Trying to find the best dorm that offers a nice balance of being social while not having excessive partying. Hoping to find a good mix of students who are social but also academically focused. Also, are some dorms known for certain groups more than others? For example, heard that Henricks are mostly engineering students, FAR/PAR are more international, and Bromley can have many sorority/fraternity students? Open to university housing or private so any input on pros/cons on any is appreciated.
Allen = quirky and artsy (from what I hear)
Busey Evans = all girls, quiet and studious. Close to the quad.
FAR/PAR = lots of international students and underrepresented minorities. Decently social, but it’s far from everything (you rely on the pretty consistent bus system or a bike). I always thought the food at these places was the best. The only difference between these two is that FAR has air conditioning while PAR doesn’t (90% of the year you don’t need air conditioning anyway)
Six Pack = the most social and close to alot of fraternity/sorority houses. Bousfield and Nugent are generally filled with sophomores and juniors
ISR = lots of internationals and engineers. It can be social at times, but mostly its pretty tame and quiet. Closest to the quad
LAR = same as busey evans, but a small percentage of guy’s rooms were added recently
Private certified housing (includes bromley, hendricks and others): a real gamble depending on which one you pick, but you can’t eat at the university dining halls which stinks. You can only eat at your housing’s residence hall and generally the food isn’t that good (from what I’ve heard). I don’t know much about Hendricks, but Bromley is essentially a frat/sorority dorm. Everyone I know that lived/lives there is in one and it’s super social.
From the friends I know/knew that live(d) in these places when I visited them, here’s my rankings:
- Six pack (this includes Bromley)
- FAR/PAR
- Busey Evans
- ISR
- LAR
I haven’t visited the rest, unfortunately. Hope this helps!
Is ISR closest to the main quad or do you mean closest to the Engineering Quad? If anyone knows more about the private dorms, please discuss. Bromley I have heard has it’s share of nerdy type kids, not all social but the food is horrible and it seems far away from the Engineering Quad. Is it?
ISR is the closest to the main quad and is also close to the engineering quad. Bromley is decently far from the quad/engineering quad (about as far from both quads as the six pack, but not as far as FAR/PAR. I’ve never had Bromley’s food so I can’t attest to how good it is (I have heard that it isn’t the best), but in terms of the people there, I’ve never met a “nerdy type” from Bromley, but I’m sure they’re there just like in any other dorm.
ISR is also majority upperclassmen. You would have to get a little lucky with your housing selection time slot to find space there as the location is popular. Also, some might find it a negative to not have a floor full of fellow freshman as would surely be the case on many FAR/PAR and non-new construction 6-pack dorm floors.
There are plenty of nerdy type kids at Bromley and not everyone is in a frat.
My son lived in Allen Hall during his freshman and sophomore years. He chose Allen because of the camaraderie he experienced in high school band. He found the same kind of friendships in Allen Hall. He loved it and made many close friends. This year he is in an apartment with three other engineering students that he lived with in Allen Hall. @geologyrocks: you characterized Allen Hall as being quirky, but it turned out to be a welcoming choice for my son. So many students make the wrong choice “just to be cool or macho” and end up being isolated— that is the wrong way to start college. Check out all of the options, even the quirky ones. There are plenty of engineering students living there too.
Is it easier to get in to Six Pack or ISR as an incoming Freshman if you apply for an LLC?
ISR is mainly upperclassmen who get first choice at residence halls. 6 pack/FAR/PAR is where most end up. As a Freshman, most classes are on the main quad, so that’s where you’ll want to be close to. As for Private Certified housing, Newman Hall is, by far, closest to the main quad at 1 short block away. You can roll out of bed and be in class 10 minutes later as long as you have your favorite pair of jeans at the ready. It’s Catholic, but no one really mentions it, ever. It there if you want it. My son spent his freshman year there, and loved it. You should check it out to see how you like the fit, because you can’t beat the location. It’s suite-style dorm rooms where you can get four singles, or two doubles sharing a common bathroom and living room. It also has some singles. The food is well prepared, but it’s cafeteria style, and, therefore, repetitive. That’s usually the biggest reason people feel that the food is blah. While it’s true that you can only eat in a PCH cafeteria, because Newman is so close to the quad, this really isn’t an issue. Again, check it out for atmosphere and fit.
Just to add to the PCH comments…
You can start applying now for PCH, no waiting around for a lottery time. You apply directly to the facility you are interested in.
We visited Bromley and it seemed like a prison for some reason. The tour guide showed us a kitchen that he was bragging about until we found out there was only one for the whole building. While taking the tour the other people we were with were saying how much nicer Bromley was than other UIUC dorms they visited. We were thinking at the time how bad Bromley seemed and were really concerned about the other dorms after hearing that. The desks are only like half of a normal desk. It is hard to like the dorms at UIUC after visiting the spacious freshman apartment style dorms at Alabama for about the same cost. The dorms at Iowa state are also much nicer even though they cost much less than UIUC.