Where you live is kind of a big deal. It may not seem that way to you freshmen who live in the land of equal housing (i.e. Jewett, Anderson, Lyman, Prentiss). When everyone’s rooms are exactly alike, there’s no strife: it’s like Residence Life’s version of communism.
But when you freshmen begin to search for a place to live next semester, you’ll find that there’s more to the process than a roommate questionnaire and a listing of preference.
Where you live next year (which really is a big deal) will be determined by lottery and class standing, so, if you do take this route, be sure to apply with those kids who are technically sophomores because they took a lot of A.P. classes and whatnot in high school.
The upper-class housing options may seem exciting compared to Jewett, but they quickly lose their luster.
When I went to investigate Douglas last year before picking a dorm, I asked people what they thought of it. One upper-classman living there at the time said, “It’s really a pretty depressing place to live.” I wouldn’t recommend it.
College House sounds alluring, with its flashy-sounding apartment style living. But cooking all your own meals gets old really quickly, as bad as Bon AppetÃt may be.
I don’t think I have to denounce every upper-class dorm before I make my point, so here it is: Most upper-class housing isn’t all it’s hyped as.
That said, there is an option that actually is what it’s hyped up to be. The Interest House Community (IHC) is, without question, the coolest on-campus housing situation.
First of all, when you live in the IHC, you get to live in a house. It seems like people are always complaining that Whitman requires you to live in those restrictive dorms for two years. They don’t. They require you to live on campus, which the IHC qualifies as.
And living in the IHC is actually better than living in a real house. Real houses sound cool, but when you play grown-up, you have to deal with grown-up responsibilities, which are just a huge hassle and no fun at all.
In the IHC, there is no lease or monthly rent: you just pay Whitman as if you were living in a dorm. There are no utility costs or extra hidden fees. And the houses come furnished, with appliances, wireless Internet and cable.
And as if that weren’t already the best thing in the world, the IHC has a lot of money for putting on events, meaning residents can put on events that relate to their houses for free.
One aspect of the IHC that is always criticized is the so-called bins system. In case you didn’t get a chance to read the news story about it a few weeks ago, here’s how it works:
Interest Houses have house dinners four days per week. For these dinners, Bon AppetÃt brings each house (except for the Community Service house) two large, rectangular bins of food. Residents then eat together at home, instead of going to the dining hall.
Usual complaints are: The food gets cold on the way, there’s never enough and there’s not enough variety. To be honest, all of these are true sometimes, but it’s totally worth it to have dinner with your house.
House dinners are really a great experience that you don’t get anywhere else. It’s completely different from the dining hall.
Applications for the Interest House Community are coming out soon, and they’ll be due before spring break. Living there is such an awesome experience; you’d be stupid not to apply.
