<p>when do we choose anyway? sent in housing app and everything already.</p>
<p>As far as I’ve heard we actually get to choose late May-early June.</p>
<p>I asked one of my friends who’s currently at UCI and she said:</p>
<p>"middle earth is closer to classes, and they have better food/dining areas. it’s a little bit smaller, though, room size wise, but bigger than other campuses.</p>
<p>mesa has a lot bigger rooms with newer furniture. it is a lot farther, but it’s really nice. mesa is a little bit more party-esque, though, since it’s so off campus."</p>
<p>Hope this helps anyone. :D</p>
<p>Just as a FYI, not all Mesa rooms are bigger than MIDDLE earth rooms. My friend’s room in mesa in Nubes is smaller than a typical middle earth room…</p>
<p>Hey at spop I noticed some of the halls under construction in Mesa and ME. Does this happen every summer or are the facilities being upgraded?</p>
<p>Middle Earth and Mesa Court are in the process of being renovated, the older halls (~phase 1) are being modernized. I do not think this happens every summer, but I am not entirely sure. The process actually started in Middle Earth in Spring Quarter when they were renovating Mirkwood. I saw construction daily on my way to class.</p>
<p>Middle vs Mesa:</p>
<p>This may come across as biased since I lived in Middle, But honestly Mesa is only better if you are a) a person who really likes to party/socialize or b) want “bigger” rooms. I really enjoyed the convenience of Middle Earth, especially to Social Science/Engineering/Phoenix Grill, which are less than five minutes away. The University Center is also pretty close, as is most of campus. My hall was a phase 2 hall and it was very nice inside and was well maintained. The food is mediocre across the board, but Pippin is definitely better than Mesa Commons, as it has more variety and the food is fresher and better tasting. Check out the UCI Dining webpage and you will see how Mesa Food is rather limited, although the breakfast is the same in both. In general, however, all of my friends/people who I knew from Mesa would dine at Pippin frequently,and complain about the food quality at Mesa. However, it is a 15+ minute walk each way from Mesa and this is not practical under most circumstances. Everything on campus (lecture halls/eateries, etc) except Claire Trevore and Crawford Sports is closer to Middle Earth. The ARC is very far from Mesa, about a 30-35 minute walk. As you can see, Mesa Court is rather inconvenient.</p>
<p>Middle earth, socially speaking is decent but not great. It all depends on your hall and who you meet in classes and clubs. Halls in Mesa party more and socialize more since the RA’s are not as strict and in general, the students are more outgoing. In Middle Earth there were cluster and community council meetings that would occur every week or so throughout the year, but honestly speaking, they were not very interesting for the most part. I knew people in Middle who partied and had fun, and many who did not. In the end, however, it depends on you more than where you live.</p>
<p>The room sizes are slightly bigger in Mesa, but not much bigger. It depends on halls, as some Middle Earth dorms seemed quite large, especially ones in newer halls.</p>
<p>Personally, I think Mesa is somewhat overrated, and Middle Earth’s characterization of being unsocial and whatnot dramatized.</p>
<p>I think that it’s about time to bring this thread back!!!</p>
<p>I went to visit Middle Earth during Celebrate UCI and it seems like a pretty nice place to dorm. I want to check out Mesa Court as well, but ME seems like a great place to dorm. What do the triples and quads look like for both of them? </p>
<p>And if anyone thinks that ME is socially dead, I saw a whole bunch of those red plastic drinking cups while the guide was giving us a tour XD! Apparently, they were beer-ponging it up the night before, haahahaha.</p>
<p>I was at Celebrate UCI as well! I went to see the dorms in Mesa Court and they are VERY nice and VERY spacious. I only got to walk around Middle Earth, I really wish I got to see what the dorm rooms look like because I like the outisde atmosphere there more than at MC. Which is why I think I’m leaning toward ME.</p>
<p>I tend to like newer and bigger buildings so I really want ME’s Phase III. Is there anything that I could put under preferences to get Phase III? I’m looking to get a double room. However, would getting a triple room increase my chances?</p>
<p>Um, I know in MC, we were allowed to choose our hall preference. So if you find a hall that you know it phase III in ME, you could choose that as your preference.</p>
<p>I went to MC during Discover UCI and I found it really cramped. The walkways were 3 ft wide and we had to go single file during the tour. There was also an odor emanating from the main rooms when you enter. The ME halls just seemed cleaner in genereal.</p>
<p>The phase III’s in ME are pretty damn nice. But there are only a few of em, so consider yourself lucky if you get a phase III!</p>
<p>Anyone in Middle Earth who chose Middle Earth because they’re Lord of the Rings fans and thought it’d be cool to say, “Hey, I’ve lived in Middle Earth.” </p>
<p>Sort of a joke, but really, are those in Middle Earth LOTR fans? Is it just a name or are the activies there like, reflective of LOTR appreciation?</p>
<p>Does anyone know anyway to get a phase III in ME (due to special interest halls or otherwise) besides just plain luck?</p>
<p>Okay guys, now I’m starting to reconsider Middle Earth because on the Class of 2015 Facebook group, the only other people that wanted Middle Earth kind of looked like… uh… squares. I’m willing to be the lively partier for Middle Earth! But as long as there at least a few others like me! The people in Middle Earth right now are pretty cool and chill, but I’m afraid that those rooming there next year won’t…</p>
<p>^That will definitely not represent the population. Trust me.</p>
<p>Ugh, I really regret picking ME. I don’t know about any notable differences in social activity between the two areas (when I visit Mesa at night, it seems just as dead as Middle Earth), and the food at Pippin and Brandywine are honestly only marginally better than Mesa Commons, but really, it’s like comparing crap to… poop. :I I guess the only really notable perk is that ME is much closer to campus, though it’s more towards the Social Sciences stuff, which I have no association with whatsoever. Ultimately, I think Mesa is the better of the two simply because the dorms are a LOT prettier and the rooms are nice and big. Also, the bathrooms aren’t as gross. (I don’t know what’s with my hallmates, but they can’t seem to aim their **** or **** IN the damn toilet… there’s always remnants of nasty stuff on the seats, so I have to bring disinfecting wipes with me. =_=)</p>
<p>for freshman, does the housing questionaire stuff come later?
cause all i’ve done so far is pay $20 for the application?
so i’m hoping i didn’t do this wrong… or yeah…XD</p>
<p>^ Yeah, it’ll come later.</p>
<p>When I went to look at MC, it was sooo small. The hallways were literally 3 feet wide. My tour of ME was much more enjoyable.</p>
<p>So I’m thinking about dorming with 2 other people and was wondering if anyone knows what the odds are that we’ll be able to get a triple? Also, does anyone know which residence has bigger triples? Any help or input would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, all!</p>