First of all, congrats to the new Class of 2019! I can’t wait to meet you guys when you come join us on the hill.
Now that you’ve anxiously checked your admission decision, Instagrammed your acceptance letter, and are starting to cool down from all the excitement, it’s time to move onto (what I consider) the most exciting steps of all: preparing for move-in day, including but not limited to the theme of this post: housing.
So, a basic rundown of how housing works: you list your preference of single, double, or triple, and you also list in preference either residence hall, townhouse, or Balch. You can also apply to live in a program house, such as the ecology house or Risley. Essentially, of these options, Balch gets no love, and I am here to advocate for the dorm that has contributed to making my freshman year amazing. For those of you who don’t know, Balch is an all-female dorm. It’s also the oldest dorm on North Campus (which is where freshmen live) aside from Risley. It’s also the BEST. But there are some negative stereotypes about Balch floating around out there, so I am here to negate all of them and give a list that I have been mentally preparing all year for why you should consider listing Balch as your number one choice:
- It's beautiful. This was what initially drew me to Balch. I live in Ithaca so I had seen the building before, and it's absolutely gorgeous. It was built in 1929 and really has a sort of "Ivy League feel" to it. You know, like Hogwarts, giant English Rennaisance building with a courtyard and arches, etc. Seriously, Google it. It's gorgeous.
- The rooms are huge. Granted, I haven't been inside every room in Balch. But compared to the rooms I've been in in the other dorms, the rooms in Balch are much bigger. My room (I live in a double) has enough room to store the insane amount of belongings that my roommate and I both brought and still has plenty of floorspace. We've had people sleep over on our floor before, we have room to have a group of us play cards on the floor, there's room to dance around to relieve stress, etc.
- You get a sink room. This is so handy. You share it with the room next door, and it's essentially just a room with a sink. But it means you don't have to leave your room to get ready for bed. You can brush your teeth, wash your face, wash your hands, etc. right in your own room. I don't know how other people do it; my sink room has completely spoiled me.
- You get the Carol Tatkon Center downstairs. The Tatkon Center is a resource center for first-year students. It includes academic services and a bunch of other programs. It's open to all first-year students, but for Balchies, it's right downstairs.
- There's a cafe downstairs. Super perk. If you're anything like me, when it's -30 degrees out and you're already in bed watching Netflix -- I mean studying -- then you won't want to bundle up and make the freezing trek to the dining halls. Well, if you live in Balch, you won't have to. Just put on some slippers and go downstairs to grab anything from a bagel to sandwiches to sushi (also be sure to buy like 500 S'mores cookies 10/10 would recommend). The cafe also serves Starbucks coffee and tea, so be sure to stop there on your way to your morning class, too! Super bonus perk: the cafe takes BRBs, which are right on your Cornell card, so you never have to use real money.
- It's super close to campus. You might be thinking, "Oh I love to walk" or "Oh I love the outdoors, an extra five or ten minute walk in the morning is no big deal!" Well you're wrong, because when it is -30 degrees out and the wind hurts your face and your coffee gets cold before you even make it to your first class of the day, that extra five or ten minute walk matters a LOT. Balch is a quick 8-10 minutes from the arts quad (maybe 5 if you're speedy). The other dorms are progressively farther away, with the townhouses and some program houses being 15-20 minutes from campus.
- Balch is really like a community. From weekly dinners together to Tastee Treats every Thursday night, there is no end to the programs Balch organizes for its residents. They really want you to be stress-free and enjoy your time here, so the people at Balch really take care of you. They send out weekly emails filled with compliments from one resident to another, let us go trick-or-treating on Halloween, took residents on ski trips, and even organized multiple trips to NYC to see Broadway shows.
- It's quiet. Balch is not known to be one of the louder dorms (I believe Donlon and Dickson hold that reputation). That doesn't mean it's not social: people leave their doors open all the time. But I have never had a problem getting to sleep because people were being loud. In fact, I prefer studying in my room rather than at the library and I have never been interrupted by loud noises or people talking.
- It's the only guaranteed dorm. If you list Balch as number one on your preferences, you're basically guaranteed to get it. In fact, my roommate and I listed it as number two on our list (she didn't want to live here originally because of the stereotypes she had heard -- it took less than a week for her to fall in love) and we still got put here. You don't get to choose between the other residence halls. If you list "residence hall," you could get put into any of them. Generally the newer ones -- CKB and Mews -- are the most desired. And I'm sure they're fine. But you could just as easily be placed in one of the older dorms or in suite-style living. Preferencing "residence hall" is really a gamble. Listing "Balch" is a sure thing.
- THERE ARE NO BOYS. Everybody thinks this is a negative thing, and I mean I'm sure boys are great and all, but having no boys is so nice. Nobody has to worry about walking back from the shower in a towel or doing anything else that may be uncomfortable. I think the lack of boys may be the reason why it's so quiet here (although girls can be pretty loud, too). However, many people think that Balch has some sort of rule against boys being in there at all, and I am here to tell you THAT IS NOT TRUE. My roommate and I are both locals and we both have boyfriends who live/go to school around here, so they are in Balch and spending the night in our room all the time. Guests from outside of Cornell or just from other dorms are allowed to be in Balch as long as they are accompanied by a resident, and anyone can spend the night for three consecutive nights. This is the rule in ALL OF THE DORMS, it's just that it's the most noticeable when an unaccompanied boy is wandering around Balch. Technically, an unaccompanied guest isn't allowed in any of the dorms. But anyway, boys are good sometimes and in small doses, and not having them living next door is great.
I hope this list cleared some stuff up for you or made you more aware of the wonderful living situations in Balch. I’m sure people have contradictory anecdotes, so please feel free to share them! Please feel free to ask any questions you might have as well, I would be more than happy to answer them!
I chose it mainly because it is known as one of the quieter dorms and has sink rooms. I have a question though. How many floors are there in Balch? I heard the elevator is old and scary lol.