<p>I understand weighing all the options–we had to do the same with our two sons. They had the same difficult decisions as you’re facing. I do hope, however, that you will allow your student to make the decision on his/her own–to choose what is the best fit for him/her. I was so proud of my sons’ as I watched them reason it through and work it out for themselves. It’s hard to step back and stay out of the way, but in the end it is so wonderful to see them making a mature, well-reasoned decision and growing up before our very eyes.</p>
<p>I have to admit that I have been slightly underwhelmed by my student’s personal rooms so far, although the college common facilities have been great. Also, even though the bathrooms have been located between suites, and therefore cleaned by Yale staff, they have seemed cramped and in need of updating.</p>
<p>I’m glad, though, that I have had the sense not to mention these observations to my student, because my negativity would only have clouded the impressions of said student, for whom these things have not mattered in the least.</p>
<p>Maybe if my student were not so happy at Yale with the academics, extracurriculars, and people, issues like this would take on more significance. There is just too much else to love.</p>
<p>I also understand the thought process you’re employing. You understand the positives, but you want to work through any possible negatives to be comfortable with the decision your child will make. There’s nothing wrong with that at all.</p>
<p>And, by the way, to address one of your other posts, DS is a great program. When you come down to it, the three main areas of study within the program are coordinated, so there is never a point when three papers are due at the same time. There is a lot of reading, it is true, but it is quite possible to have a very full extracurricular and social life.</p>
<p>Freshman living in suites on Old Campus clean their own bathrooms. (Or not, as the case may be.) Good life skill in my opinion.</p>
<p>My son’s friends at other schools, many of whom live in more modern facilities, have been impressed by the high ceilings, wood floors, huge windows and beautiful woodwork in his room. But slobby college students can make any room, new or old, look like a pit. I avoid both his room and bathroom when we visit!</p>
<p>In touring colleges over the past couple of years, I am always put off by the state of most dorm rooms…but the kids don’t seem to care.</p>
<p>I agree. I know that the floor in Vanderbilt had to be bad for my son to notice. He actually came back to the hotel to sleep both nights. That was the only negative thing that he had to say about the entire visit. Asked if maybe we could buy a small vacuum for his room in the fall. 
If I buy it, I am curious as to how many times it will actually get used. IMHO, the kids aren’t there for the bathrooms, but I do agree that they weren’t the best.</p>
<p>I have to disagree about the importance of clean/functional bathrooms. For some people it is very important! My daughter attended a summer program (not at Yale) while in high school and the bathroom situation was terrible. The bathrooms were not really clean and there was no private changing area for the shower. It became a priority of hers, as we visited colleges, to see the bathrooms in the dorms. When we visited Yale, she stayed on Old Campus and was thrilled to see the bathrooms were in the suites and she could keep hers as clean as she wanted, with a private changing area. She knew Yale was for her! Then she got her RC assignment and she is in TD - with a bathroom down the hall, that could be kept cleaner by Yale staff, and with no changing area for the shower 
It is probably the only negative experience of her freshman year. She is learning to adapt, but it came as a huge shock and disappointment.</p>
<p>I’m sure a lot of people don’t really care one way or the other about the bathrooms. But, if your child (not you) is really bothered by the Yale bathrooms, then you should know that sometimes the situation can be good and sometimes not so good, and you should just keep that in mind as your child makes his/her decision.</p>
<p>Look, as a parent I get that at the end of the day, I’m not the one that’s going to have to sleep/clean/live in those Old Campus rooms. Guess it’s up to student to decide if they can live with the deal for a year before going off into res college, which was nicer in comparison.</p>
<p>And not to beat a dead horse, but even without fixating on bathrooms and such, it was shocking not to see the use of smartboards and more technology on campus. Guess again that we have to step back and let prospie figure it out. </p>
<p>Once again, I thank everyone on these boards for their responses because it does help to see everyone is passionate about the school and its opportunities for the students.</p>
<p>I’ve used the Woosley Hall bathrooms, and to be honest, they aren’t bad. They may not have the maid service your used to, but they’re functional and cleaned multiple times a day.</p>
<p>As far as smart boards are concerned, I don’t understand your fixation. They are electronic boards that are used to give presentations. As a student who has used smart boards for five years, I would rather go back to chalk. SB are not a necessity, not an upgrade, and not a better substitute to a full projector and surrounding chalkboard.</p>
<p>Oh, and you’ll find a messy dorm at any college. I can gladly show you an abundance of facilities at Princeton which don’t meet your rompous expectations</p>
<p>Regardless of the dorms/bathrooms, I agree about blackboards being a negative. Even white boards would be an improvement, if not smart boards. Chalkboard writing is a lot harder to see clearly for some.</p>
<p>When I visited Harvard with my son, they showed a video bragging about a student using the same exact sink as FDR.</p>
<p>It’s possible for every student at Yale to have a clean bathroom. It’s just that this may mean cleaning it himself/herself if suitemates aren’t cooperative. In general, if the suite is girls, the bathroom will be (fairly) clean but cluttered. If the suite is boys, not so much. Those that are outside the suite are cleaned by staff and are reasonably clean.</p>
<p>In general, the housing at Yale is (in my opinion) much better than average, because most people live in suites with a common area and multiple bedrooms, as opposed to typical dorm halls. Bathrooms are either within the suite or shared by several suites on a floor in an entryway, again in contrast to dorm halls with large shared bathrooms. Levels of renovation vary on Old Campus (where freshmen live). Some of the buildings have been renovated recently, others are in need of it. That part is luck of the draw. In the residential colleges, renovation is fairly recent for all of them. The suite my son is in (as a senior) is palatial. It’s pretty messy and dirty, though.</p>
<p>Finally, although I love Beinecke Rare Book Library, its temporary closing will have virtually no effect on the vast majority of undergraduates, who almost never use it. It’s not really a place you can go to study. I’m assuming there will still be access to the collections for people who need them.</p>
<p>^^^ FWIW: My son is finishing up his sophomore year at Yale. When he needs a book from a library, he orders it on-line: [Home</a> Page | Yale University Library](<a href=“http://www.library.yale.edu/]Home”>http://www.library.yale.edu/). For studying, he uses his residential college library. As an undergraduate, he has yet to step-foot in the Beinecke Rare Book Library, even to pick up a book.</p>
<p>You can’t check out a book from Beinecke, as far as I know–many of them you can’t even touch.</p>
<p>My S (a STEM major) has taken one class and shopped another (for Humanities/writing credits) that used the Beinecke Library – for class sessions and independently. He was allowed to handle materials from the ~15th century, without gloves, even. He felt quite privileged to do so.</p>
<p>Here’s some interesting info about doing research at Beinecke: [Planning</a> Your Research Visit | Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library](<a href=“http://beinecke.library.yale.edu/visit/planning-your-research-visit]Planning”>Doing Research at the Beinecke Library | Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library)
Here’s an article about the renovation, explaining that the materials will still be available: [Beinecke</a> renovations to close library for a year | Yale Daily News](<a href=“http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2013/04/17/beinecke-will-close-for-a-year/]Beinecke”>Beinecke renovations to close library for a year - Yale Daily News)</p>