Anonymous
08/21/2023 20:46
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:My kid is no snowflake, and we are just an ordinary MC family. For the past 18 years they have had their own room and bathroom, a full-sized bed, and air conditioning. Now they are at a supposed to be "elite" college, sharing a tiny room that barely fits two twin beds and two small desks, using crappy drawers that were literally tucked in the tiny closet, having no A/C in the 90 degrees weather with a useless window that doesn't open (maybe because it's on the first floor), and trekking down to the communal bathrooms 100 ft down the hallway at night. The noise from the laundry room next door doesn't make it easy to get a good sleep. The tiny beds are awkwardly placed in the middle of the room, and I can definitely see DC rolling down the bed at night, but it's impossible to make both beds against a wall due to the size of the room. Overall, it's worse than a motel.
My kid is tired and excited right now and it hasn't hit them yet that they are going to need to fit in a fridge, a microwave, and storage for various supplies. I am sure they will figure it out by themselves later (or happily living in a chaos), but as a parent I am disappointed. Those Youtube dorm tours are so deceiving! I can only hope the education they are getting there will be worth it.
He got the worst dorm room! They don’t need a refrigerator or microwave. We never had food in our room circa 1990. I don’t know if students eat more or what but we managed with meal plans and occasional restaurants.
But the beds meeting in the middle of the room is unacceptable. It was probably a single room and they overbooked and stuck another bed in there. I would get pictures and let who is head of housing know.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 19:49
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
I don't think mold is ideal but I also don't think it is a big emergency either.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 19:42
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
OP here, I already made my peace with the situation a dozen pages ago. As long as DC is doing fine I have nothing to complain. That being said, DC just called that their dorm room (actually in the basement not the 1st floor) was flooded from heavy rain and they experienced an earthquake first time in their life. Kid sounds a little overwhelmed but in good spirit. What an incredible way to start college!
Anonymous
08/21/2023 19:22
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
The 80k is to provide financial aid, not good food and ac.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 19:02
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
The "more competitive" schools cannot afford to install AC in dorms? Why did the tuition dollars in those 80K "more competitive" schools go? Financial aid?
The cost to add AC to a really old dorm is astronomical. The electrical systems cannot handle it---similar to why many only allow a microwave with that is built in to the mini fridge, because they use less electricity. At most schools, the need for AC is 2-4 weeks total (outside of the south), so the kids can deal with it just fine. Adding AC to Harvards dorms would require so much electrical retrofitting it would be cost prohibitive.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 18:34
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
strange how wealthy people think paying $80K/year for moldy dorm rooms is worth it.
Mold is a different problem, but most kids are fine with tight quarters.
tight quarters is fine. You can only get so many kids into one building, but no a/c for $80k/year and gross bathrooms is too much.
Again, mold in the bathrooms or anywhere is an issue. I would address that ASAP.
And a/c would only be used for a few weeks and kids don't spend a ton of time in their rooms.
The kids are fine with it. Chill.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 18:29
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
The "more competitive" schools cannot afford to install AC in dorms? Why did the tuition dollars in those 80K "more competitive" schools go? Financial aid?
School administration. It just grows and grows.
So don't send your kid to a "more competitive" school. Problem solved.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 18:28
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Realistically, it's only hot for the first month or so. And you really only need to be in the dorms for sleeping. You can study/eat in air conditioned spaces.
It would be very difficult to add air conditioning to some of the older, historic dorms. Window units would throw off the Gothic vibe.
It would be very difficult to add air conditioning to some of the older, historic dorms. Window units would throw off the Gothic vibe.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 18:23
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
The "more competitive" schools cannot afford to install AC in dorms? Why did the tuition dollars in those 80K "more competitive" schools go? Financial aid?
School administration. It just grows and grows.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 18:22
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
The no A/C would be a deal breaker for me. But the rest would be fine - sometimes kids actually have more fun roughing it for a while, because they are all in together and it's kind of a bonding experience.
But no A/C is just crazy, unless your kid is waaay up north.
But no A/C is just crazy, unless your kid is waaay up north.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 18:02
Subject: Re:Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I highly suspect those who claim it is fine to pay $80K a year for an over-crowed dorm room with no AC are school administrators.
No, just parents who know that a smart person does NOT decide where to attend college based solely on the dorm experience. Dorms are not meant to be luxurious. They are meant to house kids, foster community and add to the overall college experience. IMO the best schools are those that require at least 2 years of living on campus. It helps keep the kids focused and building a great group of friends. Studies show that kids who live on campus perform better academically overall. Learning to navigate roommates/suitemates/etc is character building and gives you lifelong skill for dealing with difficult people in the workplace/life in general.
Also, your room costs at college is not just for the individual room. It's for the people who keep it clean (you wanna clean dorm bathrooms on a Sunday/Monday?), it's for the RAs, RHC, and other student staff that are available to ensure your kid adjusts to college and integrates onto campus. Yes, most dorms are older because it costs a ton to build new dorms, and typically you need an open space to build it first, because you cannot just tear down a dorm and not have it available for 1-2 years while new one is being built.
Also, most parents actually care more about money being spent on academic programs and things that really matter education wise than a brand new dorm with all the bells and whistles....I want my kid to have small classes, classes taught by professors, profs that have plenty of office hours each week and who actually care about their students and are invested in having their students learn. I want a great library, great placement resources so my kid can get internships/coops/first job. I want my undergrad to be able to do research and have out of class activities to engage in with faculty related to their major/career path.
I want tutoring available for freshman/sophmore classes so if my kid struggles, they have easy access to stay on track and succeed (and yes, even 4.0UW, 1500+ kids struggle at college especially in engineering/stem/writing/premed courses).
Majority of T50 schools are not loaded with brand new dorms, in fact most of the T25 are filled with old dorms, most without any AC---and unless you live in the south, it's only hot for 2-4 weeks each year and your kid will be just fine (tell them the library and student union are AC'd if they really need it, they can go study)
+1
Dorms are the least of my concerns
Anonymous
08/21/2023 17:58
Subject: Re:Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:I highly suspect those who claim it is fine to pay $80K a year for an over-crowed dorm room with no AC are school administrators.
No, just parents who know that a smart person does NOT decide where to attend college based solely on the dorm experience. Dorms are not meant to be luxurious. They are meant to house kids, foster community and add to the overall college experience. IMO the best schools are those that require at least 2 years of living on campus. It helps keep the kids focused and building a great group of friends. Studies show that kids who live on campus perform better academically overall. Learning to navigate roommates/suitemates/etc is character building and gives you lifelong skill for dealing with difficult people in the workplace/life in general.
Also, your room costs at college is not just for the individual room. It's for the people who keep it clean (you wanna clean dorm bathrooms on a Sunday/Monday?), it's for the RAs, RHC, and other student staff that are available to ensure your kid adjusts to college and integrates onto campus. Yes, most dorms are older because it costs a ton to build new dorms, and typically you need an open space to build it first, because you cannot just tear down a dorm and not have it available for 1-2 years while new one is being built.
Also, most parents actually care more about money being spent on academic programs and things that really matter education wise than a brand new dorm with all the bells and whistles....I want my kid to have small classes, classes taught by professors, profs that have plenty of office hours each week and who actually care about their students and are invested in having their students learn. I want a great library, great placement resources so my kid can get internships/coops/first job. I want my undergrad to be able to do research and have out of class activities to engage in with faculty related to their major/career path.
I want tutoring available for freshman/sophmore classes so if my kid struggles, they have easy access to stay on track and succeed (and yes, even 4.0UW, 1500+ kids struggle at college especially in engineering/stem/writing/premed courses).
Majority of T50 schools are not loaded with brand new dorms, in fact most of the T25 are filled with old dorms, most without any AC---and unless you live in the south, it's only hot for 2-4 weeks each year and your kid will be just fine (tell them the library and student union are AC'd if they really need it, they can go study)
Anonymous
08/21/2023 17:49
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
The "more competitive" schools cannot afford to install AC in dorms? Why did the tuition dollars in those 80K "more competitive" schools go? Financial aid?
Anonymous
08/21/2023 17:26
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
strange how wealthy people think paying $80K/year for moldy dorm rooms is worth it.
Mold is a different problem, but most kids are fine with tight quarters.
tight quarters is fine. You can only get so many kids into one building, but no a/c for $80k/year and gross bathrooms is too much.
Anonymous
08/21/2023 17:25
Subject: Has anyone felt disappointed by the dorm?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Maybe we need to define crappy.
old, worn down, musty, moldy, broken furniture, cracked walls
Who on earth would pay $80k for their kid to live in such a room?
IMO, small rooms is a given for most dorms. As long as it's clean and well kept, I have no problem with it. But, some of the stories I've heard... ew... especially the bathrooms.
Well, the less competitive schools usually have gorgeous dorms OP, and generous money packages - so have at it!
strange how wealthy people think paying $80K/year for moldy dorm rooms is worth it.
What’s stranger is that you are so concerned about it.
what's even stranger is that you actually think it concerns me that rich people think nothing of moldy old rooms for their college aged kids.