<p>I am about to send in my housing form and I'm picking the three Quad houses as my top choices. I realize some people like the high rises, some like Hill, etc., but I always assumed the majority of freshman agreed that the Quad was the best place to live, if for no other reason that the place is beautiful and loaded with freshmen. My friend just called and told me I'm full of it (in a joking way). Have my assumptions been out of whack? Generally speaking, most agree that the Quad is the best freshmen experience, correct?</p>
<p>i really don’t think the freshman experience varies tremendously from house to house</p>
<p>no matter where you live, there you will find great, good, and probably some slightly strange folks - and your activities / classes will often take you outside of your college house for the majority of the time</p>
<p>though i chose to live in quad sophomore and junior years because i thought it was pretty! still kinda miss it</p>
<p>on a side note, quad probably has the most annoying laundry situation, but that’s what you get for living in a “castle” mainly built between 1899 and 1928</p>
<p>I would say the Quad is the first choice for a majority of freshman. I believe it is physically the nicest place to live, obviously the most beautiful, and the most convenient (for everything but eating…). But realize about half the freshman class doesn’t live there, and it is not necessarily the best freshman experience. King’s Court and Hill are just as social, if not more so. The Quad can actually be hit or miss–you might get stuck in a small, rather isolated hall (the configurations of the buildings can get very convoluted and disjointed) and not live near a lot of people. Hill and King’s Court, on the other hand, have more uniform halls with lots of people. Hill particularly is known for cultivating very strong bonds, partially because of the sheer number of people living in close proximity, and also because it seems to be a “experience” people go through together (tiny rooms, no A/C). The Quad may seem like a quintessential part of Penn, and it really is a beautiful, cool place to live, but by no means will your experience be worse by living elsewhere.</p>
<p>Mostly everyone I know ends up happy with their living situation in the end–even if they entered with sour attitudes. My Freshman Experience in the Freshman Experience residential program in Harrison has been tremendous, and I wouldn’t change my housing situation even if I could (everyone in Harrison had Harrison as their first choice anyway). But if you want the Quad, go for it, and good luck. If you end up not getting in, don’t feel terrible about it, and don’t lose your excitement to start your college years!</p>
<p>Fighting, could you articulate your experience in a little more detail? Specifically, what do you enjoy about the FE at Harrison? Don’t you have five roommates? I visited the high rises and it just felt too far from the heart of campus. Does the FE have an equal number of guys as it does girls? What are the downsides to the FE? Thx.</p>
<p>Would love to.</p>
<p>Up-sides</p>
<p>Living in Harrison
Living in Harrison itself is an experience. The amenities include: Mail/Package room inside the building, ATM in the lobby, our own cafe (Cafe Prima) in the upper lobby, SEPTA tokens at the front desk, Pool/Ping Pong tables in the basement, Music Practice rooms in the basement, small gym in the basement, Group Study rooms in the basement and first floor, tons of lounge space in the mezzanine, computer lab on the first floor, study space on the first floor, and finally, my favorite place to study on campus, the roof-top lounge (which has a stunning view of the Philly skyline).
Every floor has its own lounge, and even floors have a laundry room (three washers/dryers each; free laundry!)
Harrison also has tons of events that are conducted outside of the Freshman Experience program including: brunches, dinners with faculty, subsidized tickets to outside performances/events (including Lion King in Philly, broadway shows in NYC, and a ski-trip), and study breaks with free food provided by Harrison House Council. Basically, Harrison kicks ass.</p>
<p>The rooms
The rooms are fantastic. If you get into Harrison, more likely than not you will end up in a 3 Bedroom Quad, meaning two people will have singles, and two people will be in a double (FOUR people per room, not six; you’ll have to switch at the semester break). Every one of these rooms comes with its own bathroom (NOT a community bathroom), a living room area, a kitchen (with a BIG fridge, a stove, an oven, and a sink), two sinks (not including the kitchen sink), a kitchen table with four chairs, a couch, and an ergonomic chair. I’m the kind of person that likes to stretch his legs a lot, and I love that my room has SO MUCH space. </p>
<p>Freshman Experience
The program’s motive is pretty much to spoil Freshman, and they do a great job with that. Besides Harrison’s events and the events that your RA/GA will hold for your floor, The Fresh Ex program holds even more events. The coordinator, whose name is Beth, is a super-hero who works tirelessly to make sure her freshman are happy. She cooks homecooked meals for us, she bakes like crazy (best cookies ever), and she holds awesome events including: Carnival (held in the rooftop lounge, decorated like a carnival, sack races, bean bag toss, mini-bowling, fortune telling, Pie and RA/GA/Resident, a bunch of fun), Trips to Center City and beyond (Reading Terminal, picnics at parks, IKEA, costume shopping for Halloween, Scavenger Hunt downtown), Movie nights/marathons (Chocolate with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Disney Movie night), Assassins, and so much more.</p>
<p>I have to go at this moment to volunteer, so I’ll finish whenever I come back (have to procrastinate from finals at some point).</p>
<p>But first, quickly, I think Harrison’s location is an upside. We have lots of grass space right in front of us (not as nice as quad, but still very relaxing), we are right next to Commons and Hillel, and very close to all that’s going on on 40th Street (Grocery store, Chipotle, Qdoba, Ben and Jerrys, post office, CVS, Movie theatre, and more).</p>
<p>Hope this helped. Feel free to ask more here or through PM.</p>
<p>Oh, yeah, and there are just as many girls as guys.</p>
<p>You’re such a big help, Fighting. Thank you very much. I still have about 7 hours before I have to submit my application, and now I’m starting to re-think my options. Are there any downsides to living in Harrison as part of the FE? If I do apply, how difficult is it to be accepted. I just read that 82 freshman are in the program, so I assume that would be roughly 40 to 41 females. How many applications are submitted for those spots? The kitchen sounds nice but don’t we freshman have to buy a meal package? What do you use the kitchen for if when you have the meal package? I assume you have to buy supplies, right? And is dividing the clean-up a problem. I’d love a bathroom in the unit but I’ve heard horror stories about messy roommates, etc. Thx again!</p>
<p>Please, call me Fighting Quaker, or FQ for short (yes, I’m that nerdy).</p>
<p>So this year was the first year that they had to turn down people to be part of Fresh Ex. They are expecting an increase in applications, but it still shouldn’t be terribly competitive. If you do apply, I advise you to show enthusiasm and knowledge of the program in your essay. </p>
<p>Yes, Freshman are required to buy a ridiculously large meal plan. But still, the having a kitchen is great. First of all, I eat breakfast in my room every day. Sure I can do that if I lived in another dorm, but it’s a lot more comfy here since we have so much space, and we have a fridge that comes with the room to store the goods. The most popular use of the kitchens here is BAKING. I don’t cook, but I still benefit from other people’s cooking. Brownies, cookies, cakes, it’s great stuff. Also, if you want a late night snack, making some noodles, ramen, pancakes, or even a pizza is easy. A month ago some friends used my kitchen and the kitchen next door for an Iron Chef competition. Again, I didn’t participate in the actual cooking, but I got to eat all the amazing food afterward. And yes, you have to buy the supplies. Some of it you can buy at the Uncommon Market, which takes Dining Dollars. </p>
<p>I’ll be honest, some people’s rooms are sick-nasty, and not in a good way. In my room, I’m the one that cleans the bathroom all the time. While that might seem terrible, I still prefer it to having it not cleaned at all. Plus, with Clorox Ready Wipes, Swiffer, and a Toilet Wand, it’s an easy job. Dealing with messy roommates is part of the process, but if you talk with your roommates early about expectations, then hopefully things won’t turn out that bad. Chore-wheels don’t usually work out, FYI.</p>
<p>Downsides to FE?</p>
<p>There’s not as much as a community feel that you will find at Hill, or the Quad. That does not mean that Fresh Ex is anti-social in general, but we don’t hang out in the hallways because our rooms are so nice anyway (our rooms are where we have parties, socialize with friends, do homework, etc).</p>
<p>Some people complain a lot about the elevators. Too much in my opinion. And it will be better next year for you guys anyway since they will have finished renovating all of them. My suggestion is to not take the elevator downstairs, ESPECIALLY during class times, because that’s when they get busy. 11-13 flights of stairs walking DOWN is nothing, and I do it every day. Going up, waiting is usually less than a minute, and can take at MOST a couple of minutes, unless its a Penn Preview day where 325078741 people are trying to use them. </p>
<p>I’m honestly trying to think hard of other downsides of living here. Getting a sane roommate is luck of the draw, but that’s the same everywhere. If you are an engineer, or will take lots of math/physics classes, the walk to DRL is a bit long (we are on 39th, DRL is on 33rd). Personally, I like walking there for my early class twice a week and find it refreshing. </p>
<p>If I think of anything else, I’ll post it here.</p>
<p>Mhmm what is the likelihood that one doesn’t get his first or second choice? I applied for STWing and had Kings Court and Hill as first and second.</p>
<p>You’ll get one of those two no problem, I’m guessing your first choice. People get stuck with Hill even if they didn’t put it on their application, so you can be sure that you’ll get that (unless it’s for a residential application and your essay stunk)</p>
<p>Fighting Quaker, thank you so much for detailing the FE program. You are very nice.</p>
<p>FightingQuaker, I put Harrison and Harnwell as my first and second choices. Is there a good chance I will get one of them?</p>
<p>Well Harrison I feel you have a better chance at getting since its based on your essay (and the enthusiasm you put into it). Harnwell is a lot harder to get into because its based on the lottery system, so its luck of the draw (and I think a bunch of people apply to Harnwell to avoid writing another essay, sadly). Not really a good answer, but it’s tough to say. Good luck!</p>
<p>Why is everyone obsessed with the Quad?</p>
<p>because it’s pretty and it’s fun to hang out there</p>
<p>What are the chances that I will get into stouffer? I put it as my first choice.</p>
<p>Pretty good, I would think.</p>