Are bed frames metal or wooden?
Do the desks have any shelves above them?
Any other shelves in the room?
Closet size?
Are all floors carpeted?
Likelihood of my kid needing to bring any pots/pans for the kitchenette their first year at Swat (full meal plan)?
Do most kids share a fridge?
Anything that will help make a Mertz room more comfortable/workable?
Thanks in advance!
Daughter was in Mertz a few years ago. It’s a good location. From memory…
Frames are wood, with metal cross bars. Mattresses are generally OK, but daughter finally broke down and purchased a pillow topper for it…big improvement.
There are “built in” shelves…a fair number of them…and the desk is mobile. By mobile, I mean you can set the room up with desks facing the wall (under the shelves), or facing each other (as my daughter did) with the shelves off to the side. My recollection is there is a shelf the entire length of the room on the outside wall, about 4 feet off the floor and 18 - 24 inches deep. You won’t run out of shelves.
Closet size is pretty good. There are also a standard 5 drawer dresser for each student. We ended up putting one of the bookshelves in the hall for the year, as there was literally too much storage.
I wouldn’t worry about pots and pans…there is some stuff around if/when they decide to cook (count on one hand).
My daughter showed up with an oversized fridge. Shared Freshman year with a foreign student, didn’t share sophomore year, and had singles the last 2 years. If you have one, bring it. If you don’t want to buy one for fear of not using it…play it by ear. My guess is that sooner or later you’re gonna want one.
The only thing I didn’t like about Mertz was the particular location of my daughters room. It was on the left side of the building from Parrish Beach (the quad between Mertz and the dining hall / Parrish Hall etc) on the first floor, and it always had a bit of dampness (built into the hill slightly). The one improvement you might want to consider are lights. The overhead lights in all of the rooms are painful…so desk lamps, small lamps, string lights…all warm the place up a bit. The other thing we used in Mertz were bed stands. They lift the bed 8-10 inches, and allow you to use plastic bins under the bed for storage.
Last Mertz tip…most of the loading and unloading is from the back of the building. It’s really easy to get to, but the ground can be pretty damp. If it’s wet out, wear shoes you don’t mind getting a bit muddy. Good luck!