Is there such a place at UW? I went to the website but it was overwhelming.
Thanks
Chadbourne, plus many if not all of the Lakeshore dorms. Just avoid Sellery and Witte and you should be fine.
Also, look at the learning communities to see if there is anything of interest as then you will be on the same hall as freshman who share your interests.
Midwesternmomofboys, if you are old enough to have boys, wouldn’t your information about Madison be a bit dated?
Only if her only source of information was her own experience 20+ years ago, @brooklynlydia.
You will find that there are a lot of parent posters on CC who are up to date on their info about universities, often through their kids / kid’s friends (who have applied / are attending / attended) and/or b/c they are still involved alums (lots of people who do interviews on CC) and/or they work in secondary schools or third level institutions. The best of them (like @Midwestmomofboys) keep their eye out for posts that relate to things they know about- you would be surprised how specialized some of the info available is around here.- and are usually pretty upfront about any limitations on their info.
Many dorms have a TLC (technology learning center) which are always very quiet. I lived in Kronshage 2 years ago and their TLC was always near silent, plus every house has separate dens, so if you feel that your house’s den is too loud, you can easily move to another den. The housing pages for each dorm should have a section for whether that dorm has an on-site TLC, so look out for that (plus printing is way easier if your dorm has one!)
All the Lakeshore dorms will be quiet in general though. Can confirm because my friends and I basically explored nearly every Lakeshore dorm during freshmen year and they were almost universally very quiet on the weekdays (and to some degree weekends). From there on I would eliminate based on whether it has a TLC, cost vs newness (Dejope, Leopold, and Liz Waters are the nicest dorms but more expensive than the older dorms), and location (Liz Waters is arguably the best dorm location). If you don’t want a single, I wouldn’t pick Adams or Tripp. You can also look at learning communities (again, each dorm page will list whether it has a learning community and what it is) to help facilitate friend-making or meet people with similar interests - Bradley has a nice LC based on what friends have told me.
In the worst case scenario that you are placed in Sellery/Witte, keep heart that there are about 4 libraries/quiet study spaces within a 1-2 block radius of you.
My kid graduated from UW this year. I started reading and learning about UW in 2012, and have followed admissions results here, as well as learned a lot about the institution through my kid’s experience. I answer what I know, and try not to speculate about what I don’t, and am happy to be corrected when I have something wrong.
I am friends with a freshman at UW-Madison this fall and he says that Lakeshore dorms are more quiet and full of the studious students and Southeast dorms are more of the party-loving students.
Morning/night person. No guarantees about your roommate, no matter how much else you have in common, how studious you are. You just need to set up some courtesy ground rules regarding room lighting and visitors when the other wants/needs to sleep. I had one roommate who started out with her farm hours but modified them. There are plenty of spaces to be besides your dorm room. I studied in the den because most people from my lakeshore area were at a nearby library. You will find a favorite place to be.
Look at the two main locations- Lakeshore and Southeast for general neighborhood types. City or suburban vibe outside your dorm. Look at building architecture- old/new, high/low rise. Even eons ago there were distinct differences- I disliked my friends in my major’s choices so never lived where they did. So many choices you need to list factors and eliminate (ie rank low) some. Every dorm has pros and cons. They are all kept in good condition- I have never heard of horror stories like I read online about some colleges.
Avoid Witte not b/c it’s not quiet in the AM but b/c of the current construction project which will run yet another year. Friends there say the jackhammering gets them up at 7 every day. Next school year they begin room to room rehab work. When floors are being worked those students will have to move to a different floor. No one seems to know how that is going to work.