I am stuck between San Nicolas and Santa Cruz as my first choice for freshman dorms. Can anyone who has lived at either dorm tell me what is the main difference between San Nicolas and Santa Cruz? I am mostly leaning on San Nicolas but apparently everyone else says they’d put the “shorties” as their first choice but I don’t know why. The reason San Nicolas appeals to me is because having a dorm in one of the top floors really interests me (idk maybe it’s the view) other than that I am not sure I’d like to be in a triple in the shorties as I heard they will all be triple occupancy for the 2015-16 school year. Can anyone tell me their experience in each dorm? Do triple dorms suck as much as everyone makes it out? Thanks for the responses!
I’m finishing my first year right now and I live in San Miguel, which is sort of like San Nic’s shabbier cousin. We are probably the quietest dorm and have the smallest floors. The small floors encourage a community that can be very cooperative and friendly, and there’s less spread of cold/flu. One downside is that the floors are gender segregated, which can be a huge bummer if you love to have lots of friends of the opposite sex, like myself. Another downside is that the rooms are smaller and the building isn’t very pretty on the inside (hasn’t been renovated for a while).
If you get San Nic, assuming you want a room in the top half of the building (for that view), there’s still only a 50% chance you’ll get what you want. Santa Cruz was renovated last summer and won some award for being environmentally friendly (or something like that). Santa Cruz holds cool events and has a mini movie theater right next to the lobby. Another point of contention is that San Nic mostly houses FSSP students. FSSP students come earlier and will make lots of friends amongst themselves before you even arrive. The college social transition is typically difficult to make and knowing that everyone else is in the same boat as you is often comforting. This will not be the case so much in San Nic.
As far as the double vs triple debate goes, I chose San Miguel so that I’d be guaranteed a double. In that respect, I would favor San Nic over Santa Cruz. I have lots of friends in triples and many of them say it is not as bad as it sounds. If you plan to bring a lot of stuff (specifically big stuff like: fridge, instruments, other space-taking items), a triple will be more difficult. As far as living with an extra person goes (in terms of socially), it can be awkward if two are friends and the other is ostracized, although it really doesn’t make that huge of a difference. Lastly, there are only two closets in triples in Santa Cruz, with some extra storage space in between them (above the door).
Anyway, I hope this helps. I was really concerned when I chose my dorm, but it seems now that it doesn’t make too much of a difference, assuming you wont take up a bunch of space like I do, as long as you aren’t in Santa Catalina. Goodluck!
Thanks for your response, I had never thought about the FSSP thing in San Nicolas and I also wasn’t aware that the closet space in the S.C. triples is that of a double. This is really helpful information indier, I really appreciate the help!