My son will be a Freshman at UC in the fall. Any suggestions as to what might be a good choice for a dorm? He will be a business honors student but is not sure if he wants to live with the same kids who will be in most of his classes. He is thinking about a quad. I would like him to be with other Freshman.
Thanks in advance!
You will get a lot more information/suggestions if you join the University of Cincinnati parents page on FB. Quickly, though, I can give you a rundown:
As an honors freshman, he picks ahead of other incoming freshman so that’s in his favor. The housing app opens Monday, so be sure to fill that out ASAP. Through the app he can do a search for potential roommates. Picks come later in May.
In terms of quads, a lot of kids like Turner, Schneider and Spencer. I would not recommend the predominantly freshman dorms since they are cramped and outdated. He can pick anything he wants, depending on what is left after the upperclassmen pick (and I think they picked in February).
A word of warning: As a freshman he is required to have the full meal plan, and if you get a suite with a kitchen you are not only paying more for the kitchen but the full meal plan too. There are options where you share only a jack and jill bathroom, which are a little less. The freshman dorms are cheapest. They are closer to everything, but badly in need of renovation.
Thank you for your advice! Any ideas which dorms share a jack and Jill bath?
Also, he is considering rooming with a few friends from high school. If he is able to choose first, can he list them as his roommates when he picks? (Not sure how this process works as he is our oldest child - help greatly appreciated!)
If you go to this link, https://www.uc.edu/housing/communities.html, you cansee the layout of the dorms. Also, I think there is a way to create a roommate list. It should be a tab on the Housing App if I remember correctly.
Once they have all filled out the housing app, one of them can create a housing group (it’s pretty easy, but they all have to give permission and it has to be “verified” through the app). One person is assigned as the leader, but that doesn’t matter since it is easily transferrable. When housing picks are assigned, the person with the best pick time should be assigned as the leader in order to pick for the group.
I think most of the dorms have honors floors. They might open them up to other kids as housing becomes tight, but it’s a chance to get a quieter floor.
But, I would encourage you to join the FB page. It has a good deal of information and advice on there. Incoming freshman housing is a hot topic right now.
@bearcatfan I have tried to join the Facebook page but no one has approved yet
Thank you for all this
So tomorrow I need to register him for housing and pay deposit
Do they form there roommate group then?
Then sometime in June they will be told to pick a hall/room depending on the order they fall
And whoever is queued up first can pick the dorm/room for the group ?
I really appreciate your information
@csmom2 When did you try to join? If it’s been more than a couple days private message me and I can ask the moderator.
Today (Monday March 4) at 3 p.m. the housing app opens. You must already have confirmed acceptance and established a UC identification number and email. Filling out the app means you want university housing but you don’t pick yet. From what I remember you pay $150 housing deposit at the end of the application. Remember to hit save and continue at the bottom of the pages along the way. You can get back in at any time to change things once you finish the process.
They can form a group, if they want, through the app. They can find the group members however they want, but they all have to fill out the housing app before they can form a group. There is a search function in the app, but a lot of kids join the Class of XXXX Facebook pages and reach out from there. Everyone in the group has to approve it and it needs to be verified through the app, but it’s a fairly simple process. It doesn’t matter who the leader is at this point, since it can be transferred. One benefit of the group is that they can choose the person with the best pick time to be the leader, who then chooses for the group. The group can be formed at any point up until selection. The group can also be dissolved or changed.
They will actually select dorms in May, and will receive an email with their pick time (they can pick after that, but not before). My advice is to be on there at that time to pick and not wait - luckily my daughter was home from school, but I would have pulled her out early to do this. The university “batches” pick times based on the week, and randomizes it from there. My daughter filled out her app the first hour it was open, yet picked the third day. Honors freshmen pick first, followed by however they randomize the rest of the freshmen. They can pick from whatever is left from when the upperclassmen picked in February. They are not relegated to the freshmen dorms, but obviously the earlier the pick times the better the selection. If an honors freshman and non honors freshman want to room together, the non-honors freshman lucks out because they can use their honor buddy’s pick time, lol. I also think that kind of group can get on to an honors floor even if not all of the members are honors, but I’m not 100 percent sure on that.
My daughter was in a freshman dorm, and it worked out just fine. While it was a little shabby, she had a great view and could walk one flight to the study floor and across the street to Target, lol. Other freshmen like being in the newer (and, frankly, more expensive) dorms. Next year she and her roommate will be in an apartment-style dorm with a private bathroom and kitchen, and she is thrilled.
Good luck!
@bearcatfan thank you I got on the facebook page and thank you for all this information. You have helped tremendously. It is so confusing!
I will tell you that this won’t be the last time you are confused about something that happens at UC. My daughter likes it there and her program is very good, but some of the bureaucratic decisions leave me scratching my head (or hitting it against a brick wall). All colleges are probably like that in one way or another, though.
When do the incoming freshmen receive their rooming selection date/time. My son has not received any info yet. He applied for housing and paid the fee and also registered for the Bearcat Orientation. He’s up to speed on everything, but awaiting time/date info for rooming selection.
as the mom of a senior ID DAAP student…her freshman year we pushed her to live in a quad in daniels hall on a DAAP floor. too many personalities in too little space…two of the roomies opted to bully my shy daughter. we ended up switching her to a single 2nd semester. we live in maryland and to have her call us crying all hours of the day/night how much she was being picked on for anything and everything she did was horrible to not be right around the corner to comfort her. her sophmore year she opted to move off campus into a room in a house. it was not the norm to have my daughters situation in the dorm but if it were my kid starting their freshman year i would opt for a double and to choose a newer dorm.
The university housing webpage says selection starts June 1. That is much later than when my daughter was a freshman (last year) so I don’t know when they will send the emails out that have the day and time for your selection. I would imagine after May 6, the priority housing deadline. But keep an eye on his UC email.
In terms of selection, you are limited to what is available when your time rolls around. You might get into one of the newer dorms, but they have their own issues in terms of being considered freshman-friendly or not. Not that they are bad, but they are not like traditional dorms.