This week I won’t be focusing on dorm and apartment decor; I’ll be discussing the various residence halls at Penn State and how they compare to each other. So you think yours is the best? Well the only way to know for sure is to read on. This also functions as a guide for both future freshmen on where they want to live and for current freshmen who actually get a say on where they want to live next year. I’ll be discussing the various aspects on what defines a residence hall, such as overall feel, location, dining hall, individual dorms, and more. Warning: I may be the tiniest bit biased towards my area: South Halls. But I’ll save that (the best) for last. The first one up is the infamous freshman halls…
EAST HALLS: “The Classic Freshman Experience”
I think its safe to say we’re all familiar with East Halls; every Penn State has either lived there freshman year or visited freshmen there. It has both its pros and cons; I’ll start out with the good parts. The best part about it is that since its only freshmen, everyone is much willing to get to know each other and therefore most doors are always open, encouraging many friendships to bloom right away. It is also has the most halls: a whopping 15 halls all close together. When being stuck with this many people of the same age, you are bound to find some people to get along with.
The part that East Halls is most well known for is it being the location of the “party dorms.” The explanation for this one is that since freshmen don’t usually know many other upperclassmen at first, and they are just dying to try out their new found freedom, they will host get-togethers in their little dorm rooms. On any given night Thursday-Saturday, the East Halls will be full of everyone getting ready to go out: girls fussing over what to wear, guys blasting trap music with the door open, and RAs either desperately trying to calm them or just accepting the noise. Now many will think “Wow, yeah that’s exactly what I want– non-stop party atmosphere!” But there’s more to East Halls then just a hyped atmosphere. (Also, on those nights you want to stay in–and they will happen–the noise is suddenly not so fun anymore.)
One fact about East Halls is that if you live there, you are going to have to learn to love to walk or solely depend on the CATA bus to transport you everywhere. (Hint: The CATA app is VERY unreliable, you will just miss the bus about 20 times per semester) The only good part about its location is its proximity to Beaver Stadium and the Bryce Jordan Center, but hey that’s something! As far as the individual dorms go, they are on the smaller side, which is typical of a freshman dorm at any college though. Although the dorms are small, the accompanying dining hall is huge with plenty of (mostly unhealthy) options to offer. It even has its own (overpriced) gift shop that most people tend to avoid, but its there for your “school-spirit emergencies.”
That concludes my analysis of East Halls, next up: West Halls!