@TXRunningMom Yes, I got an acceptance email from the LLP’s program director.
What are the priority dates based on? I’ve heard from some that it’s based off the time when you apply after being admitted, but TAMU Reslife says “Housing assignments will be made on a first-come, first-served basis—established by the housing priority date, which is defined as the date the housing application, including fee, is received in the Housing Assignments Office.”
@sdwims I literally took a dorm tour today. It is definitely based on time stamp of when housing deposit was paid.
@52AG82 would putting my room preference over my roommate preference help my roommate and I get in a better dorm since the time stamp if my housing deposit was earlier than his?
@sdwims whatever you listed as a dorm preference, when you paid deposit, is useless-they even said that on the tour yesterday. Housing simply uses that info to see what dorms are requested most.
If you have chosen a roommate, make sure it is ‘official’-you both need to choose from the Roommate Finder, accepting each other. Then whichever one of you has the higher time slot, that person gets to pull up 1 roomie.
Make sure you have 3-4 dorm options-it truly fills up that fast. Be sure you know if you want Northside vs Southside, ramp or balcony style, modular, facing which direction, etc.
I’m curious to hear about people’s experiences with cost of apartment and food vs dorm/cafeteria costs. We’re having an “argument” in the house that “of course of campus is cheaper” but we don’t have numbers to prove that.
@bemart14 I can’t help you, as I have an incoming freshman. Prices for dorms are clearly listed on TAMU Housing, and I believe Meal Plan prices are posted, too. Students living on campus are required to purchase a Meal Plan, and it is suggested (by many) to buy the lowest plan (you can add on, if needed).
For us, we definitely want our daughter to live on campus her first year-make friends in the dorm & cafeteria, not have to worry about cooking her meals, and just be on campus. I think students miss out on a lot, by living off campus as a freshman (others will disagree).
In the long run, it could be cheaper to live off campus-depending in which dorm or which apartments complex.
@GrahamDog Did you just get confirmation you’ve been accepted into the LLC, or were you able to choose an actual room?
@52AG82 our discussion is for post freshman year. You even said that in the long run living off campus could be cheaper. I’m curious about a typical food bill is (eating out + groceries) at a typical cost apartment.
@bemart14 It all depends on what dorm you live in, which meal plan you get vs what your rent is plus utilites, and grocery budget.
My son’s apartment living ended up being somewhat more expensive than his dorm living. He lived in Mosher freshman year and had the assigned meal plan, which was not the lowest but the next one to that. He also had a garage parking permit.
Apartment rents are 12 months, where dorm is 9 months. Then, depending on the apartment, and the rents can vary a lot, depending on location, add on utilities, some apartments charge additional for parking or covered parking and with others it is included. We took the meal plan he had and divided it by 9 and that is what he got for a grocery budget. He could spend it how he liked, so if he blew it on other stuff, he would have to scavenge at the on campus places that give free food at closing and stock up. He also works full time during summers and he pays for anything that is not rent, utilities, groceries, school related.
He is now in a house with 3 others and while his utilities are cheaper in Bryan than CStat, rent is more than the apartment. But, there is more room for 4 boys to spread out over 2500 sf instead of half of that. It is an older house and it has its down sides.
@bemart14
Most of the apartments complexes/duplex/quadplex/townhouses are individual leases, which means by the bedroom. Location can infludence the price. Closer to the Uni, the higher the price, esp if walkable distance. A lot are on a bus route and others have one you can walk to.
What is crazy is that they start school in August and for the popular apartments closer to campus, the cheaper floorplans can be sold out by December. In CStat, competitive admissions is just the beginning. Many students begin signing leases within months of school beginning, for the following school year.
December 1 is the deadline that tenants have to let the complex know that they want to renew. If they miss the Dec 1 date, current tenants can potentially lose the apartment they live in. After Dec 1 is when complexes have an idea how many units will be vacated. Having an early lease date can help you get into the complex of choice in a popular complex.
Singe family dwellings are a different matter and usually are a joint lease, where one tenant collects the rent from everyone else and one check is written for the rent. If one person bails, the remaining tenants have to cover that portion. That is what my son is in now and 3 of the boys lived together in the apartment, 1 of them a childhood friend and all the parents know each other and all got on the same page.We drew up an agreement among ourselves with criteria and stipulations. I would not do a joint lease without knowing the folks of the roommates and have a formal agreement. Our boys even have an agreement for chores, expectations and responsibilities. Knowing beforehand what is expected alleviates a lot of arguments.
Thank you @Thelma2 . Knowing about the December timeframe is helpful. Does the rat race never end??
We need to do homework, but I’m not convinced living off campus is necessarily cheaper. Yes there may be other advantages but you have to factor in “commute” time, shopping for groceries, etc.
No, @bemart14. It is a continual rat race.
Parent’s Weekend is Next April and the hotels are already nearly sold out a year in advance. The hotels also raise their rates 2-3X the regular rate per night with a minimum 2 night stay.
Parking registration opened today. Incoming freshmen need to register ASAP. They do sell out before the deadline. Always do things as close to opening as possible. Waiting until the deadline is usually too late.
http://transport.tamu.edu/Parking/faqpermit/info-oncampus.aspx
@Thelma2 , is Family Weekend always the second weekend in April?
@bctnln1059 It seems so. Has been the past three years for my son.
Ok, thanks. Except I noticed that in 2020 the second weekend in April is Easter, and Good Friday is on the calendar as a “Reading Day” with no classes. I wonder if they will move it to the weekend before or the weekend after?
My son got his acceptance to the Engineering LLC at the Commons today. They sent an email to him and he has until April 26th to accept.
@bctnln1059 Though the dates are not released for Parent’s weekend 2020 yet, Parent’s Weekend coincides with Aggie Ring Day and looking at that past schedule (2020 isn’t out yet either), but looking at ring available dates of the past for former students/replacement rings, 2018 was February 22 and April 12 and 13 (right before Aggie Ring Da7 19) and for 2020, it is February 28, a week later than 2019, and with Easter the second week of April, I am betting that Parent’s Weekend is going to be April 17-19. What say you @AggieMomhelp
@thelma2 totally agree. They won’t want Parents weekend too close to Spring Break or too close to finals, so the weekend after Easter next year sounds correct.
@AggieMomhelp I got conformation it is April 17-19. I made a post for it.