room), because she finds she can make herself work more when other kids around her are working. Spends a lot of time in the House lounge. Eats at the House table every meal that eats. When you find out what House you’re in, private message me, if you want, and we’ll see if it’s by any chance the same House and, if so, you can contact DD if you want. She wanted to be an O-aide, but couldn’t do it this year.
@Lea111 Oh man, I’m sure that the “cancelled roommate” scenario definitely isn’t the most exciting news to hear, but I’m so glad that it worked out well for her in the end! Unfortunately, even with my requests, the likelihood of receiving a double is small and it might just work out that upperclassmen have them in their hands this year. I’m definitely an introvert but am also very much an initiator (and have experience making friends from switching schools during my sophomore year), so I’m not as worried about secluding myself in a single, but having a roommate seems like a lot of fun and the doubles seem to have an amazing layout!
The attractions of a single are very obvious, though, and I’m sure that if I were to receive a single, I’d shortly begin to agree that it’s quite luxurious. I’m so excited to become part of the BJ culture and to receive word of my house! I’d love to get in touch with her! I’ll let you know when I receive my assignment – should be mid-August!
@HydeSnark Then I’m in luck! Hopefully the housing committee satisfies my requests :")
Also, on another note, I’ve thought of a few more questions. Do you have any tips on managing the transition from high school to UChicago? I fear that I’ll arrive and struggle academically because it is such a brilliant and challenging place. Of course, freshman-level courses are meant for first-years, who come right out of high school with varying levels of ability and experience, but producing Chicago-quality work seems intimidating. This struggle is what I’ve always desired because I know it’s needed for improvement, but wow it is SPOOKY.
Do you have any input on note-taking methods? Do most students type their notes or write by hand in notebooks or binders? And does this vary between seminars and lectures?
Here’s my own BJ question: what’s the likelihood of getting BJ if I deposited 2 days after EDII came out and put it as my first choice? Is it pretty likely or 50/50 or what? Thanks
My (non-LM) house was very gay - probably about 25% LGBT. The university in general is, it’ll be nothing like your hometown.
The BJ library is one of the nicest study spaces on campus. It’s got a couple of Steinways, but don’t be the guy (it’s always a guy) who plays the piano at 11 during finals week. The law library next door is also very nice - it’s a great, recently restored Eero Saarinen design.
My son will be an incoming freshmen in BJ L-M (single) and I have a few questions that I hope someone can chime in about. We live on the east coast and wonder if he will be able to store his stuff over the summer in the dorm. Also do most fly-in students rent a fridge? It’s clearly less expensive to purchase one and then store it over the summer, but I don’t know if that’s possible or worth the effort. And finally, do students have access to a microwave on the dorm floor? (I’m asking about the microwave because there is an option to rent a microwave/fridge combo.). Thanks.
Congrats to your son on being placed in objectively the coolest house in B-J.
Housing allows students who are returning to housing the following year to store 5 boxes, or 4 boxes and a fridge, over the summer. We sell storage boxes every spring - these can be either 16 x 16 x 16 or 20 x 20 x 20. Once stored, these can’t be accessed until the fall. You should plan accordingly. Don’t store passports or anything else you might need.
Fridge only makes sense if he expects to keep perishable food in his room often. Unless specific dietary preferences are a factor, there’s not much reason to do so with an unlimited meal plan - he’ll have all the food he could ask for and more at the dining hall. I bought a used fridge for $20, but didn’t use it too much.
One advantage of renting a fridge is having the extra storage box (since you won’t need to store a fridge over the summer). How important this is depends on how much stuff your son is bringing.
We do have a microwave in the house lounge, and there’s another in the B-J kitchen, so don’t spend too much if you do rent one.
Thanks for the quick response @DunBoyer. It’s great to hear he’ll be able store his stuff. I have one more question. His room number is between 700-725-- can you tell me what floor
he’ll be on. Thanks again.
Ranges from 0% doubles (Vincent) to ~20% doubles (Dodd-Mead, I think). Most people are there cause they want a single, I think it’s relatively easy to get a double (compared to get into the dorm in general).