Dorm Rooms?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Chicago ✅
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<p>This may be a bit premature of me to create a thread about this considering I haven't finished my application, submitted it, been accepted, and enrolled yet, but what are the dorm rooms like? Especially in MaxP. I have visited, but we didn't get to see a dorm room :(</p>

<p>-Carpet?
-About how much square footage per person?
-Lots of space to put books?
-Big desks?
-Lots of drawers in the desks?
-Is there a lot of natural light in the rooms? Is there space for lamps?
-Is there room for a chair other than your desk chair for say reading or watching a movie?
-Is there room for a TV? Microwave? Fridge? A small locking safe?
-Is there a lot of wall space for various things? I'm from Texas so I have to have my huge Texas flag on the wall.
-Have you ever felt cramped in your room?
-Does the radiator (or whatever that big metal coiled thing is) take up much space?
-Closet space? Too much? Not enough? Are there doors/curtains to cover the closets?
-How close are the bathrooms?
And anything else you may want to add!</p>

<p>Thanks! And sorry if there is another thread like this.</p>

<p>P.S. Any other prospective students feel free to ask questions about living arrangements.</p>

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<p>All of those questions depend on the dorm. Check out the housing website for square footage, etc.</p>

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<p>Hey,
As far as BJ rooms go (or at least the ones I’ve seen/mine): </p>

<p>Carpets - no, bring your own
Square Footage - check the website, not sure off the top o’ my head
Book space - plenty but it depends on the room as some have built in book shelves, some don’t
Desk drawers - yes
Natural light - lots
Lamps - lots of space for 'em
Other chair - most rooms come with one or you can put in a work-order for one
TV - there’s space for one
Microwave - can’t have one in your room (right?), but the house lounges have them
Fridge - plenty of space for one
Safe - there’s space if you want one, dorms are quite safe though so don’t be worried
General space - there’s enough for extra stuff as well as essentials
Cramped - sometimes, but usually not. The BJ singles are well suited for a single person
Radiator - doesn’t take up a lot of room, works well
Closet space - there’s enough, some rooms have a double-closet, most don’t but do have an extra storage space above the closet, i.e. there is enough closet space
Bathrooms - every floor has one in BJ so they are only a few steps away</p>

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<p>so if not carpet, then what? tile? wood?</p>

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<p>Industrial-strength linoleum.</p>

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<p>Ew linoleum. Probably gets cold in the winter. </p>

<p>Any comments about the closets? Are there doors/curtains to close the closets. I’m a tidy person and if I had to live with all my clothes being exposed, I would freak.</p>

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<p>Yeah they get a little cold, but it’s no biggie. </p>

<p>And the closets do have doors.</p>

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<p>My S lived in one of the older dorms last year, and his closet was big/deep enough that he was able to put his dresser inside of it and still had room to hang some clothes. This gave him more space to his part of the room, which was important since it was an oddly shaped room and did not have full-length walls. There was a door on the closet. </p>

<p>Furniture in the rooms can be rearranged.</p>

<p>Yeah, linoleum is bleah, but it’s easier to clean. S had a small area rug next to his bed. Never heard any complaints, but he wears socks all the time anyway.</p>

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<p>I’m glad that BJ has linoleum. I have allergies, and even the thought of a college dorm with carpet in it is enough to make me sneeze.</p>

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<p>Thanks y’all! and I guess you’re right about the linoleum instead of carpet. That carpet could get gross over the years…</p>

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<p>I’m entering the University in the fall, so I have limited experience, but I’m happy to share it.</p>

<p>-Carpet?</p>

<p>Don’t count on it. I would say that some have them, but that most do not. If you got a room in the newer dorms, you’d have the best chance at a carpeted room. Cozy carpets and gothic architecture don’t mix well.</p>

<p>-About how much square footage per person?</p>

<p>This will vary… a lot. In many ways, it is a matter of luck, and you shouldn’t expect much, being a freshman. </p>

<p>-Lots of space to put books?
-Big desks?</p>

<p>I believe a bookshelf and a desk are guaranteed with all dorm rooms–one for each student. I can’t say much about size and space, but I can say that what I saw during my overnight stay, and in online sources, suggests sizeable shelves and desk space.</p>

<p>-Lots of drawers in the desks?</p>

<p>I honestly don’t remember.</p>

<p>-Is there a lot of natural light in the rooms? Is there space for lamps? </p>

<p>There’s probably space for a lamp, depending on how cluttered your room becomes. Natural light would vary according to trees, buildings and other obstructions in front of your window. It is Chicago–don’t expect California sunshine. </p>

<p>-Is there room for a chair other than your desk chair for say reading or watching a movie?</p>

<p>I wouldn’t count on it; this would probably be found in the common rooms of the dorm.</p>

<p>-Is there room for a TV? Microwave? Fridge? A small locking safe?</p>

<p>I’ve imagined that laptops function as personal televisions, and I believe most or some student in some dorms get cable through the internet. I don’t think a microwave or fridge are a good idea–too much clutter. A small locking safe should be fine, but, in the dorm I visited, none of the kids even locked their doors.</p>

<p>-Is there a lot of wall space for various things? I’m from Texas so I have to have my huge Texas flag on the wall.</p>

<p>Again, this varies, I’ll wager.</p>

<p>-Have you ever felt cramped in your room?</p>

<p>Again, this would vary according to the room and according to what you’re used to. I have never had my own room, so the prospect of getting a single is unthinkable dreamy, and the prospect of a small room with a roommate is tolerable.</p>

<p>-Does the radiator (or whatever that big metal coiled thing is) take up much space?</p>

<p>It takes up exactly as much space as a radiator requires.</p>

<p>-Closet space? Too much? Not enough? Are there doors/curtains to cover the closets?</p>

<p>My host’s dorm had a closet with doors, and it seemed sufficiently large (speaking from a male perspective). </p>

<p>-How close are the bathrooms?</p>

<p>In my host’s dorm, they were down the hall a ways, but nothing more than a forty-foot walk.</p>

<p>And anything else you may want to add!</p>

<p>Yes, I’d like to add that you’re fretting over the little things far too much, and, as someone with the same tendency, I sympathize.</p>

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<p>These are college dorms, not luxury apartments. It costs enough already to attend! S’s room at home is 10x12. This was larger than my double in college. His double last year was ~13x15. Two beds, two desks, fridge, large bookcase, and dressers in the closets. No complaints from him.</p>

<p>S had considered taking a big stuffed chair to school with him last year, but instead took a small folding seat. Used that a lot, and a big chair would have taken up a lot of space. Since he’s getting a single this year, we may revisit the comfy chair issue. He really likes sitting in the one at home and doing schoolwork.</p>

<p>neogop, speaking as a former RA at a different school, there are VERY good reasons for wanting linoleum floors instead of carpeted ones. Lots easier to clean up various bodily fluids, soda, beer, etc…</p>

<p>Google specific dorms and see what you can find in terms of pics. Sometimes the various houses have their own (old) websites that are no longer maintained, but may have pics nonetheless.</p>

<p>Do the newer dorms have the big radiators? S’s room did, but it’s an old dorm and Chicago increased the # of undergrads before ever getting around to renovating it.</p>

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<p>I guess I am just sweating the small stuff. And most of it is not a big deal. Like I said, none of this is a deal breaker. I saw dorm rooms at almost every other campus I visited, and they were all SUPER nice. So I was just curious about the ones at UofC.</p>

<p>And thanks for the replies it really does help.</p>

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<p>Max Palevsky and I assume South Campus have central heating, so no radiators.</p>

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<p>MaxP and South Campus ftw!</p>

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<p>According to the “Official Guide to the House System ~ What to Bring to Campus” portion of what will be included in this month’s mailings to incoming students, the following dorms have carpeted rooms: Blackstone, Broadview, Maclean, Max Palevsky, South Campus, Snell-Hitchcock and Stony Island. I’m not sure if all rooms in those dorms have carpet but this is at least some indication that there are rooms with carpet in most dorms. The only dorm I’ve seen the interior of is BJ, which, as stated, sports linoleum floors in the rooms (lounges tend to be carpeted, from what I remember).</p>

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<p>Hard to slide down the hallway in your sox if the floors are carpeted… ;)</p>

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<p>Hey I just wanted to throw in that my son was in BJ last year and we brought a carpet with us on move in day and guess what; his room was carpeted. He gave it away to someone else who wanted it. He was in Salisbury.</p>

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<p>Yay for carpet! I’m a little torn now though because I’ve always lived with carpet but everyone makes some pretty good arguments for the anti-carpet cause! </p>

<p>Is Burton Judson a big dorm for first years or did it just happen that your son was assigned to a house whose dorms are in BJ?</p>

<p>PS is that how the house system works? I’m not entirely clear about it, but that’s what I gleaned from my visit.</p>

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<p>I think almost every dorm is a big dorm for first-years, with the exception of Blackstone and Stony Island, which don’t have any, and Snell-Hitchcock, which retains a significant number of its 3rd and 4th years, so is no more than 1/3 first-year. </p>

<p>The most common pattern is for students to live in dorms their 1st and 2nd years, and then to move off campus. Some 2nd years go, some 3rd and 4th years stay (but mainly if they are RAs, or have scholarships that require them to live on campus). There used to be some flow out of the other dorms and into the Shoreland for 2nd years. (It was less popular for entering students, because it was so far away, and very popular for existing students because of its anything-goes style, copious space, and nice rooms for non-first-years. But it’s gone now.) Max used to be almost all first-years, but that got adjusted. </p>

<p>So, basically, all of the main dorms (except Snitchcock) are almost entirely 1st and 2nd years, and the number of upperclassmen who stay essentially balances the number of 2nd years who don’t, so they are going to be half 1st years, some a little more.</p>