<p>I'm a senior in high school and only in the middle of applying to colleges, so I know I have time to think but, I know that wherever I will be going to school next year, I will be living on campus. What is more "normal"... living on a mixed floor with girls and guys living next door to each other, or living in a building with both genders but separated by floors(like an all girl floor, then an all guy floor)? Honestly, I'm comfortable with either, I just want to make sure that whichever I choose is right. Which is more typical? I hope this question makes sense, I guess I'm just looking for some information from people who actually know what it's like, not my old school guidance counselors or my parents :P </p>
<p>There is no normal situation and neither situation is more right than any other. Housing arrangements vary so much from school to school that one thing that is very normal at one school could be very atypical at another school. Don’t worry about it. The most normal situation is to not get very much choice at all. List your preferences (and different schools will give you different preferences to list) and what you get will depend on what’s available and how popular different living arrangements are. Don’t worry about it.</p>
<p>One thing to consider about mixed gender floors is the sometimes also have mixed gender bathrooms. This is most likely to occur if there is only one bathroom per floor.</p>
<p>At my school all freshman dorms were co-ed. One of two things could happen: The floors alternated in gender or one half of the hall was girls and the other half was boys. We did not have to share bathrooms with the guys if they were on the same floor. </p>
<p>After freshman year the upperclassman dorms had mixed gender floors, but every dorm had their own private bathroom.</p>
<p>Yeah, a lot of schools now have co-ed bathrooms (even ones with more than one bathroom on a floor) which I think is in part due to an effort to be more trans* inclusive - helps avoid more separation into male and female groups which could be awkward for someone who isn’t cis.</p>
<p>I’ve heard that all-girls dorms tend to be the quieter, non-party dorms (versus mixed floor or mixed dorm), but this probably varies based on the college/the dorm itself. </p>
<p>At most of the schools we visited, co-ed dorms were single-gender by floor.</p>
<p>We have mixed floors. I’m a girl who somehow managed to be surrounded by guys and the boys bathroom. Each floor has a girls and guys bathroom</p>
<p>But like everyone’s said, the situation varies from school to school. RPI has several buildings which are all guys on one floor, and then divided 50/50 for the remaining floors. </p>
<p>Thanks so much everyone! </p>
<p>I know you’ve gotten quite the scoop on residence hall life, but I just wanted corroborate that dorms can vary and you’ll likely encounter both types of living situations at your school. I currently live on a co-ed floor and I’m also next to the boys’ bathroom, haha. I don’t think there’s much of a difference socially–you’ll probably find people of both genders hanging out in the lounges regardless of the configuration. </p>
<p>Good luck in college next year! </p>