Whether you volunteered as tribute, I mean group sponsor, or you got lucky enough to be pulled into a group with upperclassmen, the housing process can be stressful. Georgetown uses a lottery system with points based on seniority. If rising seniors choose to stay on campus, they have the highest points, followed by rising juniors. Rising sophomores may have higher points if they attended What’s A Hoya events during their freshman year.
The housing process begins in late March, and there are two phases. Phase one is for townhouses, apartments (Village A, Alumni Square, and Henle), and suites (Copley and Arrupe). Phase two is for regular dorms, including Village C East, LXR, and Southwest Quad. If you survived as a victor and got a townhouse or newly renovated apartment, congratulations! Even if you didn’t get the exact room you wanted, there are plenty of benefits to living on campus as an upperclassmen.
1. You can save money on food
One of the biggest benefits of living in an apartment is having your own kitchen. Because of this, Georgetown does not require you to purchase a meal plan, which allows you to save a lot of money on the cost of food, if you budget properly! Whether it’s choosing the right grocery store and limiting your purchases or cooking at home more, there are plenty of life hacks to grocery shopping, which you can check out here. You can also choose to purchase a lighter meal plan during your upperclassmen years. Consider checking out the block plans, especially since Georgetown is re-doing Leo’s and Hoya Court with new options.
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2. You can still have independence
Freshmen can be overwhelmed with programming and orientation events, but upperclassmen tend to have more independence, especially if they get an apartment. Having a common space to hang out is definitely an improvement from typical college dorms, since you can more easily host events and have friends over. That being said, there is definitely a strong community feel from living in dorms. Common rooms are also great places to convene and share your experiences with your friends.
3. Living on campus is super convenient
Everything from the dining hall to classes to study spaces are available within a fifteen minute walking distance on campus, which makes handling life at Georgetown just a little bit easier. Living on campus means that you can leave your room five minutes before class and still make it on time. If you get an on campus apartment, you also won’t have to move in furniture or deal with having a renters insurance policy. Upperclassmen at other colleges typically move to on campus locations, but Georgetown really encourages students to stay on campus. There is a three year on campus housing requirement now, but there are a number of seniors who live on the Hilltop throughout their four years.
At the end of the day, who you live with is more important than where you live, so don’t stress out too much about housing!
Nina Cheng is a summer research analyst for ValuePenguin.