<li><p>how are the unit 1 double minisuites? vs. regular unit doubles</p></li>
<li><p>if i ask for a unit 1 substance free double, will the people be really lame and non social? or am i just making a big deal out of the whole worry that ill be stuck with potheads/crazy partiers. </p></li>
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<p>thanks in advance!</p>
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<li>the mini suites are bigger rooms than the regular dorm rooms by prorbably a couple feet and the closets are bigger. plus they have semi-private baths,</li>
<li>i think you are making too big a deal about being around a bunch of potheads/crazy partiers. </li>
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<p>Some of the postings/threads on this forum make Cal sound like a very wild, drug infested, everyone is high all the time place. The way I see it... drugs are available (just like any other HS/College campus,) there are great parties, usually on Thurs, Fri and Saturday nights and normally the really good ones are not in the dorms. From my experience at Cal so far, students study really hard a lot of the time and they also party hard when they have the time.</p>
<p>Freeborn (the substance free building) is for people that will commit to being "substance free." No drugs, drinking. They aren't even supposed to come back to the dorms if they've been out drinking. It's not though a dull, boring atmosphere from what I've experienced there. Alot of fun people choose to live in Freeborn, 2nd and 3rd floor this year are very social atmospheres.</p>
<p>Is the substance free building separate from unit one or part of it?</p>
<p>I talked to a friend today who's in Unit 2 and she told me that the mini suites get their own "private" bathrooms -- like for 5 people, and regular dorms have a group coed bathroom. She said the 2 person rooms have adequate, liveable space, but the triples are pretty tight (not "tight" in a good way!).</p>
<p>"Freeborn" is the substance free building in Unit 1... the whole building. You can request it.
The mini suites are 2 bedrooms (doubles or triples) that share a bathroom. So, its one bathroom for 4-6 people...
And yes, the triples in the highrises are "tight" on space... but not impossible to live in from what I've seen. They are the same size rooms as doubles though so closets space is limited... the triples in the mini suites are bigger than the double rooms; they were actually built as triple rooms.
All of the highrises have "co-ed" bathrooms... you'll get used to it. :)</p>
<p>The mini suites are larger, newer, and have more privacy. On the other hand, they are generally reserved for sophomores/juniors (although there are freshmen who live there) and are much less social than regular unit buildings. Not necessarily what you want for your freshman year.</p>
<p>Sweetdreams: Funny, I remember you mentioning something about "min-suites being 'reserved' for 2nd and 3rd year student..." last year about this time and I almost didn't apply on my housing application because I assumed you knew what you were talking about. I am in a Unit 1 mini suite as a freshman because I put it on my application and 2/3 of the people on my floor are 1st year students!!!!!!!!!</p>
<p>ok thanks guys, yeah after reading these and talking to some friends i realized i was being too paranoid about drug usage.</p>
<p>so im going for doubles in the units [: thanks for your help!</p>
<p>Are the unit 1 mini suite triples as packed as the dorm triples?</p>
<p>Unit 1/2 mini suite triples are bigger than doubles. You can fit a giant table in the middle of the room, or have 6-8 people sleep on the ground!</p>
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[quote]
Sweetdreams: Funny, I remember you mentioning something about "min-suites being 'reserved' for 2nd and 3rd year student..." last year about this time and I almost didn't apply on my housing application because I assumed you knew what you were talking about. I am in a Unit 1 mini suite as a freshman because I put it on my application and 2/3 of the people on my floor are 1st year students!!!!!!!!!
[/quote]
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<p>CA2006, I am a CalSO counselor and I can attest than what sweetdreams says is right. Freshmen simply got offered mini suites because sophomores did not fill all of them up. In last year's case, not too many sophomores signed up, and freshmen just got the leftovers.</p>
<p>This year I heard there is a larger request of freshmen (would will be sophomores next year) signing up for mini suites next year.</p>
<p>The high rises in the units are much better suited for freshmen. The way it's set up makes it's very easy to meet new people, moreso than the mini suites.</p>
<p>unlimited: I don't disagree with you that the highrises offer a more social (and traditional) college experience with the opportunity of making more friends, but it is a VERY misleading statement to say the mini-suites are only available to 2nd and 3rd year students!
I don't regret living in the mini-suites this year, although it is much, much quieter and less of a social envionment than the highrises. I have though made a lot a friends in my building, especially on my floor. It is normally much quieter than all of my friends floors in the various highrises, which is a good thing for me for studying.</p>