You've taken the guided tour and read all the University information, but who would have thought that your room was going to be that small or your roommate that hairy? First-year residence halls can take a little adjusting to, and while they do share a couple of things in common (like grubby bathrooms and 6 a.m. fire alarms) they each have their own quirks. So let the Spectator give you the real story on the first-year housing situation.
Carman
Make no mistake about it: Carman is first-year mecca. Large rooms and a social atmosphere combine with the lowest person-to-bathroom ratio most Columbians will ever encounter to make it a great environment for college living. Once the dorm of last resort, recent renovations have spruced the place up considerably, to the point where the cinderblock walls seem almost homey.
Carman has a reputation for being the social dorm, and with reason. Much like Soylent Green, Carman is people, people, people. The entryway is one of the most active smoking areas on campus, residents congregate in hallways and lounges at all hours of the night, and students must contend with roommates and suitemates. The social interaction can't be beat, but Carman life can be overwhelming and privacy is hard to find.
One of the most important things a Carman resident needs to learn is elevator protocol. Even with the renovations, Carman's elevators are slow and quasi-functional at best, with it being a rare day when all three(freight elevator included) are in service. The slow, crowded elevators make Carmanites very speed-conscious. As a result those living on floors six and under can expect muttering, stares, and hostility for taking the lift. The wise Carmanite favors the freight elevator located at the bottom of the back "Y" staircase, which is quicker and less used than the main elevators off the atrium.
John Jay
John Jay is a dorm that lends itself to the monastic life. Residents sleep, congregate, and take meals in the dorm, where they reside in tiny individual cells perfect for self-flagellation or reciting the litany of the hours. But while the insular nature of the dorm may hurt the social life, students living in John Jay enjoy a privacy that their counterparts in Carman can only envy.
Having a single off a corridor means that John Jay residents have a room and a space that is truly theirs. Having their own room allows them to sidestep many of the annoyances of hall living, and John Jay residents may be the only first-years that can promise to study in their rooms and actually pull it off. The hall bathrooms are a small price to pay for privacy and serenity.
John Jay, as one of the University's oldest Residence Halls, has its own little quirks. The elevators have different levels, and students living on the top 15th floor have no elevator access at all, which can make for heavy schlepping on move-in day. The hassle is worth it for most of them, as the top floors of John Jay have one of the best campus views of the Manhattan skyline.
Hartley-Wallach
If Carman is a bustling mecca and John Jay is a 13th century monastery, then Hartley-Wallach is a hippie free-love commune. First-years and upperclassmen live together in suites of nine to 16 people. The atmosphere is cozy and the rooms are spacious, making many Hartley-Wallach residents fanatically devoted to the place. But perhaps the nicest perk for residents is the presence of kitchens and refrigerators, which are normally only found in the more posh upperclass dorms.
The suite system in Hartley-Wallach is well-loved around campus, but it can also be problematic. Living closely with such a relatively small number of suitemates can be a great experience if the group gels well together, but can be aggravating if the suite doesn't get along so well. Suite living can also mean that Hartley-Wallach residents don't meet as many classmates as they would otherwise, making outside activities more important. Hartley-Wallach partisans, however, would argue that the closeness of the suite and the opportunity to live with upperclassmen outweigh any problems the suite model might create.
This year marks the first time that the University is experimenting with its Living and Learning Center project, a somewhat ill-defined plan to make the two residence halls more of a community. Rooms could only be gotten by application this year, and Residence Life staff promise to host special LLC-only speakers and events, with students doing much of the planning and setting-up. Administrative eyes are on Hartley-Wallach this year, as the results from the LLC program will likely determine whether the University will scrap the program or expand it.
The students who applied to live there will themselves be hoping that it was worth the effort.
The Barnard Quad
Barnard first-years are concentrated in the enclosed southern end of campus, which is connected to Hewitt Dining Hall and classroom buildings by a tunnel system that puts Columbia's Manhattan Project caverns to shame.
Housing crunches in recent years have inconvenienced some Quad residents, turning singles into doubles and doubles into triples, but most Barnard students have been able to grin and bear it. The housing is still some of the best in the University, and many upperclassman opt to return to Brooks and Sulzberger rather than the nearby alternatives on 116th Street and Claremont Avenue.
Columbia students are not able to swipe into Barnard dorms, but the observant and persistent will eventually figure out the back way in.
Barnard's main dining hall is located in the bowels of Hewitt, and it features the best food that first-years can get on the meal plan in a clean, carpeted environment that looks like something out of a Holiday Inn. The selection of food includes the most extensive kosher offerings on campus. The Quad's indoor connection to Hewitt puts Barnard first-years an elevator ride away from the campus' best and most diverse dining.
--Photos by Sari Levine