<p>So... my son will be attending Rochester this fall, and he's a little worried about acclimating to having a room mate and dorm life in general. His perfect scenario would be having a room mate who is neat and organized and living on a floor where people have fun chatting, hanging out, grabbing a bite to eat, etc. He doesn't plan on drinking, and while he doesn't mind at all being around people drinking lightly, he is really turned off by drinking to get drunk, stumbling, throwing up, being too impaired to hold a conversation, etc. He's not offended at all - just bored and annoyed by it. </p>
<p>Does anyone here have any insight on what the quiet floors or substance free floors are like? Do the quiet floors have a somber, silent feel, or is it still friendly, outgoing, and fun, just not so quite loud or unruly, especially at night? Are the substance free floors full of total straight arrows that don't get silly and fun often, or full of kids who have a good time that just doesn't include drugs or alcohol? Do either of these floors have an atmosphere that is a little too focused on rules (getting shushed a lot or RA's constantly on the lookout for beer in student's rooms)?</p>
<p>My d was on a quiet floors, not by choice. She found that it was not “friendly, outgoing & fun.” Nor were the hours enforced uniformly - stereos weren’t allowed, but fencing in the halls at 3 AM was fine. Only 1 D’Lion instead of 2, and the floor events were few and far between. Got shushed a lot.</p>
<p>But she loved her roommate (also on the floor not by choice), and found a couple of other rooms that were forced on the floor, so they made their own fun. She also spent a lot of time in other friends’ dorms.</p>
<p>D is on the “substance free” hall this year–again not by choice, (Or rather because the choice was sub free or GLC.) Substance free prohibits drinking and smoking–both of which are outlawed in the dorms anyway. Very little difference she can see–except that those who drink/drug simply go party elsewhere. </p>
<p>The big caveat is the contract signed by those on sub-free halls–if they get caught violating the terms of the hall (drug or alcohol possession mainly, but also appearing intoxicated on the public areas of the floor), they can be immediately expelled. I can’t remember if there is an appeals process built in or not. </p>
<p>Zero tolerance, when mostly the university runs on a “three strikes and then you’re out” policy regarding alcohol violations.</p>
<p>There are still plenty of activities and other functions. And the hall is definitely not full of straight edgers.</p>
<p>Girls on the hall are not D’s kinda peeps. Lots of girls who like to dress up expensively, go out clubbing [and drinking] and who are, in D’s words, really ‘busy hunting for a investment banker or doctor to marry’.</p>
<p>GLC=graduate learning center. Originally a graduate dorm, now used to house overflow from the undergraduate dorms. It’s about a 15 minute walk from campus.</p>
<p>GLC is not for freshman… my d and friends lived there sophomore year and it turned out to be great-there is a bus or about a 15 minute walk. Rooms are all mini-suites, 2 or 3 single bedrooms with a kitchen area and bathroom-full size refrigerator, lots of counter space, decent sized stove and cabinets… by mid-year, GLC residents were able to get a reduction in meal plan because no place to eat dinner unless on campus. It wasn’t their choice to live there, but it worked out well although Rochester as with many schools, does not coordinate dorms and parking-live in Towers, assigned parking in GLC or the reverse…she did not have a car on-campus but enough friends did so that grocery shopping was never a problem.</p>