Differences between them?
To preface, housing selection is completely arbitrary unless you are in a Living/Learning community.
60% of the freshman class will end up on Upper, and 40% will be on Newton. Newton is 12 minutes away from main campus (i.e. Chestnut Hill, the quad, etc. where you’ll have classes and where all administrative buildings are). Thus, you’ll have to take a bus to and from your dorm room to get to class every day. This doesn’t include to get food since you have a cafeteria near you (Stewart dining hall.) You can eat in either Mac (McElroy Commons on main campus) or Stewart, next to your dorm room.
Some people see the bus as a hassle, but it’s a non-issue for most people. People I know who lived on Newton said it’s not that bad.
There’s no main library on Newton (besides the BC Law School one, but that is restricted to law students), so if you want someplace quiet to study, you’ll have to choose between the libraries on main campus or your room–this of course depends on your roommate and how much he/she stays in the room, etc.
Upper is comprised of several dormitories; CLXF (Claver, Loyola, Xavier, and Fenwick halls), Kostka (woman-exclusice dorm), Fitzpatrick/Gonzaga and Cheverus.
Upper is closest to classes and to the dining hall (McElroy.) It’s 5 minutes by walking and classes really aren’t far at all (7-10 minute walk to get to the quad.) So anytime you want to grab a bite to eat, the dining hall is right there to head down to at your leisure. I occasionally went to Mac to get lunch during the day or dinner with friends in the evening since our floor was super close.
Upper is the better of the two since there’s obviously no bus to take and you’re closer to the dining hall, classes, and the libraries. However, if you get Newton, you’ll live. Newton, in reality, has fewer distractions if you want to study and indirectly forces you to be in your room to study hard since the library is far away. My lab partner did phenomenally well his freshman year and he was on Newton, though he didn’t like it that much.
If anyone else wants to add, please do. @bluebayou
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Are the Living/Learning communities all on Upper campus? Thanks for any help!
I know students who actually study in the law school classrooms at night.
And it sounds like it is a tossup, no control and you have a 40% chance to be placed at Newton. I have twins, wonder if one will be on each campus?
Wow interesting. I do think that a set of dorms that’s is 1.25 miles from bapst library is not the dramtatic inconvenience we keep hearing about. All big unis have busses around campus. And it’s one year.
I wonder that the early settlers in their covered wagons would think about this issue 
Every student we have met in 2 visits to the Heights that have lived/living at Newton loved it. Tight community, good food, no complaints about the bus or studying. My D is actually hoping to be placed there.
^^My D volunteered for Newton (to avoid a forced triple), but was placed on Upper anyway. (They had a higher yield of females that year, so scrambled to convert a former coed dorm wing to all girls.)
She even said that sometimes she’d and her friends would bus or even walk in a nice evening over to Newton to eat dinner and visit.
Its been a few years now, but my D said that her friends on Newton were able to access the Law Library since their Id swipe card did not work…
My daughter lived on Newton this year. She liked that it was all freshmen…especially in the beginning of the year, you walk into the dining hall and know everyone is in the same boat as you…not knowing anyone! Ditto on the bus.
That being said, she had a love/hate relationship with the bus! It forced her to plan her day…and get up/out by a certain time to make it to class. But it also meant that she wouldn’t go back to her room to sleep btwn classes…which is what many kids on Upper do!
She def spent more money on ubers late at night but it is what it is for one year!
She did like the community bond. The Newton kids are all ‘in it together’ lol. They even had the “Newton Prom” a few weeks ago run by the Res Life staff. She said it was fun and her friends on main didn’t have one…
Can someone give some insight into the Living&Learning Community? Is it recommended? Hard to apply?
Or should we just take it easy and see whichever (Newton or Upper) we got assigned?
^^^^ imho. Yes
Does anyone has experience in All Women’s Hall? Is it recommended?