Dear Abe,
I’ve heard that it’s almost time for the housing lottery. What should I be worried about going into it?
I’ve never had the chance to move, but I know that part of the excitement of each year at Centre is entering a new building, decorating a new room, and making new memories. So, of course, housing is very important. Now, you’ll hear a lot about which dorms are the best and worst, and I know I could tell you that any room you get into will be fine once you make it your own, but you don’t want to hear that, so I won’t say it!
Instead, I’ll give you some practical advice. First, lock people in. Have your roommate or roommates confirmed before the housing form comes out. My advice, go for groups of 2 or 4. There are very few triples, and that is unlikely to work out.
Second, when you make plans, make sure you have backup plans. The housing lottery comes sooner than people think, and then the time slots are a toss-up in terms of luck. So, no matter who you plan to live with or wherever you want to live, make sure you have another plan in case the first dorm situation you wanted gets taken (which is common). To clarify, the rooming form you fill out needs to be completed quickly to get you the best chance at an early timeslot, but sometimes luck isn’t on your side, and you could have the last time slot of your year. People could choose the room you want before you, the entire building you wanted to live in could fill up, and that means you need backup plans. If you think about several rooming possibilities ahead of time and are realistic about what may be picked first, then you’ll be less stressed in the moment if your first pick of building is gone.
All-in-all, planning makes everything simpler and more streamlined, you and your future roommate(s) will all be happier (instead of grumpy that you don’t know where to dorm while people steal rooms).