I attended Indiana University-Bloomington my freshman year of college, when I thought I was a blossoming journalist and wanted a degree from one of the best journalism schools in the country. IU seemed like the perfect choice for me: as a Hoosier, the school was only 1.5 hours from home - a good distance when you're leaving home for the first time but still want to be able to see mom and dad on the weekends. Although my academic ambitions took me elsewhere for the remainder of my undergraduate education, I thoroughly enjoyed my 1-year stint at IU, and I can honestly say living in Read Hall contributed to my satisfaction with the school.

I want to live in a Freshman dorm!

Many students, upon entering IU, choose to live in freshman dorms. The primary reasons for this decision, I've gathered, are to a) be around people their own age, b) be around people in the same boat (i.e. a crew of 2,000 students, none of whom have previously met and are looking to make friends fast ), and c) they want to be able to be noisy without being held accountable by pesky upperclassmen who thumb their nose at such immaturity. Although the appeal of living with a bunch of college newbies was intriguing, I was primarily focused on my academic potential, and wanted a quiet dorm where I could study unimpeded. Unfortunately, this ruled out the freshman dorm (McNutt). Fortunately, IU does not require freshmen to live in a freshman dorm, although chances of getting into another dorm might be slim.

You get to apply for a dorm? Whoa!

Upon accepting IU's admission offer, IU mails out a book detailing the pros/cons of living in each dorm. IU correctly asserts that each dorm has its own personality. These babies are HUGE - thousands of students living in each one - and each has its own reputation based primarily on its location on campus and its student population. All I knew was that I wanted a quiet place with a central location. That brought my choices down to Read and Wright, both dorms on North Jordan Ave, the main thoroughfare on campus.

Why did I choose Read?

The main reason I chose Read was because all rooms share a sink and toilet with an adjoining room. I wear contacts and knew that I didn't want to have to travel down the hall late at night just to take them out. Moreover, I don't like walking anywhere without makeup on, and the toilet situation was just way more convenient and private. Read and Wright both house their own food services, although Read's is a cafeteria and Wright's is a food court. I thought I would get more use out of the cafeteria. Even more, Read has a McDonald's in the basement, and was located a bit closer to the School of Journalism than Wright. So for the reasons articulated above, I applied to Read. I was thrilled when I found out I got in there! And then came stories of why I may have made a wrong decision.

What's the bad news?

Once I started telling people I was living in Read, most warned me it would be a bad idea. Apparently, most of the students were <gasp> music students , thus weird and unsocial (their words, not mine). True, Read is located immediately across from IU's reknowned music school, and true, many of those students are kind of weird and antisocial. And even more true, I spent half my freshman year living with one such person. But this didn't really impede my happiness at Read. For all the crazy music students I met in my dorm, there were many other cool people (and crazy journalism/business/English students as well!)

Read also houses mainly upperclassmen. I was one of very few freshmen living in the hall. However, that just meant that most of us bonded together. And it's cool having older friends, anyhow - they know where better parties are and can give lots of academic advice because they've "been there, done that". So while many may see this as a drawback, I actually found it to be a positive experience.

One of the best things about Read is that it's a nice, predominantly quiet place right in the middle of campus. It's a haven for being antisocial, should one choose to be. I found I had struck a happy medium: when I wanted to go party or hang out with my friends, I visited them in the freshman dorm. When I wanted to study and sleep, I stayed in my nice, quiet dorm. I can't tell you how many of my friends complained they couldn't sleep because people were playing their stereos at all hours of the night. This is something I never experienced at Read, and I'm quite grateful for it.

What are some other qualities of Read?

As I've said, Read houses a cafeteria. This place gets really crowded during lunch and dinner, mainly due to its central location. The food is actually pretty good, if you don't mind waiting in line, and it's always clean.

Read has a great custodial staff. Remember when I said each room gets its own toilet and sink? Fear not, you'll never have to clean it! That's right, Read's janitors will clean your bathroom for you every week! Talk about service.

RA's are located on every wing of every floor. I really liked my RA. Since Read is mainly upperclassmen, I felt the RA's placed a whole lot more trust in their residents.

The dorm is separated into 4 wings. Two of the wings are all-female, the other two all-male. I found this to be a good quality my freshman year, as I often ran around in my pj's and might have been less inclined to do so had boys lived next door.

The showers are down the hall. It's not the best setup, but at least you can go potty in the privacy of your own room.

One big drawback: Read isn't air conditioned. However, many dorms at IU aren't air conditioned. It's only hot the first and last months, so just buy an oscillating fan and deal with it.

Each floor has several study lounges. I thought this was a great touch, although they're designated "quiet spaces," which means you have to go elsewhere to socialize. However, Read, a huge dorm, has many lounges where one can go to chat.

Read has its own library and a classroom. I was able to take a class in my own dorm building! It's a real plus when you don't want to walk outside at 8 in the morning.

Finally, parking may be a problem. Although I didn't have a car, I've heard it's hard to get a permit to park at Read. However, if you're an upperclassman, it shouldn't matter, as it's arranged by seniority.

Overall, it's a great place to live!

If you're new to campus and are trying to decide where you want to stay, I'd certainly recommend Read. It's so comforting to know that you can have peace and quiet within the madness of sometimes-party-crazy IU. Like I said, you can always socialize in your friends' dorms. Read brings all the creature comforts (toilet and sink in the room, McDonalds and cafeteria and classroom downstairs, quiet population) right to you. The decision to live at Read was one of the best choices I made while at IU.



Recommended: Yes