<p>Relax people - I find it amusing that parents are the ones stressing out over assignments. The truth of the matter is that modern or traditional, triple or double - the best thing about going away to college is the opportunity to have your children explore new things -they will develop new friendships and become responsible for their own actions. Where they live will not make or break their year - and trust me, it goes by way too quickly! </p>
<p>New Freshmen - Now that you know where you will be living, contact your roommates - decide who will bring what - you will be amazed at all you have in common (there was something to that questionnaire you filled out)- it may very well turn out that you won't become BEST friends, but you can certainly last nine months with them. For the most part, the dorm room is for sleeping & some studying - You will survive! Give it a shot before complaining too loudly. I expect most of you will have the absolutely BEST time of your life - that's why you chose WUSTL!</p>
<p>melanieek - I am not sure what was meant by your statement "the WashU community has never seen a situation like that before" (in regards to a rape that occured on campus). If you will check campus security records, WU reported TEN forcible sex offenses IN residential halls in 2004 and SIX in 2005. That is TWICE the number of Northwestern, Rice, and University of Chicago COMBINED! Has the school given any reasons for such HUGE numbers. Those numbers are several times higher than my gigantic state U. I can't wait to see what numbers they post for 2006.</p>
<p>Also, I must respectfully disagree with your statement, "the point here is that your mental health, your physical health and your general well-being are all entirely unaffected by whether you live in a traditional or modern dorm". Totally untrue. People with allergies require a certain environment and the mold I saw growing in the traditional dorms would certainly cause them a problem. People with seizure disorders can be adversely affected by certain kinds of lighting and sounds. Persons with seasonal affective disorder need an environment with lots of light, definitely not present in the traditional dorms. Those suffering from depression can certainly be affected by a gloomy atmosphere and crowded conditions, both present in the traditional dorms. </p>
<p>I am getting a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that I chose the wrong school. I tell you what - if in your mind both living arrangements are equitable, I will trade you my traditional triple assignment for your modern single.</p>
<p>AlphaOmega
Where do you get your facts? You are so off base about Wash U and the Traditional Dorms! I have a S who has been involved with Residential Life at Wash U for 3 years, and he lives in a traditional dorm. I totally disagree with your traditonal dorm description. Have you ever been in some of the dorms at Northwestern University or the University of Chicago? I have, and some of the traditional dorms there are quite dark and depressing. The sexual offenses facts you mentioned are incorrect. If you are going to state facts and numbers-back it up! Where did you get your information? BTW all schools deal with issues concerning sexual offenses, especially among its own students. Rather than go to Wash U, you should really consider another school.</p>
<p>I have to doubt the claims by AO too. Just logically, I would think there would be less chance of sexual assault in a triple room....safety in numbers etc. Also, I would think that alcohol/substance consumption would be more of a factor in sexual assault risks at any school than what type of dorm one is in.</p>
<p>I checked out the Wash U crime archives for 2004/2005 and I did notice some sexual assualt reports on campus and in the dorms. Every college deals with this issue--it doesn't matter if it is 1 sexual offense report or 10 (1 is too many).</p>
<p>Please, please - several of the things I mentioned have been misinterpreted.</p>
<p>First of all, I did not compare the dorms of Northwestern and University of Chicago to the traditional dorms of WU. I am sure all schools have their good and bad. I was comparing the forcible sexual assault statistics from each school. For the specific numbers on WU, you can go to <a href="http://www.ope.ed.gov/security/InstIdCrime.asp?CRITERIA=C%5B/url%5D">http://www.ope.ed.gov/security/InstIdCrime.asp?CRITERIA=C</a>. This identical information is available on the WU police page. For statistics on any college you can go to the main page - <a href="http://www.securityoncampus.com%5B/url%5D">www.securityoncampus.com</a>. I totally was not expecting what I saw when I looked up the statistics on WU. In an attempt to make myself "feel better" about the numbers I looked up "like" schools such as NW, UnCh, and Rice. When those numbers were much lower I still attempted to self soothe by looking up huge state U; surely their numbers would be bigger. It wasn't so. It scares me, that is all.</p>
<p>Also, I did not say that forcible sexual offense crimes occur more often in one type of dorm over another. </p>
<p>Regarding my description of the traditional dorms at WU, I guess each person sees with their own particular needs in mind. A traditional triple was my 6th and last choice. MM, your son sounds like he has had a great experience in the tradtional dorms.</p>
<p>You are going to LOVE Wash U no matter what dorm you live in. The forcible sexual assaults on campus and in the dorms tells me some kids may have issues with aggression/drinking (usually drinking and forcible sexual assualts go hand-in-hand). I would try not to get too worked-up about these issues before you arrive on campus. What dorm will you be living in? My S is a RA in Beaumont House. He loves this traditional substance-free dorm. He has also lived in the modern dorms for 2 year.</p>
<p>the point i was making regarding the rape on campus last semester--and the point being made by those in washu's administration--was that the specific details of this case were entirely new to the community. sexual assault occurs on every college campus, and it is usually alcohol-related (actually, i think student health at washu will tell you that every single reported case of sexual assault has involved alcohol consumption by at least one of the parties involved). the unique aspects of this specific incident were not only that no alcohol was involved, but more importantly the fact that the perpetrator was someone from outside the washu community who somehow entered a dormitory unlawfully. that's why the university responded so forcefully, though that's not to say that other instances of sexual assault should be overlooked.</p>
<p>also, alphaomega--i lived in a modern single last year, but i also spent about a month over the summer living in a traditional double, and apart from wishing i'd brought a rug, i didn't really feel that it was such a huge difference. i'm not going to go into my own medical history, but i've got plenty of allergies (mold included, lucky me), and i've also gone through periods of the other conditions you mentioned. though the traditional dorms are darker because they don't have the same overhead lighting system, they actually have more natural light than any modern single does, because traditional rooms have larger windows. plus, though they seem gloomy, most friends i have who lived in traditional dorms brought in their own decorative lighting to add flavor to the room as well as brighten their space.</p>
<p>if you have a legitimate medical reason for wanting to switch to a modern dorm, call reslife. it's early in the summer, and it's still possible to switch, i'm sure. other than that, just keep in mind that things can't always go your way. sorry for the disappointment, i guess.</p>
<p>mel eek - Each and every freshman has a picture of what college will be like in our mind's eye, right down to the dorm room. All of us who had a little bit of the dream die when we were assigned our last choice in housing are feeling bad right now. We will come around, but right now, it stings. Saying "you can't always get what you want" and "sorry for the disappointment, I guess" are not the kind of words we want to hear. Especially from someone who did get what they want. </p>
<p>Life is mostly froth and bubble
Two things stand like stone
Kindness in another's trouble
Courage in your own.
(AL Gordon)</p>
<p>I agree with you AO, a friend of mine is totally devastated because she not only got her "no choice" (6th) but because she wasted time filling a form that nobody cares about, no matter what she answered they didn't care she was just a lottery number no one told her before.</p>
<p>I am honestly having a hard time figuring out why Wash U accepted some people on these boards - Nothing like going into a new experience with an open mind...</p>
<p>As for the sexual assault on campus this year, this was completely different than any other assault that has occurred on campus and reported in statistics. Studies have shown that all school tend to under report sexual assaults, as most incidents have students as perpetrators, and many have alcohol involved (the reporting is on the student/residential life side).</p>
<p>*The incident this past year was by an outside intruder, who has thankfully been caught. * This is a TOTALLY different situation than student on student crime. Having lived in the same dorm where the assault occurred last year (only 100 people), I can say that the old dorm had nothing to do with the assault. WashU is in the process of adding security cameras at all dorm entrances, and has installed peep holes in all dorm rooms or common rooms that have a door to a hallway. There's no safer time to life in ResLife housing. I also hate when anyone without knowledge of the assault this past year uses it to draw baseless conclusions about safety. The intruder gained access to the dorms by walking in behind someone else before the door to the dorm fully closed - A news reporter tried this a few months prior, and the student who was tailed in called the cops on the guy. Generally students are pretty vigilant about that kind of thing, especially since the assault and the VA Tech massacre.</p>
<p>On another topic, old dorms are NOT dirty. I've lived in old dorms for 2 years, and have never had an issue with mold (and I'm allergic to mold). The maintenance department cleans out all AC units over the summer, and changes all filters - I've seen the inside of mine when they were repairing it, and it was spotless. Sure, the walls are painted off-white/tan-ish instead of white, but that doesn't really make a difference. </p>
<p>The old dorm atmosphere is great, even if you have a triple in an old dorm. As long as you get along with your roommates, you'll have a blast - If you really have issues with your roommates, you can always switch dorms after a few weeks.</p>
<p>I am amazed at all the "opinions" that Trapper has, given the fact that this person has yet to live on the WashU campus. Nothing like basing your "opinions" on hearsay and second or third hand scuttlebutt instead of personal experience.</p>
<p>Also since room assignment was lottery, I am assuming that they did read the survey and as your number came up you were placed with the best match according to your requests. However, unfortunately for those at the end they could not honor their requests because of limitations of what was available. This does not mean that the surveys were not utilized.</p>
<p>ST2, I’m an insider, my uncle has been a professor there since 1988, two of my cousins are students there (one just graduated class 2007); my brother is senior in pre med, and I have many friends there, besides I went to summer pre college classes twice and I lived in both traditional and modern dorms. Also my dad worked at the Barnes Jewish Hospital many years (my parents are divorced)
Need advice, surveys are only used under medical reasons, they don't care about your wishes.</p>
<p>I complained to ResLife and I was told that they would try to make some arrangements during the next weeks because at least two hundred students called to be move to a different room. They didn’t take in consideration the housing form this year unless the student was a handicapped person. Upperclassmen don’t move out of campus besides the extra benefits making things more complicated for the new class.</p>
<p>cressmom, I'm confused as to what happened this year. Were you saying that more than expected upperclassmen chose to live on campus this year? Why is there a housing issue again this year if they supposedly cut the size of the freshman class this year?</p>