I discovered I was assigned to East House. Any info/opinions regarding it?
Ouch…East is one of the old houses. The new houses (Hank, Stambaugh, etc) are way better. I don’t want to be a debbie downer here, but east is probably bottom 2 of all the Commons dorms, if not the worst.
How did you find that out?
Keep in mind that “bottom 2 of all the Commons dorms” is still a perfectly fine dorm. All the dorms were renovated in 2005/2006 (when the new ones were built) to make them normal, modern college dorms.
I personally wouldn’t consider East bottom two but all the original dorms are so similar that it’s hard to say. There’s also a lot of variability in size/shape of rooms within each dorm. Even in the “best” new dorm, there are rooms that are smaller and really inconveniently shaped.
Agree with what Pancaked says. East objectively is not that bad of a dorm. I was merely comparing it to the other Commons dorms. Walking into Hank is like walking into a hotel honestly. They have a front desk and everything. The common room in East is tiny compared to the better dorms. There’s only one study room per hall (because the building is so small). The basement is scary D: But across America, East is a perfectly fine dorm on its own.
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I disagree with the above views, I know a lot of people who would rank East in the top 3-5 houses on Commons, and it really depends on what you want from your house experience. East, along with Memorial and West House are the smallest three houses on Commons, with 1/3 or less of the people living in Hank Ingram and some of the larger dorms. This means that by the numbers students in those dorms get more interaction with their faculty head of house and more mentorship opportunities with the residential advising staff, which contrary to the old concept of an RA really do serve the main role of helping students get involved academically, extracurricular, and socially on campus. There also seems to be a stronger sense of community in these smaller dorms, since with only 100 other people in the house or less, it is very feasible to not only know all your housemates by name, but know enough about them to at least be considered acquaintances if not friends or a school family. This is a far cry from some of the students in the larger dorms that still don’t recognize people on their halls in the second semester. While the smaller house may not be the right fit for everyone, I will say that I know more people who passionately loved and talk about their experiences in East, Memorial, or West than any other house on Commons. I also know more upperclassmen friend groups that originated in the smaller houses and have stayed together throughout their time at Vandy, which is great for freshman who aren’t really into clubs and don’t make friends in class, as they really can satisfy their social outlets via the house. While there aren’t many complaints about the other 6 (Gillette does get complaints), fewer people from the other houses really seem to grow attached and form an identity around their house.
While they are the “older” dorms, East, Memorial, North, and West were all renovated at the same time as the new dorms were built, so the amenities are largely the same. The only major difference in “niceness” factor of the dorms may come in their overall layout, which may be more awkward (think staircases that only reach some of the floors) and in their ceilings being shorter. In terms of room size, East has one of the largest rooms and smallest rooms on all of Commons, so luck does play more of a factor in how your room size stacks up compared to the new houses’ standardized rooms. While walking into Hank is like walking into a hotel with a nice lobby, it is also like a hotel with many occupants in seperate rooms that don’t interact. One of the greatest misconceptions people have visiting on tours is that Hank being the model dorm means it is the nicest. The “older” 3 dorms are also all closer to Main Campus which means a shorter walk in the morning to class, which is always a plus.
All in all, I think that the admissions tagline that every house has its own personality is very true, and most people seem to find their niche in the house they are placed despite the random placement. However I wouldn’t spend the next few weeks mourning being in a “bottom 2” house since there are so many people that would disagree with that and so many factors that make East special.
@RedHawk99 You mention standardised room sizes in the newer house. How large are they?
What I meant by standardized room size is that since the new buildings were built and designed as dorms, there is much less variation in the room size. Almost every room in Murray House (one of the new buildings) is between 200-240 sqft. This is in contrast to the refurbished houses like East, which has rooms that vary from 160 sqft at the smallest, to 340 sqft at the largest. While all of the rooms in any house are plenty big enough with correct furniture placement, the refurbished houses offer more room to be extremely lucky with an extra 100 sqft or a little unlucky with 40 less sqft compared to the new counterparts.
I lived in east house. First things first, the faculty there are nice. Prof. Gadd is great, not as cool as the hank people (COME TO GAME NIGHT!!! VANDERBILT GAMECRAFT PLUG) but still they are very nice people. I also know one of the RAs there and he is a super cool guy. The Dorm rooms are very big, mine was almost too big and me and my roommate struggled to fill the space (we were in Room 321, the same room as 421 would be). The Real problem with East is not room size, but the lack of a laundry room. Your best bet is the adjacent dorm, Stambough and NOT across the lawn to west (mistakes were made). The basement is a bit run down and very creepy, don’t go there. East’s location on commons is a happy medium, it is one of the most centered dorms with respect to everything.
I’ll help you move in on the 22nd, so if you have any question just look for the tall dude named John, I’m doing move crew.
Focus on the positive. Relationships with your Resident Faculty member can be so helpful when you apply for things on campus. Stambaugh Faculty person wrote letters of reference for our Vandyson at least five times including for graduate school and for minor appointments to committees he sought to serve on or internships he sought. (He was rejected about 50% of the time…so that is just reality…just stay in the game and pursue things you are interested in on campus). His Stambaugh professor was advisor to his Mayfield House (at their request). And an advisor to another org he was part of on campus. The point is, rather than focusing on the pros and cons of housing, advise your student to focus on People at Vanderbilt. The ones that will help you-- are right in front of you. Even if your freshman seminar is NOT your cup of tea, make sure to fully appreciate your teacher, your RAs and your upperclassman advisors. Son’s freshman seminar was intense with an intense and talented professor who knew a zillion more content on topic than he could ever hope to master. Don’t be intimidated. She also wrote a reference for grad school for him (he sought her out for another course). You do not have to be the “best” in your class at Vanderbilt to ask for a letter or faculty or upperclassmen advice. Embrace the faculty you meet along the way even if you are “average” in talent in a subject. Average at Vandy has new meaning. Yep…East study rooms are smaller and laundry is a hike but you are facing the lawn designed by Stanford White. Look up his story. Did you see the film “Ragtime?” Be glad they tore down the last of the truly grim on campus before this class reported to Vandy. In general the facilities, dining services and neighborhoods around Vandy are very very satisfactory and the envy of many. 18 year olds need a little boost to truly appreciate where they are trodding. Their hearts should rise every time in their chests just a little when they are crossing what was Peabody’s campus. Do they know how many thousands of children and handicapped children have benefited from the graduates of Peabody over generations who are in the vanguard of teaching. I am proud that Vandy puts a premium on producing teachers in a world where so many of America’s young people are in very poorly functioning schools. Put “A Summons to Memphis” and “All the King’s Men” under the tree and help them visualize the great writers who studied and taught at Vandy. As much as Stambaugh was glam and new when Vandyson got there…it had no “stories” to tell yet.