Applying to college is exhausting, but it’s just the first step. Once you commit to your school, you have many important decisions to make such as class schedule, dining plan, housing, budget, etc. Housing tends to be one of the main concerns of any new freshman. So, here is my take on West Campus living as a freshman at Boston University!
1. The buildings.
West Campus consists of three residence halls: Claflin, Sleeper, and Rich. Claflin is closest to the street and is connected to Rhett’s Cafe and the West Campus Dining Hall. Sleeper is in the middle and is also connected to the West Campus Dining Hall. Rich Hall is the furthest and is not connected to the dining hall, but is home to the mail room, which is super convenient! Each of the residence halls are pretty much the same in terms of quality and cleanliness of the dorms (except West offers superior AC during the hot month of September)!
2. Location.
West Campus is conveniently located near Fitrec, Agganis Arena, Nickerson Field, Amazon, Target, and CVS. As far as restaurants go, it is near Raising Cane’s, Blaze, Life Alive, Chipotle, and Starbucks. And if you plan on going to frat parties on weekends, West Campus is definitely more convenient because it is on the border of Allston, MA (aka Frat Row).
Personally, living near Fitrec and Agganis Arena are the biggest advantages to living in West Campus because otherwise, I doubt I would be willing to walk a mile to work out or see a hockey game. If you are in CGS, SHA, or CFA, West Campus is closer to most of your classes. I’m in COM, so I have to take the bus or the T to my classes every day and it takes me an extra 30 minutes each morning.
3. Food.
Many people say West Campus Dining Hall is much better than Warren, but I disagree. I think there is a certain stigma associated with West Campus (“West is Best”), and I’ve found that the food is hit or miss at either dining hall. The food you get at the dining hall is pretty consistent throughout campus, except in Marciano Commons where the food is 10x better!
4. The people.
West Campus is home to students of pretty much all ages. Sure, there are many freshmen, but I also know many upperclassmen who choose to live in West. West Campus (including 1019 Commonwealth and StuVi) is also home to most of BU’s athletes because it is conveniently located near the sports facilities.
The bottom line is that there are pros and cons to each residence hall at BU, and everyone has different preferences. It’s a matter of trade-offs, so here are a few questions to take into consideration when deciding where to live next year:
Do I prefer to live near my classes?
Do I prefer to live near Fitrec?
Do I want to live with only freshmen?
Am I willing to invest in a semester T pass?
Do I care about aesthetics/views from my dorm? (If so, choose West!)
Want to keep up with HCBU? Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, check out our Pinterest board, and read our latest Tweets!