<p>There are some threads about this, but they all seem to be pretty old. I’m reading a lot of different things about the apartments vs. the dorms and I just want some advice on which to pick. I want to be around other freshman and people with the same major (engineering), but I don’t want to be partying or hear parties all the time. </p>
<p>I really like the style of the apartments with the bathrooms being shared with only 4-5 people instead of pretty much a public bathroom in the dorms. </p>
<p>Do you guys have any advice on this? Also, for those who stayed in the dorms, how’s the bathroom situation? It just seems weird coming from high school :)</p>
<p>It sounds like you might like North Mountain. It’s the “engineering dorm”, although kids from other majors chose to live there, too. The rooms open directly to the outside (no halls), kind of like a motel. All of the rooms at North Mountain were a triple last year (with no problem – the rooms are a good size). Bathrooms are shared between 4 rooms (so 12 kids share the bathrooms). My son (a chem major) felt his neighbors at North Mountain were nice and sociable enough, sometimes playing board games etc. My son and his roommates main form of socialization was with their sport clubs and study groups. And about the bathrooms, a group of boys that shared the same bathroom as my son are housing together this year. </p>
<p>I’m sure others will chime in with descriptions of the other dorms. </p>
<p>And congratulations! You’re going to love SLO!!</p>
<p>The engineering living learning community is in the red bricks. Every student in the whole building is an engineering freshman. Once you get outside of the red bricks, then you get into a mix of other majors and upperclassmen. Even though Cerro Vista and PCV are new and shiny, I’d recommend avoiding those. Being in those locations will impede your ability to meet and bond with other freshmen. Good luck.</p>
<p>Thanks. So would North Mountain be better or the red bricks? And when time comes to register for housing, what should I pick if I want the red bricks? Do they automatically assign you to the engineering part?</p>
<p>Somewhat unrelated question: How are roommates assigned? Do they try to match people with the same interests up or is it just random? Thanks again guys.</p>
<p>If you go onto the housing web page you can work your way through all the housing options. It seems the best way is to look by interest with the building as the secondary feature. I believe, and you should verify this, that all the engineering communities are in the bricks and the mountains, with the bricks being exclusively freshmen. You’ll decide if you want Lining Learning (all freshman with the same major type), or a non-academic interest like hiking or social where you live in the towers. It will make better sense once you muddle through the options. I believe you have to rank 5 options. For what you’ve expressed, Engineering Living Learning seems like the best fit. It is in Santa Lucia, one of the red bricks. Good luck.</p>
<p>Just so I get another opinion…what do you think about @MLM s suggestion about North Mountain? </p>
<p>And yes, I saw online that only the apartments are available for upper classmen.</p>
<p>About the roommates, so do they put you with people of the same interests as well? Say I like food (just made something up), will they try to put me with someone else that likes food as well or is it just based on major?</p>
<p>@georgiakid191 - According to SLO’s FAQ’s - Matching Roommates:
If the student has not requested a specific roommate via the housing application, roommates may be matched based on learning community preferences requested, gender, and smoking or non-smoking. Please note that smoking is not allowed inside any building on campus</p>
<p>As a student who stayed in North Mountain as a student, this is without doubt your best choice:</p>
<p>-North Mountain is half engineering majors which will help with studying and meeting people in your major while introducing you to a diverse array of other students.</p>
<p>-North Mountain is not the party place, I rarely ever had noise problems there. Unlike the redbricks where you may experience loud noise at times.</p>
<p>The restroom situation is very good. You share two showers and two toilets with 3 other rooms, and this was adequate. I rarely had to wait to use a toilet or shower. </p>
<p>Hope this helps. Message or reply if you have any more additional questions.</p>
<p>As a student who stayed in North Mountain as a student, this is without doubt your best choice:</p>
<p>-North Mountain is half engineering majors which will help with studying and meeting people in your major while introducing you to a diverse array of other students.</p>
<p>-North Mountain is not the party place, I rarely ever had noise problems there. Unlike the redbricks where you may experience loud noise at times.</p>
<p>The restroom situation is very good. You share two showers and two toilets with 3 other rooms, and this was adequate. I rarely had to wait to use a toilet or shower. </p>
<p>Hope this helps. Message or reply if you have any more additional questions.</p>
<p>You have to pick a preferred order anyway, so don’t get too caught up on a single option. You might not get it. </p>
<p>My son chose red bricks first, simply because he preferred the living learning community. He wanted to be with freshmen engineers. That’s the best way to insure that. With that said, he picked north mountain second. He ended up in the bricks but would have been happy either way. They are side by side in what I think is the best dorm location on campus. If you want more diversity in ages and majors, choose north mountain. Either way, both are great. The towers are a bit more wild and the newer properties are isolated and have few freshmen.</p>
<p>As for noise, you shouldn’t study in your room anyway. Find a place you like on campus. It’s less distracting. Studies have shown that students who do not study in their rooms maintain higher average GPAs. </p>