<p>During REX I moved into what I thought was the right dorm. I still like the people living near me but I find myself spending more and more time in another dorm. I don't want to bother moving this year but I want to know how housing works for sophomore year. Is there some day when people submit preferences to some office or do people contact dorms individually to see if there is enough room for them to move? When does this happen? Do I have to do anything soon or can I just wait and see what my life is like this spring? </p>
<p>(Don't ask how I got Maine in my profile instead of MA)</p>
<p>Housing switch info is [url=<a href="http://web.mit.edu/housing/undergrad/process.html%5Dhere%5B/url">http://web.mit.edu/housing/undergrad/process.html]here[/url</a>], and the actual switch form itself is [url=<a href="http://web.mit.edu/housing/undergrad/application.html%5Dhere%5B/url">http://web.mit.edu/housing/undergrad/application.html]here[/url</a>]. Whether you'll be able to switch into a particular dorm depends on how popular that dorm is (how many open spots vs. how many people want to move in), but I think generally you can move anywhere if you're willing to wait for a spot long enough. :)</p>
<p>If you put your name on the list now, there's a possibility that a spot would open up and you'd have to move mid-semester. I know that's not what you're explicitly trying to do -- obviously it's kind of a pain, but it should be well worth it to move somewhere you'll be happy.</p>
<p>My feeling is that there may be more spots open in mid-semester or during IAP than there would be if you wait until the April lottery (for next year's housing assignment), but I don't know if that's actually true -- I've just personally seen more people able to switch dorms mid-semester or after first semester than after second. So you don't have to do anything now, but I think filling out the form now will maximize your chances of being able to move.</p>
<p>I hope it works out for you!</p>
<p>Thanks Mollie. That gives me something to think about for IAP and a time frame to work with. I guess it varies from year to year how many spots open up in each dorm but each dorm reserves some spots for incoming freshman.</p>
<p>Right, and I'm not exactly sure how that allocation is done -- I'm not sure if there's some process, like 25% of the spots in the dorm are reserved for the next class, or something like that.</p>
<p>There certainly is some shifting, since obviously seniors graduate and FSILG members move to their FSILGs. I've seen several people be successful in their transfer requests, but I'm not sure how long any of them had to wait.</p>