cornell housing-please help!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
1

<p>i know it's probably a little early to be thinking about this, but i'm a little scared to be honest. i've narrowed it down to a single or a townhouse. can anyone tell me how likely it is to get a townhouse or a single if you put it down as a preference?</p>

<p>some worries: i've heard that townhouses are where all the athletes are. don't get me wrong, i have nothing against athletes. it's just that i'm not quite sure i want to live with stereotypical athletes. and i heard a lot of parties are held at townhouses. i don't want to be the one trying to study while all the athletes are holding a party. </p>

<p>i've also heard that townhouses are isolated, but honestly, if i can become close buddies with the people i'm living with, that would be enough for me. i wouldn't mind at all living with transfers =]</p>

<p>the reason why i even want to live in a townhouse is because they have their bathroom, shower, sink, not to mention it's very spacious. that appeals to me. i am a guy, so is this tendency weird? i just don't want to be taking a shower with a bunch of other people at the same time. plus, i'd have to walk a distance to get to there. and there's no sink either in a normal room. is it weird for a guy to want these things?</p>

<p>a single in dickson sounds very nice. i am all for making friends, but i really don't want to get stuck with a roommate that clashes with my personality. that would kill me and my grades. also i heard that pretty much all the rooms in dickson are singles, so i'll be on an even playing field anyway if i get dickson.</p>

<p>how does the sharing of showers and bathrooms and sinks work out? is it usually crowded? is most housing located close to one of these?</p>

<p>basically, can anyone shed some light on townhouses and singles? </p>

<p>i appreciate it</p>

2

<p>if finances are a concern, please understand that the financial aid covers the double dorm rate - not the single - so if you request a single you will need to come up with additional money on your own.</p>

<p>many students these days are not used to sharing bath facilities at home (houses are bigger than they used to be) but generally the dorm residents do naturally spread out their grooming times, depending on class schedule and sleep schedule etc so you get some privacy.</p>

3

<p>i know it’s probably a little early to be thinking about this, but i’m a little scared to be honest. i’ve narrowed it down to a single or a townhouse. can anyone tell me how likely it is to get a townhouse or a single if you put it down as a preference?</p>

<p>I think you can control whether you get into a townhouse or not, but I’m not terribly sure. Also, if you say that you want a single, you’ll most likely get one, but there’s no guarantee.</p>

<p>some worries: i’ve heard that townhouses are where all the athletes are. don’t get me wrong, i have nothing against athletes. it’s just that i’m not quite sure i want to live with stereotypical athletes. and i heard a lot of parties are held at townhouses. i don’t want to be the one trying to study while all the athletes are holding a party.</p>

<p>Parties really aren’t allowed in dorm buildings, and if anything, there really won’t be any around the dorms. Also, if you’re going to study, there’s bound to be at least quiet location outside of the dorm buildings as well as inside. It’s not terribly hard to move away from folks that are even making a little “noise”.</p>

<p>i’ve also heard that townhouses are isolated, but honestly, if i can become close buddies with the people i’m living with, that would be enough for me. i wouldn’t mind at all living with transfers =]</p>

<p>The townhouses are on North Campus, but the thing is, they’re a bit separated from most other dorms. It’s nothing really serious, and you’ll eventually meet folks. Becoming close buddies is another matter I won’t even discuss.</p>

<p>the reason why i even want to live in a townhouse is because they have their bathroom, shower, sink, not to mention it’s very spacious. that appeals to me. i am a guy, so is this tendency weird? i just don’t want to be taking a shower with a bunch of other people at the same time. plus, i’d have to walk a distance to get to there. and there’s no sink either in a normal room. is it weird for a guy to want these things?</p>

<p>I doubt it’ll be much of an issue. In dorm buildings (or at least most of them), there are more than enough bathrooms in close proximity for folks. Like you, I was a little hesitant about public bathrooms at first, but then I eventually got used to the ones in my dorm building. Curtains should provide more than enough privacy I think.</p>

<p>a single in dickson sounds very nice. i am all for making friends, but i really don’t want to get stuck with a roommate that clashes with my personality. that would kill me and my grades. also i heard that pretty much all the rooms in dickson are singles, so i’ll be on an even playing field anyway if i get dickson.</p>

<p>If you request a single, there’s no guarantee you’ll wind up in Dickson. You could find yourself in Mews, or even Donlon. Also, roommates generally aren’t bad. Encountering an incompatible roommate is a rarity. However, this doesn’t stop folks from wanting singles after their first year (assuming they want to live in West Campus…).</p>

<p>how does the sharing of showers and bathrooms and sinks work out? is it usually crowded? is most housing located close to one of these?</p>

<p>Basically, on each hall or section of a building floor, there will be a bathroom. Now, I’m going to base my description of a typical bathroom on a model of those in my building, Donlon Hall.</p>

<p>There are about four toilets in stalls. Then, the last toilet is separated by the first shower by a huge stone wall that intersects with the ceilings. Basically, you can’t see anything. The showers themselves are separated from each other by structures similar to stall walls, and in the front there is a curtain that can be shifted open and closed. In another area of the bathroom, there are sinks on each side (totaling around 8), with mirrors, as well as one unused tub. Usually, bathrooms won’t be crowded unless there are folks going to class around the same time. However, as you will see, many folks probably won’t wake up terribly early. For a 9:05 class, your best bet would be to shower around 7 or so.</p>

4

<p>thanks memphismom and islander (i appreciate you writing that much =]) </p>

<p>money will not be an issue (but my parents want me to get a double. so idk. it’s not like i can truly choose a single/double anyway. i told them that and they were mad, complaining about how bad cornell’s service is. apparently, at washu you can choose. my mom knows another mom who has a son there)</p>

<p>okay islander now i’m curious: what do you mean becoming close buddies with roommates is something not to be discussed? is it because it rarely works out? </p>

<p>eh, i think i’m leaning towards a single now. i’ve heard that since most of dickson is singles, one who has a preference for a single will most likely wind up there. dickson just sounds like the place i want to be; social, but not social 24/7. how is donlon? i’ve read posts that said it is very noisy and stuff. i think i remember reading that mews is one of the new dorms. what is your impression of mews? does every dorm have singles, or just those three? i’m not going to risk it lol. even if i did like my roommate, i’ll still feel like i don’t have enough privacy. </p>

<p>i think i’ll get the shower and bathroom thing to work out. i’m pretty adaptable. i’ll probably do like you said and wake early to use it when it’s not crowded.</p>

5

<p>Hey Wuchu! I’m a froshie currenlty in the Townhouses. I posted this on another thread about my experiences so far:</p>

<p>Although I do feel I have missed out on the traditional dorm experience, I have loved living in the Townhouses. I was so bummed to be placed there in the beginning and I had the opportunity to switch to a triple in Balch which I turned down. To be honest, it was much harder to meet people at the beginning of the year and I was a little sad. I was very active however and went to Townhouse events and actually got to meet a lot of people. Now I have a great group of friends, most of which live in the Townhouses and I have really bonded with a few houses. I think the Townhouses make you work a little harder but the extra space is AMAZING! The entire downstairs is a really great social area with a living room, kitchen, and dining room (however, I’ve only cooked one dinner there but lots and lots of cookies!). As for closets, we have a large closet downstairs and then upstairs the wardrobe has some closet space (not super spacious, but it does the job).
As for varsity athletes, there are a lot - in my quad alone there are 5 swimmers, 4 football players, 4 wrestlers, 2 soccer players, and a diver. It’s not a problem though and they seem pretty nice!
I will admit I do not know everyone in my quad very well, but it really just takes one person to meet an entire house which is nice! Also, the FIRs from this year are AMAZING and make lots of yummy food and are really nice if you make an effort to get to know them. They take kids lots of fun places that you wouldn’t necessarily get to go so I would suggest trying to get to know your FIR no matter where you live.
As for my housemates, I get along with my roomie super well but we don’t really talk to the other two (we’re friendly, but they are just really different than us). It’s not a problem though and we just respect each other’s space. The bathroom is very nice because we can leave all our stuff there and have lots of privacy.
I LOVE THE BUS!!! I timed from Balch to my townhouse (the farthest way out in H quad) and it was about 8 minutes through RPCC. So I take the bus nearly everywhere and the 81 is amazingly frequent and stops literally across the street from my door. Love it! RPCC and Appel are also fairly close.
Let me know if you have any other questions. The townhouses are not exactly traditional and I do wish I had that experience, but I really love living there now! I have made some amazing friends!</p>

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<p>The downside of the Townhouses is that they are farther from campus. Not that they are hugely different than the rest of North, but compared to Balch, Dickson, or CKB, plan to walk an extra 3-5mins for almost anything. It’s not a huge deal, but it is marginally more annoying. Townhouses definitely get away with partying, but they still can’t be all that loud since you don’t want to give the RAs an excuse to actually enforce the rules. You also probably don’t yet know whether or not you be a person who will study in your room, or study in the libraries. If the dorms were ever going to be loud, it’d likely only be on Friday/Saturday nights anyway. If you request a single, you will almost certainly get it. Doubles generally are slightly more competitive. As for some dorms versus others, you really have no control over that. Most people are happy where they live. CKB/Mews are the newer dorms, which are nice. Donlon is more conducive to social activity based on layout and conversely, the low-rises are generally quieter, mostly due to the layout. Every dorm on North has singles and doubles. I’m pretty sure showering in any dorm isn’t a huge deal. If there are a lot of people sharing a bathroom, then there are usually multiple showers (I think). I lived in CKB and there were 5 per bathroom, which is certainly easy to manage.</p>

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<p>thanks clinegirl and mikeyc765! =)</p>

<p>i’m soo undecided right now lol. ah well. i guess my undecidedness speaks of how good cornell housing is? maybe? i really can’t choose right now. i would most definitely rather live in a townhouse than a triple lol. i would have made the same decision clinegirl. the townhouses do sound pretty good, although i definitely do not know how to cook =P so there really are a lot of athletes. eh. i feel like i wouldn’t fit in. i mean, i’m not that bookish. i do well enough in school (all As in high school) and my sat was a 2260, but i’m pretty sporty too. like, i play basketball and stuff and i swear i’ve touched the rim before and i’m like 5’8.5" or so. can’t anymore though, because i’m like really lazy now. but i don’t work out at all: no push ups or anything–ever. and i don’t drink like protein drinks or even milk. i just don’t think i’d fit in. and i’m not that into like watching nfl or anything. i do watch nba though. </p>

<p>excuse my ignorance, but what is a FIR? :open_mouth: lol my main reason for wanting a townhouse is for the bathroom/shower/sink. that’s probably a bad reason isn’t it. </p>

<p>i’m fine with walking a bit more. not that you guys care, but i used to literally walk like 4 miles every day: 2 miles to school and 2 miles back home. this was when i lived in new jersey. i’d be wearing shorts at 6 am in the rainy weather walking for an hour to get to school. there was a bus i could’ve taken, but i really didn’t like the bus driver. and when i lived in texas, i used to like run/bike the mile or so to the park (to play basketball and go to my friend’s house) every weekend. and like my school was located right next to the park, and i walked home then a lot too. i had a really heavy backpack btw and texas was scorching hot. basically, i’m pretty adaptable =P i can take a little walk in the cold.</p>

<p>i’m probably going to be one of those library people haha. </p>

<p>i think i’m going to worry about housing in a few months. right now, i need to keep my grades up. i currently have an 80% in ap physics b. i really don’t want that to drop to a c</p>

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<p>I wouldn’t say Cornell housing is all that great. It’s not awful. I would say it’s not worth worrying about because you have very little control over where you’ll end up. If you request a single, you’ll probably get it.</p>

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<p>okay islander now i’m curious: what do you mean becoming close buddies with roommates is something not to be discussed? is it because it rarely works out?</p>

<p>Well, close friends with anyone in general. You run into so many folks on campus in the first few weeks. And each year contains about 3000 students. It may take time to actually bond with anyone, although this shouldn’t affect your experience at the university. There’s quite a lot to do on and off campus alone.</p>

<p>how is donlon? i’ve read posts that said it is very noisy and stuff.</p>

<p>Donlon really isn’t bad. The architecture of the building allows for folks to interact more than some other buildings (assuming the people are willing). Also, the building itself isn’t bad in terms of noise. Although sometimes you might hear someone play music or something. If the noise is really an issue, there are a fair number of quiet places in Donlon to study. I myself have a roommate who loves to play music, but I never study in my room and it doesn’t bother me. I just have an issue with the folks who don’t take any action (neighbor consultation or otherwise) before whining to the RA’s. They’re a part of the reason staff decided to institute some obscene 22 hour quiet policy in the 2 weeks before closing day.</p>

<p>i think i remember reading that mews is one of the new dorms. what is your impression of mews?</p>

<p>Mews and Court-Kay-Bauer look nice on the outside, but that’s all I can tell you. I don’t really know about the interior since I can’t enter other buildings without a resident of those buildings.</p>

<p>does every dorm have singles, or just those three? i’m not going to risk it lol. even if i did like my roommate, i’ll still feel like i don’t have enough privacy.</p>

<p>I think most dorms have singles, although the high rises and townhouses may be set up a bit differently. As for a roommate, you might not see that person all that much. Folks at Cornell have very different schedules. While you could be in class at 9:05, your roommate could still be asleep, or gone for most of the day.</p>

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<p>Islander4 - are you never in your room because you like to use other floors’ tvs to watch devils games? just wondering because you’re a pretty infamous character around donlon</p>

<p>as for a response to wuchu, i wouldn’t worry too much about townhouses or singles. the chance of getting a townhouse is pretty low. if you mark off that you want a single i’d probably give you a 50/50 shot at getting one, but seriously don’t worry about it.
from what i’ve seen at cornell, no matter where you end up, you’ll probably love it. roommates usually do work out, but if they don’t it’ll be something you can learn from.</p>

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<p>Islander4 - are you never in your room because you like to use other floors’ tvs to watch devils games? just wondering because you’re a pretty infamous character around donlon</p>

<p>Your guess is accurate… Although that’s only one good reason why I don’t stay in my room much. It’s a shame the Devils are struggling this year, but luckily for me I can always catch other teams.</p>