<p>It's hard to discern from the UW website how hard it is for freshmen to get their housing choices. The learning community info my son got in the mail says to list Bradley, etc. as the first choice -- but how likely are kids to get their first choice? On our fall visit day, they told us that the students are not even guaranteed housing.</p>
<p>Does it make a difference lakeshore area vs. the southeast area? My son is leaning toward the lakeshore area to have a quieter dorm life. Any thoughts on how hard it will be to get into the new dorms? Any recommendations on dorms in the lakeshore area?</p>
<p>I think most people get one of their top three choices. I never met many people who were in the area they didn’t want to be in at all. You also have to consider the size of the dorm you want - for example, Sellery and Witte are so big (and essentially identical) that if you list those two first you’re most likely going to get into one of them. I think most of the learning communities are not too hard to get into, they may be popular for a certain type of student but overall I think most students don’t really want to live there. I am not exactly sure as to the popularity of Bradley or other Lakeshore dorms, but I think most people who want to live in that area do get it. Freshmen are not guaranteed housing but almost all who want it do get it. They may put you in expanded housing if there are no more spaces (you live in a converted den in one of the dorms, seems annoying but I always thought the guys living in our den had it made) but I don’t hear a lot about people trying to get housing and not being able to get it. This is of course assuming that you send in your contract on time and such.</p>
<p>The new Lakeshore dorm will probably be most popular with students who want to live in Lakeshore (that is, students who want to live in Lakeshore will probably mostly have that as their first choice, making it harder to get in) but I don’t think Lakeshore is the most popular area to live in overall, so it shouldn’t be that bad. I think the new dorm is pretty big, too, so that should help, and it increases the chances of everyone getting housing since there’s more space. The Southeast area is more cityish and many of the dorms there are more party dorms, though everyone studies hard at least Sunday-Wednesday. I think that Southeast has a better location (closer to restaurants, shopping, etc) but Lakeshore is prettier and quieter. It’s all about what you value. They are about the same distance to class buildings.</p>
<p>Also, when you list a learning community as your first choice, and receive your first choice, you get an email invitation to log onto ‘Rooms-Online’ and pick your exact room. Do you want the 2nd or 3rd floor in Chad so you don’t have to wait for an elevator? Do you want the top floor, with a view of the lakes and Capitol?</p>
<p>All dorms freshmen can choose will be at least 50% freshmen. The most popular dorms for returning students will get up to that 50% of returning students max. Liz Waters is popular and some others- but all good choices for freshmen. The best bet is to rank your favorites in the order of your personal choice (ie have your son rank his, not your, choices). Don’t pay any attention to dorm popularity as the computer lottery could give the first choice.</p>
<p>Have your son look at the various dorm subsites for room layouts and other differences. The lofting guides show additional pictures. He will get the chance to change his rankings before the final deadline of May 1st. Let him choose a learning community if that is what he wants. Plenty of students do and don’t- a personal choice no one else can decide for him. The parents’ role is to notice things the student may not and to offer advice. The future UW student is the one to choose a dorm and courses.</p>