My son is trying to decide how to order his preference for dorms. He doesn’t care about private or semi private bathrooms so a community bathroom is probably the way to go. This leaves him with Elm, Morgan, Thomas, Bradford and Randall as choices. Obviously Elm is a newer and nicer dorm than the traditionals (Morgan, Thomas, Bradford and Randall). AC is certainly a bonus for August. However, I understand that due to limited dorms, students are often forced into triples. Would students have a better chance of staying in a double if in one of the traditional dorms? Also, are there differences between the Morgan, Thomas, Bradford and Randall Halls?
Not sure about triples in Elm, but when my son moved into Morgan Hall in the fall of 17’, I would say at least 25% were triples. He was on the ground floor of Morgan and did not need AC or even a fan in the fall. I don’t think there are huge differences between the traditional dorms and my son enjoyed his time there.
Thank you for the feedback. Did your son find that he needed less meals and more meal bucks (for use at the food court in the student center) since the traditional dorms (Morgan, etc.) are so much closer to the food court than the regular cafe, which I understand in in Elm.
Hello! I am a first-year student at Mines. Everything is quite close together. While Mines Market (cafeteria) is technically attached to Elm, you can’t get to it from the dorms in Elm. The closest dorm to the front entrance of MM is actually Maple. Don’t worry too much about the distance from MM to the trads 
Does your deposit date determine your likelihood of getting dorm choice?
Yes, it does…but we didn’t deposit until Feb and got a good dorm. Will depend if you want single, double or triple. Doubles were actually hardest to get. All dorms are pretty close to Mines Market, with Elm/Maple/Weaver being the closest.
Please keep in mind that the new Residence Hall being constructed on campus is expected to prevent having to triple up rooms. Other changes in residence halls in terms of what population the residence hall is open to is also subject to change (for example, Maple Hall might strictly become for sophomores and up and Mines Park might also be subject to change). I’m sure more information can be found on the Residence Hall website or you can talk directly to Residence Hall Life.