So I’ve officially been accepted into my major, and I’m pretty sure I’ll be going to UT, but I have no clue how to choose where to live. Personally, I prefer the off-campus dorms to the ones on campus, but I’m not sure exactly how each one differs from the next. If anyone could give me pros and cons of Callaway/Towers/Castilian/Dobie as well as others, that would be greatly appreciated! Or if you have any other recommendations, I’m definitely open to suggestions on the best places to live!
Boy or girl? If there is room, girls love the SRD, which isn’t exactly an off campus dorm, but is another living option.
Search the forums for detailed, firsthand answers. Recently someone posted telling how bad Dobie had been for him.
My second hand thoughts: people do seem to like Callaway but it is $ and fills quickly. Towers has the rep of being a pre Greek complex, so more parties. I haven’t heard about Castillian. Dobie has a good location, but mixed reviews.
There are some coop options as well that people like. Mixed age living.
My BF lives in Castillian. Single room, shared bathroom, 14 meals/week , +~$13k. I stay with him in his dorm every other weekend. The floor officers don’t check for guests. Every now and then the whole floor smells like weed. Some guy has a dog, despite no pet policy. Sometimes they have movie nights, or floor competitions. The meals are okay. The renovations are nice though. And he’s on the 22nd floor, nice view of the hills west and sunset.
When I attend (Fall 2016) we’re looking to stay in the ICC co-ops, specifically New Guild.
http://www.iccaustin.coop/
http://collegehouses.org/
Both Co-ops have their own style of housing, each house has their own set of rules and requirements to live. Ex: vegetarian/vegan only, pets vs no pets, apartment style vs house style, some are grad student only. At every house you have to preform ~4 hours of labor a week, which can range from cooking to cleaning to gardening. If you’re interested in affordable, close to campus, and a very “different” way of living off campus I recommend checking these out.
ofc there are the cons: some houses are major party houses, you may not like everyone but for the sake of the community at least put up an act, there are penalty’s and eject-able offenses, some houses smell more like weed than others. It’s a little too late to start the application and house process, but something to look into for next year.