it is really not "the zoo" unless you make it that way, its definitely fun but not overly crazy or wild
hampshire and berkshire are the best dining halls (take my word)
northeast sucks, the rooms are small and weirdly quiet
southwest is the best place to live, even for people not interested in partying
central & O hill are okay at best
if you are coming here not knowing anyone join a RAP, clubs, greek life, sports, etc. Also get to know your floor, because you are bound to find at least one person on it you connect with
RAP's are great cause the guarantee housing for where they are located, you meet people easier due to small class size, most if not all cover some sort of Gen Ed, most are easy A's
learn the bus system, its super simple and very convenient
there are monitors that u must sign in through at night in dorms with your ucard, be nice to them, also becoming a monitor is a great easy job to have on campus, you get to choose your schedule basically and you can meet monitor friends and exchange ur stories about the crazy sh*t that monitors see
get an IClicker cause tons of classes require them, don't buy books unless you really need them tho
how much you can get away with in your dorm (smoking, playing loud music, etc) depends on where u live on campus. If you are loud choose a building thats notoriously loud so u are less likely to be told to shut up or quiet down
Southwest has the chillest RA's
Honors dorms are nice, but it sucks there besides Roots and the fact its super close to the Rec center
You will not be as close with your floor if u live in a tower, if you want a better floor bond live in a low-rise
dont be the person that will sit in a stall doing nothing till everyone leaves the bathroom, we all go to the bathroom
Please feel free to add more helpful info about UMass
@ttm0712 Honors college is like the pride and joy of UMass basically. They put most of their money into constructing it and honestly, it feels like you’re walking into a completely different school. You got Pita Pit and the roads in that place specifically are all lined with cobble stone. The rooms are the newest and nicest on campus (which is why it comes with the extra price tag). Also, they’re the only ones who have air conditioning in the rooms, so you probably won’t need to bring a fan. The best way to describe it is like living in a hotel room without room service basically (unless when you’re a freshman, in which case you still have a roommate). Lifestyle wise, it’s kinda like a combo of SW and Central, it’s not as loud as living in a tower per say but I would never consider it boring. The people can be kinda stuck up and snobby from time to time, but those are pretty few and far between (I have a couple of friends who live in the honors college who are really chill). Since most of them do have the money, just be aware that weed is pretty prevalent here (but not as much as central).
Yes, absolutely do a RAP! Signing up for a RAP was the best thing my D did for herself when she started at UMass. It’s a great way to start to find your own community within a very large school. The people she met in her RAP have become her friends and now roommates. They’ve taken other classes together since, too. The RAP she took also really helped her focus in on her choice of major. Signing up for a RAP is the one firm piece of advice I’ve heard her more than one incoming UMass student.
She is in the Honors College but has not chosen to live in the honors dorms. Some of her friends are in the HC, some are not.
From the UMass website: http://www.umass.edu/rap/how-join-rap. You can hold a place in a RAP beginning in May, and you schedule is confirmed during orientation over the summer. Don’t wait until orientation, RAPs fill up and you’re out of luck.