<p>Hey, just wondering if anyone accepted into the class of 2012 was considering living in johnson, the substance-free house. I am considering it myself, but wanted to know if the interest in substance-free was, well, existent, at all. haha..thanks!</p>
<p>I am, and I feel the exact same way!
Does anyone know if we need to write some sort of essay in addition to the pledge? It just seemed kind of unrealistic that there would only be 180 or so kids (max) that would choose that option.
Nice to meet another prospective Johnsonite, though, :)</p>
<p>Isn't all of wake substance free?</p>
<p>well technically yeah if you are under 21 you can't drink, but Johnson is great because it provides a pressure free environment for those who chose not to drink etc. The Johnson kids usually bond tightly. Most are pretty involved on campus, and cool with their beliefs. I personally didn't live in Johnson as a freshman, but am really good friends with people who did, just really easygoing personalities.</p>
<p>speaking of housing.. is it random selection or do you put down your first, second, third, etc. choice?</p>
<p>its random selection unless you request Johnson or are physically handicapped... but there always tends to be trends, like athletes are paired together etc. They say the sooner you turn in the forms the better.</p>
<p>Living in Johnson is a personal choice. Plenty of people who live there still party on the weekends, they just choose not to do it in their dorm.</p>
<p>It's actually a pretty nice deal because they always get to go back to their quite dorm at night.</p>
<p>I did substance-free housing, but in retrospect I probably would not have done it. While the guys on my hall were nice, they were a bit introverted and were generally involved with more religiously affiliated organizations--which is fine, and I did make some great friends on the hall. I would only do it if you really, really, really want to not want have people drinking/being loud/etc, otherwise I would do just regular housing.</p>
<p>I live on a substance free hall in Johnson. There was a lot of commotion earlier in the year with micing up those who requested substance free getting in the random pool for all the dorms (instead of just Johnson), which definitely caused some ill feelings on the facebook group for the incoming class. But besides that hassle, it has been a really amazing experience. I would say the quiet aspect is very nice, especially when you are trying to sleep (especially Wednesday nights before an 8 AM class on Thursday). The other half is the people you meet. If you don't drink and want to meet people who are interested in having great times without alcohol and other substances then I would definitely recommend sub-free. This has been such a great year to meet people who wanted to have fun and have a great time without alcohol. In that respect I think it has been one of the best choices because I have met some simply amazing people that I wouldn't have otherwise if we had all been spread out. However, there are people that drink (not really on my floor so much as the others), but I do think some of that is partially due to the mixup I discussed earlier because not everyone who didn't request sub-free was moved out (although they don't have to sign the agreement or be subfree). A lot of my friends in Johnson also go to parties and have a great time, they just don't drink at them. That is also nice because they have a group that they know isn't going to pressure them to drink and makes things have less pressure. </p>
<p>With regard to the "social introvert" stereotype that seems to be endlessly associated with sub-free, I would have to say that is not the case at all with this year's substance free group. Obviously, it can be extremely variable. There are no girls on my floor that fit in that stereotype, and one guy or so on each of the two floors that I would say are the socially "awkward", stay in their room, play video games, and ignore the outside world types. Otherwise, there are some extremely outgoing people and then just a bunch of people who aren't over-the-top outgoing but are very friendly and willing to get to know you. </p>
<p>I have also heard some awful stories from the other dorms, espeically because the drinking is honestly, hardly regulated by the RAs for various reasons and isn't exactly enforced. This may not seem like a problem, but if your roommate or hallmates decide that drinking is their new favorite activity and go to the parties that are endless the first few weeks of classes, it can be extremely difficult. The benefit of sub-free in this situation is that they can/will lose their housing if they are caught returning intoxicated and the RAs for the most part are better about it. </p>
<p>Anyway, if you have any questions let me know or shoot me a message and I would be glad to help!</p>
<p>If you apply ED to Wake and are accepted, are you less eligible for any merit scholarship money compared to RD? It seems that once they have you in a binding contract, they don't need to entice you with merit money?
D is a junior and has been concerned with how many really smart and well rounded seniors have been rejected and waitlisted this year.
We all really liked Wake when we visited over spring break and the campus was empty! Our tour guide was a recent Wake grad and she did a great job detailing all of the really special activities there. I know we will need to do a second look early this fall to see if Wake is the one.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that the entire dorm is not substance free. There are never enough people who request sub-free to fill the dorm, so the remaining halls are filled with people who do not sign the sub-free contract. So chances are you will still run into the noise and drinking seen in other freshmen dorms, sometimes more actually. My freshman year the non sub free hall in Johnson was probably the craziest hall in the entire South Campus.</p>