<p>I'm not a huge drinker now but I will probably adapt to drinking when I get to Tulane and although I'm not 100% sure I want to be in a frat, I like to party. I want to be around people that are outgoing and I want to be in an environment where I can find people to go out when I want to but won't be judged when I choose to stay in. Therefore, I was set on Monroe and Sharp because I honestly felt like being in a different dorm would make me have to give more effort into establishing my social life. However, the rooms in Wall are mad nice and I may want to apply there. Are there parties in Wall, or pretty much just in Monroe/Sharp? Do people in Monroe and Sharp look at the people in other dorms differently? If I live in Wall, will I go to parties/spend time in Monroe and Sharp or will it seem like a hassle for me? Try not to judge me on this, but does Wall have as many attractive people as Monroe and Sharp? I'm pretty much just interested in anything that anyone knows on the whole dorm thing at Tulane. What is the experience in Wall like vs Monroe and Sharp? Thanks!</p>
<p>jazz…first let me say, I love your enthusiasm, but you need to relax! 
You will find friends and like-minded people where ever you live and at whichever school you choose. Remember, these are freshman dorms, the exact make up of which by definition, changes from year to year. What you are hearing about are stereotypes and reputations, but in actuality, no one knows exactly what it will be like until they get there (this is a good thing!)
As far as “judging” you for living in a particular dorm goes, I would not worry about that. And there are parties in every dorm.
For a “sneak peak” into the dorms, check out Tulane Jeff’s blog - Tour de Dorm:
[Tulane</a> University Admission Blog - Jeff: Tour de Dorm](<a href=“http://tuadmissionjeff.blogspot.com/2012/04/tour-de-dorm.html]Tulane”>Tulane University Admission Blog - Jeff Schiffman: Tour de Dorm) If you click on each dorm name, it will take you to a youtube video.
Pick a dorm where you think that you will be the most comfortable. Look at the layout and amenities. Just remember, there are no guarantees they you will get your first choice. But I’m sure that you will find friends, parties and great experiences in each…</p>
<p>
jazz, I think we have corresponded enough I can make a little fun of your statement. Do you really think they have a beauty contest as part of the dorm assignment process? C’mon, man.</p>
<p>Otherwise, except for reiterating my statement that no one judges you by what dorm you are in (sometimes it is out of your control. People don’t get their requested dorm 100% of the time), I’ll leave the rest to others. Oh, and to also say while the suite style of Wall and some of the other dorms (especially for non-freshmen) is nice, you do have to maintain your own bathrooms. No cleaning service for suites, just for hall bath dorms.</p>
<p>hahaha yeah you’re allowed to make fun of me on that. but you can’t blame me for asking, I mean 500 or so kids live in monroe and same with sharp. it’s not unreasonable to wonder if the other dorms (much smaller) are seen differently. I just didn’t know if there’d be parties in wall since a professor lives there but you’re right, im over analyzing it too much</p>
<p>I just asked my daughter about this since she lives in Wall this year. When I asked her about parties in Wall, she said there are lots of parties in her room. Hahaha She has also gone to parties in other dorms. Honestly, she said it really doesn’t matter what dorm one lives in. You will find friends in your dorm and you will find friends from other dorms. All dorms will have a mixture of people (including more or less attractive…) and she doesn’t feel like she’s ever judged based on what dorm she lives in. She likes living in Wall and loves having a suite…I will say the bathroom wasn’t very clean when I went to pick her up for Christmas though…</p>
<p>I have heard it said often enough that because of the suites in Wall, you don’t get quite the level of spontaneous interaction that you do in Sharp and Monroe. This hardly means Wall isn’t really friendly and a great place to be, it just isn’t the “classic” freshman party dorm the others are. But there will be parties for sure.</p>
<p>You sound to me like you are looking for that classic freshman social experience. The rooms may not be as nice as Wall, but they are fine. As long as you are OK with the hall bath and can stay disciplined with your coursework (very important!), Monroe or Sharp probably represent your best choice.</p>
<p>Just don’t be afraid you will look bad when you have to blow off a party to work. You will be glad you did when grades come out.</p>
<p>FC, from what I’ve observed when we’ve gone to visit, there is plenty of spontaneous interaction. Perhaps more where my daughter’s room is because she has a room that opens up to the courtyard on the 3rd floor. Since she tends to leave her door open a lot, there is a lot of yelling back and forth to the people across the courtyard on all of the floors to and from her room as well as everyone who walks past her room. Maybe the rooms that are inside have less of that. So there might be some luck of the draw on what room you get assigned to. She’s also very social so she will go out and search for fun if it doesn’t find her. I think one’s own personality type will make more difference than what dorm you live in.</p>
<p>Absolutely cyclone. That is why I tried to make sure it was apparent I was generalizing. However more than a few students have commented in the past that the hall bath arrangement does lead to more interaction in general. But your last statement is the most important. If you are friendly and fun to be with, people will want to be with you. Frankly if I were going to Tulane as a freshman today, I would probably want Wall or Butler. But I totally understand students that want the Monroe/Sharp atmosphere.</p>
<p>I guess I wouldn’t go so far as to say which dorm someone is in doesn’t change their experience at Tulane, even if they had the same roommate(s). But I would say that in most cases the change wouldn’t be a decisive or even large factor. It would be more like a shading on the whole experience. There are far more factors involved that have much more impact.</p>
<p>My D lives in Monroe, has friends from other dorms, and has socialized at other dorms. You will meet people in class, sports and other organizations and they will not all be in the same dorm! There is a mixture of personalities in each building.</p>
<p>Even if you are not in Monroe, you will probably be there often due to the sheer number of freshman who live there. I agree with FC that if you are in a classic dorm you will need to be disciplined!</p>
<p>Our RA in Monroe said that when he lived in Butler his freshman year, there were about 6-7 good-looking girls in the whole building.</p>
<p>It’s funny how much more (or less) attractive anyone becomes once you get to know them.</p>
<p>^^^^As you get older you realize that “Pretty is as pretty does”… is pretty true.</p>
<p>In all the discussion about dorms, why is it that no one ever sings the praises of Paterson? It may be my hippy-dippy Boulder self talking, but Paterson would be my first choice because it is smaller and it has a mix of Freshmen and Upperclassmen.</p>
<p>“hippy-dippy Boulder self”?! Then there’s a Pair of Us! / Don’t tell! They’d advertise – you know! What is it about Paterson that could attract the child of a Boulder alum?</p>
<p>cbrand - Well, this thread specifically asked about Wall and Monroe/Sharp. I usually mention Paterson in dorm discussions, although it isn’t strictly a freshman dorm, as you point out. But many people that have lived in Paterson like it a lot. It has some great features, even beyond the healthy living seminars and activities.</p>
<p>Yes FC… I know this is a discussion about Wall and Monroe/Sharp, but the discussions are almost always about Wall and Monroe/Sharp. Why don’t the incoming Freshmen consider all their options?</p>
<p>jkeil911… I’ve got hippy-dippy in spades. I went to UC Santa Cruz and now I live in Boulder. Paterson reminds me of the dorm I lived in for 3 years. It is small (though my dorm only had 42 people in it), it has freshmen and upper classmen, it has a REALLY nice lounge, and a kitchen that actually gets used (food brings people together!)</p>
<p>I’m sad that all freshmen dorms have become standard. I think they are a terrible idea. It is sort of like letting the inmates run the asylum.</p>
<p>I have to agree, but that standardization has been going on since the 60s, at least. Anything is better than 4 walls of cinderblock. They’re building some nice dorms on the main Boulder campus that I espied this summer. I think they’re open now. I didn’t get inside them, but they looked good on the outside. I wonder if Tulane has anything with a little brick or with a kitchen and some furniture that doesn’t look like it has been used as blocking tackles for the football team, sofas where you can sit without your knees being above your heart. I know, I’m dreaming. Why don’t the students demand more? We could have the President live in the dorms and the students in the president’s house and see how long it would take to improve the living quarters on campus.</p>
<p>We haven’t had that spirit here since 1969. Sorry, fc, we’re having our little 60s moment. We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming.</p>
<p>cbrand - I don’t know for sure why Paterson doesn’t get quite the attention the others do. Maybe because it isn’t a mostly freshman dorm, but hard to say. People don’t ask about JL much either, and it is mostly freshmen and a really nice dorm, but being all female that rules out almost half the people even asking about it and also means that quite a few think they really don’t want it.</p>
<p>However, it is very unique compared to the others, and at Tulane at least, the freshman dorms are all pretty different except for Monroe/Sharp. And the new dorms at Tulane are anything but 4 cinderblock walls. Also some of the upperclass dorms are an apartment style that have nice amenities. And I think it is the Willow units that have won some architectural awards.</p>
<p>I will bet you anything that like the rest of us, Scott Cowen has not forgotten his dorm days. A lot of people think that dorms are too posh these days, that universities focus too much on non-academic amenities. While I don’t think I agree with that so much, the fact is that universities absolutely have to be competitive with their peers or lose good students to an accumulation of these life-style factors. Students go look at WUSTL, for example, and come back not only impressed with the academics but also raving about the great dorms and amazing food. I know that when I took my kids to visit Middlebury, I was blown away by their food service. Not only was the food high quality and amazingly varied, but the dining room was very nice. Of course they also had an inherent advantage of amazing views of the Adirondacks out the west facing windows, and the Green Mountains to the east. These things make an impression, and as I have said many times college is a place a student will spend about 75% of their time for 4 years. It is natural to take these kinds of factors into account.</p>
<p>We can complain up and down that students these days are too pampered and spoiled, but that is useless. Besides, it is just as often parents that want hotel-like services. While that is over the top, it is simply a fact that not keeping up in these areas can chip away at a school’s overall mojo. Tulane has a ton of things going for it, NOLA obviously being one of the primary attractions. But it also has to continue to keep up in infrastructure in all areas.</p>
<p>
I cannot speak to the state of the furniture these days, but many of the buildings at Tulane are brick. Butler has interior brick walls that the students really like, and I think the same is true for a couple of the other freshman dorms. JL has sinks in the rooms, and as cbrand mentions the lounge at Paterson is huge. Also, JL and Warren (the latter has had some freshmen lately) used to have very well equipped kitchens. Again, I don’t know if that has changed, but probably not.</p>
<p>Monroe has brick on the interior walls</p>
<p>FC, I wonder if the prez knows so much about his dorms why doesn’t he do anything about them or know anything about his food service? My netresearch suggests the food really sucks at Tulane. Why is it unis think the best they can do for food service is some sodexho slop counter? (disclosure: I don’t own stock in sodexho.) I’m not convinced Tulane . Many of us have visited schools like middlebury and colgate that have outstanding dining rooms with good food and a lot of selections, places where eating is enjoyable and not just someplace you go to feed the furnace and go back to the books. This is a different generation of students, as you’ve said, and so many schools are way behind the curve in figuring this out. Admins need to attend as much to providing acceptable housing and dining for THIS generation as they do soliciting funding for athletic arenas that students will spend far fewer hours enjoying. Such facilities improve student learning far in excess of fancy astroturf or super boxes for the already super rich. Let’s see some top admins dining with the students and spending a couple days a week in each dorm while getting direct feedback from the students.</p>