Hi 
I’m an Econ major.
Im a social person and enjoy partying. I also want a dorm with a community feel to it.
I’m not a very artsy person and I’m probably not going to join a sorority though I would probably attend frat parties.
I was thinking of Ayers and Elder. Which one do you recommend ?
Elder is all freshmen. It’s more social. However as an Econ major, most of your classes will be south campus, so you’ll have to travel more for class.
to be entirely honest, with the housing lottery system you probably won’t get elder unless you have a good priority number. I would expand your list of dorms you’d be okay with, and like the above post says, be conscious that econ classes will likely be south, which would mean a 15-20 min walk every day. remember it can get very cold here.
The housing lottery system is a disgrace. Children of faculty, administrators, and famous kids get the first 75 or so numbers. They are reserved for them and their roommates. Everything else is random.
What’s your proof of that? That’s a pretty big accusation. Fwiw my double legacy kid had crappy lottery numbers.
.
What on earth are you talking about, Cali?
He’s wrong. I got below 75 freshman year and I’m not rich, famous, related to anyone here, or anything else like that. It’s also not random unless they changed that. It depends on when you sign the housing contract.
trust me
I was in the teens in priority numbers freshman year with no connections. It’s based solely on when you fill it out (for freshman) and based on randomness (for returning students).
OP, it doesn’t make sense to trust the exception to the rule, this is a futile discussion anyway. Crimsonstained is wrong . No way around.
Elder is not far from Econ classes (which are mid-campus but will also be North campus once the new Kellogg building is completed). Keep in mind Ayers is a residential college. If you apply to res colleges and get into one, it’s basically binding. So if you list Ayers and Elder, you’ll be considered for Ayers first. And while Elder is hard to get into, it’s not impossible, especially if you find a roommate with a good priority number. I’m personally glad I went the res college route as I didn’t have to worry about priority numbers.
This is an AWESOME tool from North by Northwestern. It lets you see comments on dorms and rankings for how social they are. You also get to see videos and you get an interactive search.
How does this “priority numbers” thing work? And how do we ensure we get the dorm we want?
There’s no way to ensure it. Last year’s housing selection was a mess, they didn’t have enough rooms open. Tbh, if your priority number is higher than maybe 1200, don’t count on getting into your top three choices.
Is you priority number better by making an early decision on housing?
No.
@CaliCash I’ll be attending Medill next year and I was wondering if there are any dorms that Medill students prefer/center around? Which dorms are furthest/closest to Medill?
@fivedeep My honest recommendation is that you avoid choosing a dorm out of comfort and choose the ones that will give you the best social and college experience. In your freshman year, you will only take 3 classes inside of the Medill building. The closest dorm to Medill is the worst dorm on campus. The amenities aren’t all that great and it’s on the social scale, according to North by Northwestern, it’s the least social dorm on campus. As a freshman, look to live in Bobb, Elder, or Allison.
@CaliCash hey thanks for replying! one more question: differences between residential colleges, communities, and halls? thank you!