<p>In my opinion, I think that Johnstone is the most social freshman dorm, probably because of the co-ed environment, I spend a lot of time over there, it’s 3 floors of guys and 1 floor of girls this year (probably depends on how many people apply there). However, be warned, the walls are paper thin which means you can hear someone’s alarm clock from down the hall even if you are at the other end of the wall. Also, the dorm has been dubbed as the worst dorm on campus. Johnstone is right next to Harcombe dining hall, the Apple Store, the University Union, Post Office, CCIT etc…</p>
<p>The high rises are where the most freshman live on campus so it’s a very social area too but as you said they are single sex dorms. However, don’t worry about being placed there because people between the high rises interact with each other, you just have to walk there. The biggest down side I would say with the high rises are that the rooms are the smallest among all the freshman dorms and there are no sinks in the room unlike other freshman dorms. The high rises are near the Hendrix Student Center and Schilletter Dining Hall (which as of now is closed on the weekends, which means on the weekends, you would have to walk across campus to Harcombe to get food).</p>
<p>I think that there’s no significant benefit for a biochemistry/prepharmacy major to live in the shoeboxes unless you want to live in the science/engineering community (Sanders for guys and Young for girls). The high rises and shoeboxes are equally as far away from the center of campus (the library and main academic buildings). The shoeboxes are across the street from Johnstone and Harcombe and is in view of Death Valley, the football stadium.</p>
<p>If you’re a guy, you have the option of living in Calhoun Courts which is where I am living this year. The apartments are a just beyond the high rises and freshman are housed in 4 person apartments. The nice thing is that this year Calhoun Courts is actually $50 cheaper than freshman dorms and each 4 person apartment gets their own living space, bathroom and kitchen. However, people who live in Calhoun Courts tend to not socialize among the apartment buildings (I walk to other dorms to hang out with people). However, if you don’t care about the extra walking, traditional dorm experience, and lack of social life in Calhoun Courts, I would recommend living here.</p>
<p>Having said all that, here’s my rankings of dorms in my opinion</p>
<ol>
<li>Calhoun Courts (for guys)</li>
<li>Johnstone Annex</li>
<li>Shoeboxes (Young for girls, Cope/Geer/Sanders)</li>
<li>Johnstone Main</li>
<li>High Rises (Byrnes for guys, Lever/Manning for girls)</li>
</ol>
<p>Also, here are the list of living/learning communities that Clemson offers:
AFROTC (McCabe; Co-ed)
Calhoun Honors College (Holmes; Co-ed)
Civics and Service House (Clemson House; Co-ed)
Clemson Business Experience (Benet; Co-ed)
Cultural Exchange Community (Calhoun Courts; Co-ed)
Health Education and Human Development (Mauldin; Co-ed)
Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management (Benet; Co-ed)
Residents In Science and Engineering (RISE) (Sanders; Male/Young; Female)
Women in Animal & Veterinary Science (WAVS) (Young; Female)</p>