<p>Pros/cons of each housing option?
What exactly is FroSoCo, and is it as ridiculously far away from the middle of campus as everyone says it is?</p>
<p>So, as I remember it, the options are:</p>
<p>Four-class:
Pros - Many upperclassmen you can go to and talk about majors, classes, etc. May gain more of an idea about hidden opportunities on campus from upperclassmen.
Cons - May not experience cohesive group of other freshman that you bond with for life as you would in a freshman dorm. Depends on your friends and location though. Often not as energetic or apt to party as a freshman dorm. </p>
<p>All Freshman:
Pros - Make lifelong friends and experience cohesive dorm pride. RAs available for discussions about majors, classes, etc. Often louder than four-class dorms and more people party more often (depends on location).
Cons - Little contact with upperclassmen besides your RAs near the beginning of the year. You will, however, make friends with upperclassmen in any student groups you join as the year progresses. Can be too rowdy late at night for those who need a quiet studying environment. </p>
<p>FroSoCo:
Pros - Pretty insular and cohesive group. You will become good friends with others in FroSoCo. Special programs for residents such as Deans Dinners and Cafe Nights. Many people say that Rikker (FroSoCo) dining is the best on campus, but I’ve never been there so I can’t comment.<br>
Cons - Yes, it is pretty far away and that distance will be made worse because about 70% (I think) of freshman will be living in Stern and Wilbur next year (These are on the complete other side of campus). The only times I’ve been out to FroSoCo were to flier and during band run. Reputation of being much quieter than other dorms (comparable to SLE).</p>
<p>I know you can choose all different kinds of options for co-ed and single gender dorms but they didn’t matter to me so I can’t really comment. Go with what you are comfortable with I guess.</p>
<p>Good luck with the housing gods and glad you are coming to the farm next year!</p>
<p>if i can give incoming freshman ONE piece of advice it is request all freshman housing. all supposed benefits of four class housing are highly overrated and marginal at best. and it will be even worse next year as the four class dorms with freshman will be geographically quite detached from the other freshman.
dont do four class its a mistake</p>
<p>what’s he biggest party dorm.</p>
<p>No, come on. Frosoco is only a little farther away, negligible with biking. If you love studying / are quiet / dislike hard partying / like activities, then you’ll love Frosoco 
I ended up in Wilbur and got annoyed at the drinking and dancing every weekend. Life is still good, but I would’ve enjoyed Frosoco more.</p>
<p>Frosoco dinning though is overhyped (a joke by its residents). It’s peanuts sensitive and has a minimal but healthy selection. But Lagunita dining is nearby…</p>
<p>In short Frosoco is a little nerdy :)</p>
<p>Thanks for all the info, guys!</p>
<p>1230wc, so there are really few parties in FroSoCo? Can you describe a typical weekday and weekend night for me?</p>
<p>Colbs: If you want a party dorm, the best you can do is request all-frosh housing. That’s as specific as you can get as a freshman. You can actually pick your dorm when you’re an upperclassman (pending a decent draw number, at least).</p>
<p>1230wc: Really? I’d take Ricker dining over Lag any day.</p>
<p>Agreed, Sly Si. Ricker > Lag.</p>
<p>FroSoCo is not considered a party dorm, but it has gotten less nerdy and quiet in recent years. On weekdays, you get your fair share of people blasting music at odd hours and people getting wasted and keeping their neighbors up. On weekends (and sometimes weekdays), people will throw parties in their rooms or in the lounges, but nothing too big. </p>
<p>Yes, FroSoCo is literally on the edge of west campus. No, the bike ride should not be problem for you. Yes, FSC will be on the opposite side of campus from the two main freshman clusters, but FSC is also near Roble and Lag, which will also house many freshmen. Not to mention that FSC itself is one of the largest freshmen dorms (100+), so you’ll meet a lot of people just around the dorm. </p>
<p>Another advantage FSC has over all-frosh dorms is that the sophomores are around to give the new freshmen the inside information (on where to get textbooks for cheap, what places on campus to eat, how to make sure your laundry doesn’t get bleached, which professors to choose, which classes to take when, what majors are a joke), rather than the freshmen having to figure it out for themselves. </p>
<p>Another neat tidbit about FroSoCo- you have a high chance of getting a two-room double, which affords more privacy and convenience. But please, don’t apply to FSC just for this reason! Apply only if you are interested in its academic programming.</p>
<p>What sort of academic programming does FSC offer?
- SoFos, short for “Sophomore Fellows”, these are informal, non-graded classes taught by Sophomores in the dorm about their favorite subjects
- more residential tutors available than any other dorm! Many people go to tutoring for the first time in college, and I will personally vouch for next year’s tutoring staff. They tutor in math, science, engineering, writing, and public speaking.
- extra undergraduate academic advisors
- novel club- get a free book to read over the holidays and come back and discuss it over dinner with your dormmates
- Deans’ Dinners- these are events where prominent professors and faculty are invited to the dorm to give a lecture of their choice, followed up by a chance for students to have dinner with these professors. Last month, several lucky FroSoCoans got to discuss politics and international relations over dinner with Condoleeza Rice! </p>
<p>Lastly, FroSoCo does cultivate a close-knit community, and next year’s RAs are a terrific bunch.</p>
<p>Don’t live in FroSoCo.</p>
<p>@kakashi why?</p>
<p>gustav, thank you for the informative post about FroSoCo. It is interesting to learn about the programs exclusive only to FroSoCo - the academic programming. Does the other dorms have their own unique programs, too? Or is this just a FroSoCo thing?</p>
<p>Other residences also have unique programming. The residence with the most intensive academic programming is SLE.
[Structured</a> Liberal Education - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structured_Liberal_Education]Structured”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structured_Liberal_Education)
<a href=“https://www.stanford.edu/dept/DLCL/cgi-bin/web/?q=sle[/url]”>https://www.stanford.edu/dept/DLCL/cgi-bin/web/?q=sle</a>
I also believe there have been many threads here on College Confidential about SLE as well. </p>
<p>Ethnic-themed housing options have culturally themed special programs as well, and most dorms have special dorm traditions, but for academic programming, SLE and FroSoCo are the most notable.</p>
<p>Thanks again for the insights, everyone! :D</p>