You just described something that is available in all of the freshman halls (though none have an open door policy). Sounds like you’ll be happy as much in one place as another.
I wish I had a different answer to your question, but that it the answer.
Sure, it would make their lives easier if you had the same ranking of preferences, but they will prioritize your roommate preference over that. The probability of getting your first and second choices depends a lot on what those choices are – I do not have a statistic for you.
Good luck at RPI.
I’m hesitant to give you a 100% answer because I’ve never heard of “conditional acceptance,” but congratulations!
If you have the housing form, you should send it in ASAP to get your preference. If I’m not mistaken, fully accepted students probably already have their housing preference forms, or will be getting them soon. Freshman housing is a first-come, first-served basis. You should call the Office of Residence Life to double check. Their number is 518-276-6284.
I was in the same position as an incoming freshman – in fact, that is the reason that I created this page.
Unfortunately, I can’t answer your question specifically. It just changes too much from year to year. Each hall creates a personality as the residents get to know each other – wherever you live, you will have no problem making friends. I know this answer may frustrate you, but there is no way for me to know what personality the Class of 2017 will bring to the different halls.
There is themed housing, that you may know about. This includes Wellness Housing (Bray), Vasudha Housing (Nason), Leadership Housing (Hall), Design and the Arts Housing (Cary). This just means that part of the hall (typically 1/6-1/3) is interested in having some focused programs about these topics.
Thanks for the questions! I’m not sure of the contract for students, but I believe that sophomores are also guaranteed housing, as they have to live on-campus (as of the incoming Class of 2013).
(1) There is a considerable amount of off-campus housing in the area. Many (maybe ~50% of the class) students opt to move off campus beginning their junior year. This housing is available through local landlords and is rented by students (graduate and undergraduate) as well as local members of the community who work in the area. Check out ResLife’s Off Campus page for more resources. Pay close attention to the link for “Jump Off Campus”
(2) If you wish, it is VERY possible to live on campus all four years. You may not get the housing that you prefer (which depends on how the lotteries unfold), but you can very easily live on campus all four years. Often times, you’ll get something in your top choices. Also, you can participate in CR2 after junior year, which means you sign to live in the same room for your senior year.
No, not nearly. The only halls with elevators are:
If you don’t know: two stacks are connected on the third floor. (i.e. Caldwell is connected to Church I). There is a bathroom at each end of this short “hall” Each bathroom has one or two sinks, a toilet, and a shower. There are only about 8-10 people who live up there, so I found it to work quite nicely.
Yes, there is a very good chance. There are more than 300 people who live in WNDS. Many sophomores prefer to live elsewhere on campus (Blitman, STACwyck, etc.) so the first 450-500 won’t all want WNDS.
Also, if someone else takes only half of a double in either of Nugent, Davison, or Warren, you will be one of few people interested in taking the other half.
I hope this works for you – just threw it together!
I think there are more than 100 singles in Quad. Almost all of the third floors are occupied by singles exclusively. There are 19 stacks (I think) and each has 5+ singles. So… math = ~ 100.
How quickly they’ll go? You can probably get one. I wouldn’t exactly call the Quad singles “popular”… Some people really prefer them, but a lot of older students enjoy apartment-style living and/or being off campus. I recall many singles being available when I wanted one in 2010-2011 and I didn’t have a great number.
All 6 of you will attend the lottery at the time of the best (lowest) number. If any person cannot attend, they should complete a proxy form and send it with those who are attending.
Only the lowest number is important. If you have 1, and the others have 250+… you have 1 – that’s what matters. I will say that (historically), you will need to have number ~25 or lower to get into Sharp. Have a back-up plan!
Details about the lottery for rising sophomores can be found here. Hopefully that answers the first question.
With the lottery for Sharp (and other buildings in the same offering), you bring ALL of the people you want to live with in the suite to the lottery at the time of the lowest number of someone in your group. Each individual gets a room in the suite.
One person cannot get a suite. In fact, one person might not be able to occupy an individual room without a few others. The idea is that Sharp is for groups of students who want to live together.
Unless something has changed, this info is correct. You can always call ResLife during business hours – (518) 276-6284.
Most halls have a cleaning staff of some sort. With Warren, Nugent, Davison, and Sharp (WNDS), a cleaning staff person works daily to clean the building (lounges, floors, etc.) and will clean each room’s bathroom once per week.
“B” RAHPS must be a new name for the ones below Bryckwyck; these are the ones that I live in. I would highly recommend it. I prefer RAHPs to STACwyck because you don’t have strangers living above/below you, so you can sleep when you want. The neighbors are either quiet (in our case) or the walls are more soundproof. It’s the farthest housing from campus (maybe second to Colonie). These RAHPs have all been renovated this past summer or will be this coming summer; this includes all new furniture, full painting, new flooring throughout. Really (despite their age and general low build quality) it’s a good place for a college student to live.
Also… you should go on the housing tour when they offer them. You would be able to walk through RAHPs and see it for yourself.
It depends from year to year, but maybe Quad and BARH… there definitely aren’t a lot of opportunities. None on Freshman Hill, though. ResLife will have more information out soon, if you haven’t already received it.
You may look into an apartment style, where you would get a random 4th roommate.
1. Keep in mind that there are minor changes in the housing availability from year to year.
2. Historically, the 5 buildings of STACwyck and the 3 apartments in Crockett, Cary, and Bray are the options allocated to sophomores that have a kitchen in each apartment. STACwyck includes Thompson, Wiltisie, Rousseau, Williams, and McGiffert (Alpha Phi) with 12 apartments each.
Beginning in Fall 2013, students can apply to have opposite genders (co-eds) sharing apartments. This program is not intended for couples, however.
Housing shifts slightly from year to year, depending on class sizes and other decisions. This year (2012-2013), only freshmen and sophomores are living in the Quad.
Juniors and seniors have options to live in RAHPs (Rensselaer Apartment Housing Projects), Stacwyck (Apartments on Sunset Terrace), Blitman, Colonie, Polytechnic, North Hall, E-Complex, and Bryckwyck.
Mmmm… no. The mattresses in Blitman are the standard twin XL.
Polytech has full-size mattresses.
Bunk beds in Barton can be raised and lowered with a system of notches along the bedposts. At the highest notch, the bottom bed should handle anything 27” tall or less.
I would say confidently that most freshman rooms have a printer. One of the two (or three) roommates typically brings one. That being said, I’m sure that the use of these varies. I am a rising senior; I had a deskjet printer that I used some freshman year, but ink is expensive. Over the years, I have found it easier (and generally more convenient) to just use the campus printers.
If you’re unsure, I would wait until you arrive to get a printer. You can always buy one later; it may be harder to buy one and return it after finding that you don’t use it.
Last thing: a lot of this depends on what you are studying (major) and how you study (study habits). Some students print all of their notes or have a lot of assignments that require printing.
I understand that you were being proper, but it might be difficult for one to bunk the beds. I imagine it would take at least two people. :p
Yes, you can do it. The beds are made to do this – they are not simply resting on one another. That’s all I know.
The furniture along the walls where you enter (the same wall as the door) is not movable at all. It’s built into the room. You will be able to move your bed, your desk, and of course the shelf on the desk.
Sorry, bud. Good luck arranging it in a desirable way!
The other ones do not have fridges.
No matter where in Quad you live, you will have card access to the corner stacks if you need to store things in the big fridges. That said, it won’t necessarily be most convenient for regular usage.
Short and simple: nope. Sorry!
You’ll have to get your own coffeemaker, no matter where you live. But if you have a meal plan, dining halls have (what I believe to be) a decent selection of coffee! I’m not a coffee drinker.
Also, remember that any small appliances in dorm rooms must have an automatic shut off feature.
Great question, mostly because it’s you’ll be at a loss if you don’t have the right answer.
NONE of the residence hall beds on campus come with bedding. Every bed comes with a mattress (size is twin extra long: 38” x 80”), but nothing more than the mattress. You will need to bring (or purchase when you arrive to Troy) sheets, pillow(s), quilts/comforter, and a mattress pad.
The hall doesn’t matter much.
Pros:
Cons:
Yes. The shelves above the desks on campus are a separate piece and can be removed.
Ah, the ever-unanswered laptop question… I’ll try to summarize the arguments, but it is very much a decision you have to make yourself.
Pros of the school laptop program:
The general dilemma of getting a Mac:
If you get a Mac, you’ll need to make sure you have all of the right programs. To be frank, the school computer comes with more programs than most students (98%, I’d say) will ever need. Rarely have I needed many of the technical programs on the laptop, but you will NEED to use some of them from time to time. With a Mac, you’ll be responsible for buying/supplying these programs, though you can get them (at a cost) through the campus computer store.
Personally, I have the school laptop and it has served me well for the last three years. Sure, it’s ugly compared to a Mac, and Windows is only starting to compare to Mac in terms of OS, but it gets the job done. I’m going to have the fan replaced when I return in August, and that will be free… so that’s nice. BUT… I did buy a MacBook Air last week, which I plan to carry to class and to most of my daily computing from. It’s lighter, the flash memory is excellent, and the battery lasts much longer.
Really, I can’t make the decision for you. If you’re a Mac user, you’ll probably be happier to have a Mac and occasionally deal with the minor issue of dual booting to a Windows partition and acquiring some needed software.
Yes, Bray does have an indoor bike room.
There is no accessible space under the beds in Polytech. One might call the frame “enclosed.”
The beds can be moved, yes. I will say, though, that the arrangement the furniture is in is probably the most efficient use of the space.
You’ll have to call the Office of Residence Education during business hours to get a certain answer, but I only know of full beds being in Polytech. All the other beds I know of on campus are twin-XL.
That beings said, this area has historically been for graduate students and faculty/staff, so it’s quite likely that they are full mattresses.
In short: call ResEd.
Short answer: no. You’re either in 215, 311, 315, or 415.
311 has a vertical chest of drawers (about 5’ tall) and a large closet with double sliding doors. Additionally there is a desk, bed, and some shelves below the large window.
The X15’s have a bed, desk, and a built in closet (but still a piece of furniture). The closet is half hanging space. The other half is split into drawers and a cabinet.
Hopefully this makes sense, but there is no large shelf piece diving the rooms as the doubles have.
Unfortunately, I don’t know who you mean by the “RPI linen ordering guys.” I kind of remember an offer when I was a freshman to buy linens, but I don’t remember details. That being said, this is a question better directed to them (the “linen ordering guys”).
I do know that big box stores like Bed, Bath, & Beyond will allow you to shop in any store or online and have all of your chosen products prepared for pick-up at a store near your school (RPI). If you go this way with some of your stuff, you don’t pay for the shipping, you just need to go out to the store nearest RPI (in nearby Colonie, 15 minutes drive) and pick it up.
All residence hall bathrooms are equipped with shower curtains. If you so desire, you are permitted to put your own up, but the original does need to be in the room when you move out. From my experience, the shower curtains are in great shape; they are often replaced annually.
Regarding bath mats – in Warren, you almost definitely need to bring your own. Some halls with floor baths may have rubber mats to prevent slipping on the larger surfaces, but I’m not certain on that either.
Yes.
What does a triple in BARH look like? I honestly don’t know, and they are quite rare. I’m confident that it would, in fact, be one set of bunked beds and one single bed. For a more certain answer, you can contact the Office of Residential Education.
Have people ever complained about being cramped? Ever…? in the history of BARH triples? It’s probably happened, yes… but you’re not living in a closet. You’ll make the space work – that’s part of what college is about.
Is there a cleaning service for the bathrooms? Yes. RPI has a department called Environmental and Site Services. Each building has at least one cleaning person assigned to it. This staff person will clean the bathrooms (usually once a week) and maintain the common living spaces, like hallways, lounges, kitchens, etc. You are still responsible for keeping things tidy and not making huge messes – it’s not a maid service. [Some people prefer to clean their own bathroom. If this is the case, you can just ask your cleaning person not to clean your bathroom, but you do need to do it. If you don’t, you can be fined.]
The beds in freshman residence halls are twin extra long mattresses. They are 80” long, 39” wide, and 6.5” deep.
I have never talked to anyone about how they feel about this. I know this setup is quite rare, but the room is larger. It’s another person to get to know and connect with on campus. It can be more fun to have two roommates – do you have specific reservations about this living situation?
I’m looking for photos, but I don’t have any! I do apologize; I never anticipated such an interest from older students and growth of the blog. I found a video that includes some footage of E-Complex, which is very similar to North. Footage of hall begins around 2:40.
You are discouraged from installing decorations/furniture that leave permanent marks from the room and doing so leaves the risk that you will be fined for damages at the end of the year. That being said, no one is going to stop you. If, at the end of the year, you remove it and repair your holes, you will be perfectly fine. No reasonable RA will make you take anything like an organizational hook off of your wall. I would say that you should hang your bar/hook if you want it – better to be comfortable in your space and deal with the repair later!
I might recommend that you check out 3M strips and other alternatives – they may do the same job and be easier.
It’s impossible to quantify the ease of room-switching. You and your roommate should call ResLife/ResEd ASAP to find out if you can switch before you move in. Otherwise, you have to wait 2 full weeks after classes start.
Regardless, you might not be allowed to switch halls “just because.” The staff goes through a lot of effort to place all of the students and allowing switches on a whim would be very time-consuming. Best of luck – call and ask as soon as you can.
Refrigerators should be no larger than 6 cubic feet. With some help, I’ve estimated that the particular fridge in that photo is 24” tall, but there is quite a bit of space (probably > 30”) under those beds. Depth is limited by the width of a xl-twin bed (same width as twin). Width of anything under the bed is limited by the length of a xlong-twin bed (80”).
For the microwave, you should just get something small and inexpensive, I would imagine.
I don’t have pictures of Colonie, but I could offer advice if I knew more specifics. None of the on campus housing is uninhabitable and RPI has services and methods of making things right where they may be wrong (maintenance, upgrades, etc.). Without knowing specifics about the “less than stellar” things you heard, it’s difficult for me to offer advice. What are you used to in terms of your standard of living? What did you hear that turned you off?
I will say that you will probably ride the shuttle to class unless you have a bicycle or like to walk. It’s about a 15 minute walk to class, I would estimate. You also have a convenient Rite Aid nearby.
Yes, but I don’t know where they are located. I do know that we have students on campus who smoke hookah. I am SURE that there are hookah bars in the Capital District – you won’t suffer.
From my understanding, you are talking about your own room. The toilet was left out of the blueprint (which is not meant to be comprehensive). I’m am certain that you have a toilet. I marked it in green below. Bathrooms are all in red.
Unfortunately, for once, I can’t come through for you. Bryckwyck is opening to undergraduate students for the first time in fall 2012, so I’ve never had access to the building. I’m away from campus for the summer. If you want details about the space, I would recommend contacting the Office of Residential Education during regular business hours.
If something comes up and I am able to get photos, I’ll be sure to edit this response – I do apologize, though!
Yes. Polytechnic Commons Apartments are located at the intersection of Congress St. and 15th St. and it’s about a 10 minute walk from campus. This building is restricted to junior and senior students, I believe. Each apartment has 4 single rooms with a full bed, desk, chest of drawers, and hanging space in a dresser. In addition, there are two bathrooms each with a shower and toilet. Each bathroom has 2 sinks. In total, there are two showers, two toilets, and 4 sinks for the 4 residents. Finally there is a sizeable kitchen and living area. The kitchen is furnished with a table, 4 chairs, stove, oven, fridge, and sink. The living room is furnished with an arm chair, coffee table, and TV stand.
I really don’t know how to answer this because the question is kind of uninformed (which isn’t really your fault). In the Quad, you can end up in a variety of setups:
By far, the most common is the double room with a shared bath. There is a rare chance that you will get any other setup, but it is possible.
You will not be assigned a residence hall with a “bad location” as we don’t have residence halls with “bad locations.” In all seriousness, though, you should submit your preference form ASAP by the methods available according to the form. You may not get your first choice, but you won’t be worse off as an incoming student for that. We allocate plenty of space for the incoming students. I’m not very familiar with the process, as it’s been a while since I’ve done it, but if it says you can fax the form in – go for it!
RPI Rooms 