<p>cptofthehouse, our ds seems to very much like yours. Our son has lived in dorms and multi-roommate setting in undergrad and grad schools. He hated the isolating apartment style of living during his internships. Now that he is taken, hopefully a longterm position, he has found a house with 4 other young adults that is also close to this university affilated job. I think he needs the white noise of people and the various activities that many people can provide.</p>
<p>Both of mine lived have been in dorms ( at two diff. big state u's) for freshman year but couldn't wait to get out.
S1 moved to the same type student apt. the OP describes (4 kids in a 4 br.) except it was off campus. He said it was so much easier to get his work done having his own room. He is still friends with a few people he met as a freshman ( he's a sr. now) but has added lots of new ones along the way (that had nothing to do with where he lived).</p>
<p>S2 is a freshman in a suite style dorm this year. It is old (circa 1962) and cramped. It will be closed all next yr. for renovation (that bad). He shares a room that is 11X14. It is in an eight guy suite (just rooms no common area) that share one toilet,sink,shower. To say it is antiquated is putting it nicely.</p>
<p>Several of his h.s friends are at same college (including his roommate). S2 likes all the guys in his suite but I don't really think he has gotten to know (or socializes) with others in the dorm.<br>
I'm sure he will look back on his dorm experience fondly at some point down the road but right now he can't wait to get out. He and 3 friends are renting a house two blocks fr. campus for next yr. He would have jumped at the chance to live in a nice 4 br on campus apt. for the first year.</p>
<p>Neighbor's fresh. S ( at state u.) started out in a dorm this yr., joined a fraternity who doesn't have a house but all live in the same student apts. Neighbor kid left dorm at Fall Break and moved to the frat. apt....loves it.</p>
<p>Check into what the other on-campus housing is really like before you give up the great apt. Check out all the dorms, not just the one you/he would like best. Would living in the worst dorm/worst location be worth it? At big state schools freshmen don't always get their first choice. S2 was completely surprised at the one he was assigned to. He likes OK it for now. I guess it has become sort of a badge of honor to be in the last male dorm on campus (it will be co-ed after renovations) but he is def. ready to move on. </p>
<p>If your S is a social guy, he will make friends and have fun regardless of where he's living.</p>
<p>D is starting Summer B 2009 at UCF and requested a dorm-style room. She already found a roommate on Facebook.</p>
<p>In Fall, she will choose a 4 bedroom, 2 bath suite-style dorm with Kitchen and Living Room. Since it is not mandatory to have a meal plan at UCF, this is ideal for her to make a cup of tea or grab a sandwich before going off to class.</p>
<p>We felt, in the long run, it was less expensive and ideal for her to have her own room and access to a kitchen.</p>
<p>She decided to save a few bucks in the summer and go with dorm-style, just to have the experience and because it's only for 6 weeks.</p>
<p>so, jolynne, how did you all like alabama as compared to UT??</p>
<p>sounds like you might have liked it.</p>
<p>One thing to consider is that he would be an OOS student at a public school with a largely instate (or regional) student body. I think these OOS kids sometimes have to initially make more of an effort socially than kids attending an instate public, or kids at privates where there is more geographic diversity among students. Many of the kids attending UA will already know other kids on campus and have some established social circles.</p>
<p>The other thing to consider is if the building is primarily freshmen or a mix of upperclassmen as well. A freshmen building will have many more kids looking to get out and meet new people.</p>
<p>Neither of these points is necessarily negative, just food for thought. I think kids entering with a positive attitude can be happy in either type of living situatuion. It's all about the effort they put into it. My OOS public attending kid, who is a little bit on the shy side, chose a traditional dorm and has been very happy. In the end, don't overthink it and trust your S's judgement.</p>
<p>I understand everyone's concerns, but I would jump at this housing. There are so many things that can go wrong with dorm living- an obnoxious roommate that "sexiles" you every weekend, noise and no private space, no good way to have your own food stash.....
I wouldn't worry about social life. While it might not be as 24/7 as in the dorm, I think the apartment sounds awesome.</p>
<p>I have to chime in that the traditional two in a room dorm freshman year was utter misery for me. The roomate - not compatible; the hall - overwhelmingly filled with people not for me; the dorm generally - loud and impossible to sleep or study. I got a single sophomore year, and it was so much better. In grad school, I loved my apartment with one room mate and two bedrooms. This is really a personal thing, but for a person who values having any privacy, the two person dorm room is not too great. If you like having action 24/7, and are very easygoing, and can sleep through an atomic attack, then go for the rowdy freshman dorm.</p>
<p>I wish that something like that existed when I went to school. Too bad Alabama and Florida are too far away for my D, those dorms sound great.</p>
<p>My S is currently a freshman in a 3-room, 4-person dorm set-up. There is a common room for the desks, and 2 rooms with beds for 2 people each. My S hates it. His bedroom roommate talks in his sleep and is generally more noisy at night than he is during the day, which is saying a lot. His 3 dorm mates are all quite social, and there are always people knocking on doors and making noise. One roommate never brings his key, so he leaves the door unlocked, and when he finds it locked upon his return (my S is always locking it), has to disturb someone to let him in. One of the roommates sexiles the other one. He likes his roommates, but doesn't like living with them at all.</p>
<p>He would LOVE the private bedroom. Most of the friends that he actually does things with are people he has met in classes and in his one EC, not people he has met in his dorm.</p>
<p>I actually talked to a person in 2007 who has worked for a large school that had both options. </p>
<p>She said that the apartment arrangement multiplied the possibility of personality clashes and possible 3 against 1 situations. She also pointed out that kitchen and communal room caused some students addition problems with personal habits and conflicting levels of cleanliness. She pointed out that with a greater number of students involved there was a greater conflict in class schedules so that someone could always be up early even if the others didn't have a class and it often led to noise complaints when only one or less than all needed to or liked to study in their own room.</p>
<p>She noted that if banned or illegal substances were found in the apartment, it was a possible problem for all residents. (it wasn't mine, it was his!). She related that the two to a room arrangement provided a greater likelihood of knowing if your roomie is into something that makes you need to protect yourself.</p>
<p>She said that the "sexiling" differed in the apartments since at least the student had a room, but that it basically occured when the non-participating student(s) were exposed to the casual nudity and sometime public displays that took place in the common apartment areas.</p>
<p>She said that the benefits of and the problems with the traditional dorm arrangement are still what they always have been. She noted that it did seem that in her experience the larger number of people on the floor facilitated students in making friends even if the roomie didn't provide a friendship.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for those additional insights!! </p>
<p>I tried to do as was suggested during the U of AL trip -- get a peek at the 'traditional' dorm rooms. Son was embarrassed (they weren't part of a tour, it was Sat morning) and would not hear of it.</p>
<p>He's a pretty social guy, but his wide and great circle of friends took a few years to crystalize (in HS). I was very shy in college, though, so there's a chance I'm projecting this on to him, lol.</p>
<p>Now visualizing all the 'regular dorm' problems that could occur (non-stop noise, rowdy roommates, constant partying) and not sure which way to lean.</p>
<p>Son really loved the campus at U of AL (just gorgeous -- weather, architecture [& girls, he noted]). I just called the engineering dept, though, and apparently they don't have any internships or co-ops relating to son's area of career interest (computer gaming development or something related). It's all defense-contract work, including most of the companies that recruit on campus for post-grad jobs.</p>
<p>So, even though it's honors, it could be less of a match for him. Maybe the luxe apts won't be an option, and my biggest worry will be funding his dinky dorm room at $$$ school and staying employed to do that!</p>
<p>Thanks again...!!!</p>