<p>The deadline for the housing lottery is in like 5 days and I still haven't finalized my rankings. What I'm looking for is a nerd culture, a close group of friends, a single/double room, fun stuff going on, etc. My top three choices are east campus, senior haus, and macgregor, but I keep switching them around. Here's my conclusions about them so far:</p>
<p>East Campus:
-Pros: building/hacking culture, awesome murals, much less focused on sex than senior house...
-Cons: building is falling apart, larger than senior house, less of a sense of dorm community than senior haus (although more so than macgregor), mostly course 6/8 and not much else (I'm planning on 10 or 3)</p>
<p>Senior Haus:
-Pros: I met the coolest ppl when I visited during CPW and had a blast doing a scavenger hunt and listening to awesome live music in the courtyard, tire swing, cats, nicer kitchens than east campus, bigger rooms than east campus, cool murals, ppl are most accepting, smallish dorm
-Cons: I didn't feel like I would fit in with a few other frosh on the facebook page who listed senior house as their #1 (although I haven't had the chance to actually message them and don't know), maybe too many drugs going on, possibly a bit to promiscuous for a shy person like myself...</p>
<p>MacGregor
-Pros: nicest facilities, convenience store, quietest (maybe too quiet though)
-Cons: I never visited, no real culture, asocial, west campus, far away </p>
<p>Can anyone tell me more about these dorms? Are my evaluations correct?</p>
<p>It’s been a while since I graduated, and certainly things could have changed, but I lived in MacGregor and would absolutely not have said it was asocial or that it had no real culture. MacGregor is a dorm full of introverts, for sure. But there’s a difference between being introverted and being asocial.</p>
<p>That said, please don’t pick a dorm you’ve never visited just because you think it has nice facilities. Once you’ve lived somewhere for a couple of weeks, it will just start to look like home – the facilities are really less important than the people. </p>
<p>EC has a lot of community, both hall-based and dorm-based. The building itself isn’t run-down. It’s the type of thing that needs a paint job, but it’s not literally falling apart.</p>
<p>(Note, I have lived in a dorm that was literally falling apart. Part of the bathroom caved in to reveal mushrooms growing in the ceiling. It was disgusting.) </p>
<p>It sounds like SH will push your boundaries, potentially in a good way. IME, SH people do not try to pressure you to do things you don’t like – and there’s something to be said for being able to be around something that made you uncomfortable, and learning to be comfortable around it. </p>
<p>As much as I love EC, I think you should rank SH first. Here’s why:</p>
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<p>I once heard some very wise words (I think from @jessiehl) to the effect of: Choose your dorm based on who you want to become. Not who you are now, not what you think may be easy or hard, but of the type of person you want to be at the end of the day. (This doesn’t mean you should take drugs or be promiscuous if that’s not you – it just sounds like you found SH people awesome overall.)</p>
<p>I’ll say this overall: I’ve lived in 3 living groups, and there were awesome (and less awesome) sides to all of them. I don’t think you’re stuck between choices that will either be awesome or horrible, and you have to pick the right one. I think you’re stuck between choices where each will be an awesome, somewhat different experience.</p>
<p>So don’t stress too much about the order 
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<p>I currently live in Macgregor and I wouldn’t say it has no culture but I might say something like there is little culture common to all the entries which are pretty distinct entities with their own cultures. Some entries are also more social than others. </p>
<p>I was temped in MacGregor and didn’t really like the facilities (the kitchens are more like kitchenettes, and only one oven in an entry. I cook a lot btw). The people I met there were pretty nice, although BC and New House culture were more appealing to me. Distance isn’t a huge issue, since I usually bike to class (although commuting in heavy rain/snow is annoying), so if you plan on biking/scootering/taking a shuttle, don’t worry too much about distance.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses. I am still undecided but leaning toward East Campus… Does anyone have any more information about living in senior haus? Like from personal experience?</p>
<p>I lived in MacGregor House my freshman year. I was drawn to the idea of having a single. I also liked the idea of there being a convenience store in the building.</p>
<p>That being said… I found the place rather isolating. I spend much of my time studying with friends at Next House and found that there were just more opportunities to socialize, due to the flow of hall traffic. MacGregor’s suites don’t give much opportunity to meet people outside of your suite.</p>
<p>If I had to do it all over again, I would probably lean towards Next House, Baker, or East Campus… though I still like having a single.</p>
<p>@WatermelonFelon Where did you end up? </p>
<p>@solipsisme at east campus! 
I’m so excited! But I’ll definitely check out senior house during REX. And sorry for the minor freak-out lol…</p>