<p>What's the deal about East Wheelock? Is it substance-free? Is it for nerds? I'm confused.. thanks</p>
<p>i think it has the reputation that it's nerdy and isolated from the rest of campus and therefore has kind of a more awkward social life to it</p>
<p>As someone who lived in East Wheelock last year, I can tell you that it definitely has its pros and cons. The pros: until the McLaughlin and Tuck dorms were built, the cluster had the nicest dorms on campus, and they're still pretty high up on the list. Depending on the dorm, you'll either have a private bathroom or very spacious single public bathrooms. The events held there (many solely for EWers) can be interesting, though I went to few of them. Some of the best friend I've made at Dartmouth lived on my floor freshman year, and despite the fact that many students in EW don't drink, freshman floors are very cohesive. The cons: walls tend to be thin, there is the occasional antisocial personality, and there is a definite "nerd" perception on campus about EW, which is neither entirely justified or unjustified. The location's not the best: about the only building within a 3-minute walk is the gym.</p>
<p>Ironic that the "nerd" dorms would be closest to the Gym.</p>
<p>many people who choose to live in EW choose it because it's a quiet and studious place...otherwise there are those who choose it because of the sweet rooms (which you can get even if you have really bad housing draw numbers) and proximity to the gym...</p>
<p>My D lived in EW freshman year and thought it was the best of both worlds; she lived in a 3 room, 2 bedroom quad with private bath so she really had a nice space and had some really great friends (some athletes, greeks, etc.) who were upperclassmen so she met and had a lot of upperclassmen friends freshman year.</p>
<p>She had a full social life outside of EW and came "home" to peace and quiet. I agree with Chris that a lot does depend on how well your floor mates gel. D and her floormates were a very cohesive group and many of them are still tight today whereas some floors she said the relationships were really bad. The down side was the walk as it is far from everything.</p>
<p>a lot of what xochil says is true also as sophomore year, one of D's friends had lousy (3rd from hte bottom) number for roomdraw in the sophomore class she knew had she decided to go into room draw, she would have been without a space and the great thing about living in EW is that you have the option of living there the next year so housing is no suprise because you know what you are getting.</p>
<p>Since the majority of the freshman class lives in either the choates or on the river (now that's a walk) with a couple in Maclaughlin and Tuck, EW can be a good alternative for having great space.</p>
<p>i thought seriously about living in ew next year simply for the creature comforts it offers. i'd recommend living there freshman year simply because you get a very different experience from most of your class in a critical time of you dartmouth career. now that i've established my circle of friends though, i can live wherever and not have to worry about losing out socially. if you're thinking about living in ew past freshman year, i'd say you don't need to worry about any of the cons except location. that's what kept me out - i'm an econ/gov major, and all of my classes are located around rocky and silsby. i have a hard enough time motivating myself to go to class when they're literally a stone's throw away, so i don't want to put more obstacles in my way.</p>
<p>generally speaking, when it comes to housing, there are a few key factors. in order: proximity to your classes, how nice the actual dorms are, proximity to the frats (or whatever your primary social outlet is), proximity to food.</p>
<p>^i'm sorry, i'd recommend AGAINST living there as a freshman.</p>