With housing selection season upon us, it’s time for you and your roommates to decide which building you want to call home next year. With such a wide variety of options, it can be hard to choose what dorm is best for you and your group, as there are certainly advantages and disadvantages to every option.
Here are some things that fellow Bentley students said were the best and worst aspects of each dorm on campus:
Apartments
North Campus
While these dorms are by far the nicest at Bentley with great features and amenities like elevators, common lounges, full-sized showers, and laundry facilities, the distance from campus is the biggest downside. Having to drive, take the shuttle, or walk the 10 minutes to main campus is definitely not for everyone.
Collins
Two words: Dunkin Donuts. Those who live here get to enjoy their daily dose of Dunks, as well as the convenience of having the Mail Stop, Falcon Mart, and Bookstore all on the ground floor, too. That said, the rooms themselves aren’t the best. You do have the added benefit of an elevator, but if it’s broken you could have a long hike to the top floor ahead of you.
Boylston/Rhodes
Like all apartments, Boylston and Rhodes are great because of their full kitchens. Less trips to Seasons? Yes, please! They also have a good location in the center of campus, being close to the Student center and upper green space. Not many people seem to try to live here, though—which could be a downside if you’re looking for a dorm with more activity, but a positive if you’re looking for quieter housing. With Rhodes, it’s also worth noting that the bedrooms inside the apartments generally have curtains in lieu of actual doors.
Falcone
These apartments are pretty nice, and do have a great location in the sense that they are the closest the academic buildings with the least amount of stairs to get to class or the library. On the other hand, the far walk to lower campus could be a deal breaker for some, especially when the campus is covered in snow in the winter.
Orchard North/South
The only apartments on lower, OrSo and OrNo are also right on the lower green space, close to the athletic fields, and right near the Dana Center—perfect for trips to The Nest and Currito. A great option for upper classmen, Orchard North also includes the Global Living Center if you are planning on going abroad. Some say the downside is that these buildings are slightly older and more “rundown” than some other options on campus, plus the trek up to classes each day can be especially brutal during our New England winters.
Suites
Copley North/South
CoSo and CoNo are some of the popular options for suite-style living because they’re cleaner/newer buildings with spacious rooms. Set up nicely in a circle with Fenway, they are close to the athletic facilities and lower green space. They both have elevators and nice lounge areas, but the distance to upper campus and even the Student Center is something to think about with these options.
Fenway
The newest dorm on campus, Fenway residents enjoy suites that have a great location near the athletic fields, lower green space, fitness center, and now the Multipurpose Arena. There’s also usually a lot going on, especially being near CoNo/CoSo and OrNo/OrSo. Depending on which side of the building you’re situated in, the massive windows that adorn each common room give you the perfect view of the athletic fields. Like all lower campus options, the hike up the stairs, across the bridge, up more stairs, and up even more stairs again to get to upper is definitely the downside to living here.
Kresge/Forest
Kresge and Forest residents typically love their location in the middle of campus. The distance to upper and lower are about the same, so you never have too long of a trek in either direction. Being pretty close to the Student Center/Seasons is definitely an added benefit as well. However, common complaints include the lack of an elevator as well as the fact that the dorms are older and more rundown compared to those on lower.
First Year
Trees
About half of the freshman class lives here, so it’s easy to make friends and get to know a lot of different people. It’s nothing too special—what you’d typically expect of a first-year dorm. That said, common complaints include the distinct odors of each Tree, along with the hassle of being so far away from different things on campus—especially if you live in Spruce.
Slade
These rooms are comparably newer, bigger, and cleaner than those that are in Trees. “Sladies” get to enjoy a fitness studio and racquetball court, along with a few different specialty housing communities. The downsides to Slade include its distance from a lot of stuff on campus, as well as the fact that Trees typically has more freshman activity.
Miller
Similarly to Slade, the Miller dorms are typically newer, bigger, and cleaner. However, the location is both a blessing and a curse: you’re closer to academic buildings and can avoid the dreaded Smith stairs, but you also risk missing out on a lot of activity because of the distance from the two other freshman dorms.
Images: Cover / North / Collins / Boylston / Falcone / OrSo / Copley / Fenway / Forest / Trees / Slade / Miller