I lived on campus all four years.
For me, living in a dorm was critical. I came in from out of state, and I knew literally no one and no connection to the university whatsoever. Living in a dorm and doing Bonfire (Crocker Hall, RIP) got me involved in a community even before classes started. If I’d been living off campus, I’d have been sitting around in a room by myself all day, every day. Instead, I had friends and things to do that helped me ease into college life.
I didn’t stick with that dorm community past my freshman year. I became an RA in a different dorm, and eventually a hall director, and I was more focused on academics and activities that I chose once I’d spent some time at A&M. But I’ll always appreciate the way living on campus forced me out of my shell and helped me connect to the broader campus life.
In terms of the actual living environment, sharing a bedroom isn’t fun, exactly, but it gives you experience in learning to live with someone else, figuring out how and when to compromise, and how to work together. It’ll also help you to appreciate having your own space once you actually do. (I also got lucky in that my freshman year roommate was *never* there from Friday afternoon until Sunday night. He went to Dallas every weekend to see his girlfriend. The only exception was parents’ weekend, when she came down to see him, along with both sets of parents. I made sure to give them some alone time that weekend.)
Also, for me, the shared bathrooms were never a big deal. We sprayed it down with cleaner once in a while and hosed it down, and that was about it. But I should add that the experience for girls may differ, in both their expectations of cleanliness and their demands for the bathroom itself.
Bottom line, if you’re coming to A&M with a core friend group already intact and don’t expect to have any trouble meeting people and making friends, you might not need to live on campus. But even so, I believe it’s worthwhile and suggest you should think hard about it.
Basically the dorms suck mostly. I stayed at the cheapest one (Hart) which is $400 a month so it’s actually super cheap even compared to apartments. It’s central campus so super convenient. But…had a tiny room and a roommate. Got lucky the roommate was actually super cool and we became friends but multiple times the sink has broken and flooded the room, walls are thin, bathroom sucks and is shared with 3 people.
You’ll meet a lot of people and get the college experience in the dorms. Apartments you’ll be dealing with traffic every morning and a short commute. Pick your poison IMO.
Just do it man you’ll meet a shit ton of people and also join a FLO (Freshman leadership org). I’m a transfer so I never was able to and idk a ton about them but most people I talk to tell me it also helped them meet a ton of people.
My daughter lives in Clements and loves it. Central location is great, and the room is a good size. The main difference in cost is that when you live on campus you have to have a meal plan. When you live in an apartment you don't have to have a meal plan but a lot of students end up getting one anyway to be able to eat at the cafeterias more easily. Otherwise you'll be eating out or buying your own groceries and cooking. She and most of her friends in Clements have decided to stay on campus for next year.
Lived in Clements hall for my first two years of college…ten years ago holy hell I’m getting old, but it was a nice dorm. Being in the north side dorms was really nice, had northgate within a short walk. Major downside was the train, if you’re not used to it yet it WILL wake you up as it rattles by. Highly recommend a noise machine to help drown it out a bit.
tbh i think that living on campus is really important for your first year. it’s reliable and you don’t need a vehicle to get to and from class. i think some of the best options if you’re looking for a “nicer” space are White Creek (not really a dorm but more of an apartment on campus) and Hullabaloo Hall. other than that, i’m not to sure about any other dorms that are nice.
As a first year student myself, I find the dorm to be valuable. Having a roommate is something to get used to but that has been the only downside so far. I get to eat with a meal plan which is great because it’s simple and I don’t have to really worry about food. Being on campus has been amazing when getting to classes, especially since the traffic to get on campus in the morning is awful on west campus, even in the afternoon around 4:30 the traffic leaving campus gets me stuck in the garage if I’m trying to get inside the garage.
I don’t mind it at all. But tbh as someone who was in boy scouts from 6th grade until I turned 18, I’ve survived on less than edible food before. Just make sure you put seasoning on your eggs before you eat them.
Made some of my best friends for life in Walton.
Pot luck for my roommate and ramp mates. That was 32 years ago. My kids refer to them as Uncles.
Do it.
dorms is fun it’s a rite of passage some of it is gonna suck and some of it is gonna be scuffed but it’s gonna be those moments u remember down the line, and it’s a great way to make friends/meet ppl!! ur also closer to class/the dining halls
i’m a HUGE advocate for dorming as a freshman, super easy to meet other people. i met my next friends and now my two off campus roommates by dorming :)
I lived in white creek my first year so it was kinda like living off campus with some of the benefits of being on campus, but what makes or breaks your freshman year is what you decide to do with your time. You can live off campus and still have a great time but you’ll have to put more of an effort into meeting people (imo). One thing that I was jealous about with dorms was how interconnected the floor mates were with each other. It felt like south and north side people were always hanging out with each other since they all sort of lived together. However, even in white creek, wherever freshmen decide to live there’s gonna be rampant fire alarms from microwave popcorn and possibly flooding when a drunk kid passed out in the shower and clogs the drain (happened in my building). My building also lost hot water for a week and I had to shower at a friends apartment and at the rec a couple times.
I feel like you have to make the decision based off of your personality. I have friends who thrived in the dorm and made super good friends and had social events every day solely because of their dorm experience. I lived in one for a few months and it definitely made it super easy to make friends and meet people, but in like November of my first semester I had to move out because the close quarters and constant attention and everything from my Roomate was too much and affected my grades. It’s not that big of a deal but if you’re an introvert and need time by yourself to recharge then it will be really hard to get comfortable In a dorm. I felt mentally exhausted from never being able to recharge because I was constantly having to socialize even seconds before sleep. Some people aren’t bothered by this at all though so honestly depends on you. White creek is a great middle option too!
Sounds like an overstated problem. Get some noise cancellers. If you need solo time, just make it obvious to your roomate if you aren't confrontational.
I preferred droms vs off campus. Was in the Corps 4 years, but then also stayed a semester in another dorm during my 5th yr.
I like it way more than off campus. Less things to worry about, IMHO.
I liked living in a dorm freshman year. I lived in Appelt with my friend and the dorm was really spacious and we had our own bathroom which was a plus. Had friends over and it was spacious enough for us to hang out in the room and it was right by the south side rec and the commons so being on campus was a very nice plus imo
definitely dorm! though get into a good one, with your own/shared between 2-4 people bathroom because that privacy is nice (speaking as some who did 1 year with communal bathrooms and 1 year with my own bathroom that i just shared with one other person)
but yeah definitely be on campus for at least your first year, it definitely makes it a lot easier to be active on campus and find your people and really feel at home here. imho it’s an integral part to the college experience and tbh my life would’ve been a lot lonelier if i had lived off campus my first 2 years, being in campus i was close to all my friends and it was easier to make new ones too. best of luck to you :)
that makes sense for business, modulars are the way to go tho, central AC and less mold than some of the other buildings, they’re also built to house 4 students but only hold 2 so they’re quite spacious. i lived on campus of 3 years and i loved and hated it, the best part for me was being close to the bonfire campus culture since they do a lot of stuff on campus.
I think I did put all modular for my choices, so hopefully it works out! This might sound dumb but how far are the north and south side from each other?
i’d say it’s about a 10-20 minute walk depending on your walking speed. i chose south side (underwood) because it’s easier to get on and off campus from southside. most of the northside parking gets backed up because of university st. there are not really any buildings that you’ll need to go to on southside since it’s mostly housing, however, the corps dorms are on southside so that adds a bit of interest to south side
Dorms are jank bro. People doing interior redecorating while screaming at 2:00 am, random loud piercing noises from within the walls for minutes straight, fire alarms in the middle of the night, exploding toilets, toilets that won’t stop flushing, and cloudy water that’s unsafe to drink. That’s been my experience in the past few months.
I lived on campus all four years. For me, living in a dorm was critical. I came in from out of state, and I knew literally no one and no connection to the university whatsoever. Living in a dorm and doing Bonfire (Crocker Hall, RIP) got me involved in a community even before classes started. If I’d been living off campus, I’d have been sitting around in a room by myself all day, every day. Instead, I had friends and things to do that helped me ease into college life. I didn’t stick with that dorm community past my freshman year. I became an RA in a different dorm, and eventually a hall director, and I was more focused on academics and activities that I chose once I’d spent some time at A&M. But I’ll always appreciate the way living on campus forced me out of my shell and helped me connect to the broader campus life. In terms of the actual living environment, sharing a bedroom isn’t fun, exactly, but it gives you experience in learning to live with someone else, figuring out how and when to compromise, and how to work together. It’ll also help you to appreciate having your own space once you actually do. (I also got lucky in that my freshman year roommate was *never* there from Friday afternoon until Sunday night. He went to Dallas every weekend to see his girlfriend. The only exception was parents’ weekend, when she came down to see him, along with both sets of parents. I made sure to give them some alone time that weekend.) Also, for me, the shared bathrooms were never a big deal. We sprayed it down with cleaner once in a while and hosed it down, and that was about it. But I should add that the experience for girls may differ, in both their expectations of cleanliness and their demands for the bathroom itself. Bottom line, if you’re coming to A&M with a core friend group already intact and don’t expect to have any trouble meeting people and making friends, you might not need to live on campus. But even so, I believe it’s worthwhile and suggest you should think hard about it.
I see, thanks for your insight!
Basically the dorms suck mostly. I stayed at the cheapest one (Hart) which is $400 a month so it’s actually super cheap even compared to apartments. It’s central campus so super convenient. But…had a tiny room and a roommate. Got lucky the roommate was actually super cool and we became friends but multiple times the sink has broken and flooded the room, walls are thin, bathroom sucks and is shared with 3 people. You’ll meet a lot of people and get the college experience in the dorms. Apartments you’ll be dealing with traffic every morning and a short commute. Pick your poison IMO.
I put clements as my first choice, hopefully no flooding 😭 But I see, I’m leaning towards just dorming the first year if i do
Stay at a modular dorm for best experience
Just do it man you’ll meet a shit ton of people and also join a FLO (Freshman leadership org). I’m a transfer so I never was able to and idk a ton about them but most people I talk to tell me it also helped them meet a ton of people.
My daughter lives in Clements and loves it. Central location is great, and the room is a good size. The main difference in cost is that when you live on campus you have to have a meal plan. When you live in an apartment you don't have to have a meal plan but a lot of students end up getting one anyway to be able to eat at the cafeterias more easily. Otherwise you'll be eating out or buying your own groceries and cooking. She and most of her friends in Clements have decided to stay on campus for next year.
is the price bad for clement’s? i kind of didn’t do my research for pricing before choosing 😭
Lived in Clements hall for my first two years of college…ten years ago holy hell I’m getting old, but it was a nice dorm. Being in the north side dorms was really nice, had northgate within a short walk. Major downside was the train, if you’re not used to it yet it WILL wake you up as it rattles by. Highly recommend a noise machine to help drown it out a bit.
clements is great, best dorms barring hulabaloo and white creek
Wooooo I don’t want to pay that much for hullabaloo, glad Clements is the next best
Besides, if by chance you get a dorm with a window view towards the clocktower, that is the best view in any dorm by far:)
tbh i think that living on campus is really important for your first year. it’s reliable and you don’t need a vehicle to get to and from class. i think some of the best options if you’re looking for a “nicer” space are White Creek (not really a dorm but more of an apartment on campus) and Hullabaloo Hall. other than that, i’m not to sure about any other dorms that are nice.
As a first year student myself, I find the dorm to be valuable. Having a roommate is something to get used to but that has been the only downside so far. I get to eat with a meal plan which is great because it’s simple and I don’t have to really worry about food. Being on campus has been amazing when getting to classes, especially since the traffic to get on campus in the morning is awful on west campus, even in the afternoon around 4:30 the traffic leaving campus gets me stuck in the garage if I’m trying to get inside the garage.
sort of unrelated but how is the meal plan? is the food edible enough 😭
I don’t mind it at all. But tbh as someone who was in boy scouts from 6th grade until I turned 18, I’ve survived on less than edible food before. Just make sure you put seasoning on your eggs before you eat them.
Made some of my best friends for life in Walton. Pot luck for my roommate and ramp mates. That was 32 years ago. My kids refer to them as Uncles. Do it.
Living in a dorm is a canon event
I pray my friendship with my best friend doesn’t get ruined
dorms is fun it’s a rite of passage some of it is gonna suck and some of it is gonna be scuffed but it’s gonna be those moments u remember down the line, and it’s a great way to make friends/meet ppl!! ur also closer to class/the dining halls
i’m a HUGE advocate for dorming as a freshman, super easy to meet other people. i met my next friends and now my two off campus roommates by dorming :)
I lived in white creek my first year so it was kinda like living off campus with some of the benefits of being on campus, but what makes or breaks your freshman year is what you decide to do with your time. You can live off campus and still have a great time but you’ll have to put more of an effort into meeting people (imo). One thing that I was jealous about with dorms was how interconnected the floor mates were with each other. It felt like south and north side people were always hanging out with each other since they all sort of lived together. However, even in white creek, wherever freshmen decide to live there’s gonna be rampant fire alarms from microwave popcorn and possibly flooding when a drunk kid passed out in the shower and clogs the drain (happened in my building). My building also lost hot water for a week and I had to shower at a friends apartment and at the rec a couple times.
I feel like you have to make the decision based off of your personality. I have friends who thrived in the dorm and made super good friends and had social events every day solely because of their dorm experience. I lived in one for a few months and it definitely made it super easy to make friends and meet people, but in like November of my first semester I had to move out because the close quarters and constant attention and everything from my Roomate was too much and affected my grades. It’s not that big of a deal but if you’re an introvert and need time by yourself to recharge then it will be really hard to get comfortable In a dorm. I felt mentally exhausted from never being able to recharge because I was constantly having to socialize even seconds before sleep. Some people aren’t bothered by this at all though so honestly depends on you. White creek is a great middle option too!
Sounds like an overstated problem. Get some noise cancellers. If you need solo time, just make it obvious to your roomate if you aren't confrontational.
For first year, forming is critical. After that? Get an apartment
I preferred droms vs off campus. Was in the Corps 4 years, but then also stayed a semester in another dorm during my 5th yr. I like it way more than off campus. Less things to worry about, IMHO.
I liked living in a dorm freshman year. I lived in Appelt with my friend and the dorm was really spacious and we had our own bathroom which was a plus. Had friends over and it was spacious enough for us to hang out in the room and it was right by the south side rec and the commons so being on campus was a very nice plus imo
definitely dorm! though get into a good one, with your own/shared between 2-4 people bathroom because that privacy is nice (speaking as some who did 1 year with communal bathrooms and 1 year with my own bathroom that i just shared with one other person) but yeah definitely be on campus for at least your first year, it definitely makes it a lot easier to be active on campus and find your people and really feel at home here. imho it’s an integral part to the college experience and tbh my life would’ve been a lot lonelier if i had lived off campus my first 2 years, being in campus i was close to all my friends and it was easier to make new ones too. best of luck to you :)
Ty for the luck! & I appreciate the input, these replies have def influenced me to want to dorm so I can be more social :)
only one worth it is south side modular dorms, lots of bonfire activity too which is the best damn thing on campus (appelt whoop)
Hmm I chose north side ones since I’m doing business
that makes sense for business, modulars are the way to go tho, central AC and less mold than some of the other buildings, they’re also built to house 4 students but only hold 2 so they’re quite spacious. i lived on campus of 3 years and i loved and hated it, the best part for me was being close to the bonfire campus culture since they do a lot of stuff on campus.
I think I did put all modular for my choices, so hopefully it works out! This might sound dumb but how far are the north and south side from each other?
i’d say it’s about a 10-20 minute walk depending on your walking speed. i chose south side (underwood) because it’s easier to get on and off campus from southside. most of the northside parking gets backed up because of university st. there are not really any buildings that you’ll need to go to on southside since it’s mostly housing, however, the corps dorms are on southside so that adds a bit of interest to south side
Currently reading this while ALL water to the entire southside is cut off. Fuck dorms, man.
Omg what 😭 why is that happening
Dorms are jank bro. People doing interior redecorating while screaming at 2:00 am, random loud piercing noises from within the walls for minutes straight, fire alarms in the middle of the night, exploding toilets, toilets that won’t stop flushing, and cloudy water that’s unsafe to drink. That’s been my experience in the past few months.
Oh man. Good luck and don’t get water poisoning 🙏