Can anyone give advice on the best dorm for Engineers at Cal Poly?
I have a son who is a junior at Cal Poly and an incoming freshman who was just accepted ED – we have had many discussions about this.
It depends on your student-- there is an engineering dorm. However, the Engineering Dorm does not get strong reviews for social life which has discouraged my freshman son from that dorm. There is a cute YouTube video by two guys in that dorm telling others to avoid it if they want to be social–am sure you can find it.
The towers have some wild party floors every year —oldest son experienced that —so younger one trying to avoid that big party scene. In the end after talking to current students at Cal Poly in engineering – he chose something in between — a conservative living learning theme floor and the business dorm as 2nd choice–hoping to meet others outside his major and having somewhat reasonable social experience. My 2 cents is wherever they end up will be fine.
@Luckymomof3 Have you joined the Cal Poly Parent Community Group on FB yet? There was recently an extensive response to this very question somebody posted. Answers appeared to be as varied as the kid’s personal dorm experiences.
North Mountain Dorms without a doubt. North mountain is the other engineering dorms set. There are 5 buildings. The best part is that it is only 50% engineering students so you meet a wide variety of students while having the best study options. Santa Lucia (the engineering dorm most people refer to) has a much larger percentage of engineering students and the rooms are about 50% smaller.
If you want the most fresh air, solid social environment, wifi and LAN in each room, large windows, microwave and fridge, large lawns for studying and playing Frisbee, not sharing a restroom with 30+ people, and being the closest to the library AND engineering buildings AND equidistant from both dining location… Also, North Mountain students have access to Santa Lucia which features a small kitchen, common room, and game room, so its really the best of both worlds.
North Mountain can be perfectly sociable if you allow yourself to be. My roommates and I left our door open and we met all the people in our building as well as many other people passing by.
Here’s a picture of North Mountain I found online. My friends and I used to suspend hammocks from the railings on the balcony and relax between classes.
https://slosafety.files.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/2014/03/carter-duerksen-pics-010.jpg
Sorry for the double post.
Here is another link to some student information about housing. Sadly, North Mountain isn’t included in the list.
https://cambonesblog.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/dorms/
@r77r77 North Mountain rooms open up to the outside of the building correct? Hotel style? If so how are you able to meet other people throughout the dorm? Also as a parent of a daughter I have to ask is it “less” safe opening up to the outside and not entering through a main lobby?
@Luckymomof3 - North Mountain is like a motel - the doors open up to the outside. It’s also just two levels. You initially meet your neighbors on both sides and the other students who use the same restroom (4 rooms share one restroom) , and it expands from there. My son was at North Mountain. He was happy there and made good friends.
It just depends what you want. My kids (4 of them) all chose Santa Lucia because they wanted the long indoor hallways to make it easy to meet the neighbors. The rooms are pretty small, but with two occupants they are comfortable. With three it seems quite crowded, but the one who got a triple never complained. Some of the guys he met in Santa Lucia (not his roommates) became his friends and roommates for the rest of his time at Poly.
The dorm opening to the outside just concerns me. It just doesn’t feel as safe to me.
Does anyone have information on the STEM apartments?
@Luckymomof3 There are no ‘STEM’ apartments exactly. You may be thinking of Yosemite/Sierra Madre or Cerro Vista apartments?
North Mountain felt perfectly safe to me. I also had some female friends a few room away and they never expressed any concerns of safety. Cal Poly’s campus is very safe in general. Of course, if you don’t want your Daughter there then by no means should you be pressured to.
@Luckymomof3, Safety really isn’t a concern on the CP campus. As for social life, you can find it anywhere, so why have it in an area where your only real need is a good night’s sleep? I think it is important to live among freshman. It’s easier to meet peers. I also think that since engineering requires so much more effort than most other majors, being among engineering students is helpful. That really leaves North Mountain and the red bricks. From there, it’s a matter of preference.
I agree with above and yes, it is a super safe campus. However, it is very different to sell that to parents of a daughter versus a son. Doors opening to the outside seems creepy anywhere if you have a daughter, just how it is.
North Mountain is not social. I wouldn’t recommend at all. Santa Lucia is a lot better. It is great for engineers because it starts a great environment for studying and getting your work done. Rooms are good sized, and the red bricks are actually very nice to live at. Whoever said it’s not social doesn’t know what they are talking about. There is a game room and study lounge and it really allows you to be social and it’s truly great. I would definitely recommend because it is good for studying and social life.
Just found out Santa Lucia is making all their doubles into triples. They are just adding more beds but the room size is still the same. I was pretty sad to hear that as SDSU did that the year my oldest went there and the conditions are pretty bad.
No option for double there? That’s too bad cause they are small and it is really crammed with three in there.