Incoming freshmen decide on housing

Faced with the task of applying for on-campus housing, the Class of 2012 remains excited at the prospect of getting a taste of college life.

Many incoming freshmen say the main decision is whether to live in a more social residential hall or to enjoy the more private and convenient semi-private bathroom in a residential plaza.

“My mom lived in a residential hall, and she loved it. She still has friends from college now. She wants me to get that experience,” incoming freshman Gina Mandracchia said.

Housing requests are usually equally split between plazas and halls, with only 300 students electing to live in suites their first year, said Joanne Williams, associate director of Housing Services.

There are three residential halls on the Hill, which are characterized by their communal bathrooms: Hedrick Hall, Dykstra Hall and Rieber Hall.

Private bathrooms and air-conditioning are available in the plazas, which include De Neve Plaza, Rieber Terrace, Rieber Vista, Hedrick Summit and Sunset Village.

Hitch and Saxon residential suites both contain two-bedroom studios with a living room and a bathroom.

The reasons for preferring a plaza to a hall differs from person to person, but in general the debate is mainly centered on wanting a more social or more private atmosphere.

“Some students say they choose residential halls because it’s easier to meet people, while some people say plazas because of the personal bathroom,” Williams said.

Because Housing Services does not supply information on the social aspect of on-campus living, students usually rely on older friends who already go to UCLA for advice.

“When I went to visit a friend of mine, she said living in a residence hall is a good way to meet a lot of people, and I think that’s an important thing to do,” incoming freshman Peter Jacobsen said.

Some students use their friends’ experiences as examples of what not to do.

Mandracchia said her boyfriend’s sister lives in a residential plaza and has had trouble making friends on her floor.

“In a hall, you are forced to make friends, and I am looking forward to that. I want to make friends at UCLA just by being there, not going out of my way to do that,” Mandracchia said.

But the drawback of being in a highly social environment is that privacy can be difficult to find, especially with a shared bathroom.

“I’m a little wary of a shared bathroom in a tight space,” Mandracchia said.

Other students will be forced to experience sharing a bathroom for the first time.

“I’m an only child, so I’ve never had to share a bathroom with more than one person,” incoming freshman Jesse Crall said.

Parents are not only worried about their children being exposed to new experiences, such as sharing a bathroom for the first time, but also that they may lose track of their studies.

“My mom is a little worried that the residential halls will be so overwhelming I won’t have time to get my work done and study,” Mandracchia said.

Many students rely on their parents for financial support, so some parents are worried about the pricing of the different on-campus housing choices as well as the different amenities.

Residential plazas seem to be the most cost-efficient thanks to their added features, incoming freshman Agafe Saguros said.

Freshmen will have to live in either triples or doubles, which are much cheaper but also more cramped, because singles have already been filled up.

“There are not a lot of available singles, because returners get priority. At this point in time, room sign-up has filled these spots,” Williams said.

Parents are very concerned with doubles being converted into triples without any additional space, Jacobsen said.

Some students have an optimistic outlook on living in a converted triple and seem not to mind having an extra roommate much.

“A triple is just one extra person; it’s not a huge deal,” said Crall.

Other students said they think more roommates might even lead to a better college experience.

“At first, I would probably be a little worried, but then I’d get used to it because the more the merrier,” Saguros said.

Along with speculation on how many roommates students will end up with, incoming freshmen said they worry about the social dynamics of an odd number of people in one room.

“My main concern is that I’ll be the third person who doesn’t get along with the other two. I don’t want to be the third one, the outsider,” Mandracchia said.

The number of converted triples keeps rising each year, with 81 percent of freshmen living in triples last year.

Roughly the same percentage is expected for this year, Williams said.

With admissions reporting only 50 more incoming students than this year’s freshman class, housing does not anticipate any significant problems, Williams said.

In the past, students have been forced temporarily to live in lounges for days and even weeks awaiting the opportunity to move into their rooms.

Housing Services will not know if this will be necessary until the summer, but Williams said they do not anticipate any lounges being used.

“This year seems pretty much the same as the last few years,” Williams said.

Incoming freshmen were pleased with the efficiency and ease of applying for their first year of on-campus housing.

“It’s been a really easy process. Signing up online took me five minutes; all the information was there,” Crall said.