It’s that time of year again: room draw. Perhaps you’ve been participating in a few events around campus throughout the year that you haven’t really been all that interested in but participated anyway in hopes of winning a good room draw number. Perhaps you’re researching up on other dorms, judging their location, sanitation, laundry situation, etc. Perhaps you’re interrogating upperclassmen, asking them about their experiences and recommendations. Stress levels run high as we prepare for the end of the year, and this is just something to add the the pile, but don’t worry, we gotchu.
Your best friend is the Room Draw 2016 page on Bryn Mawr’s website. There, you can find the Room Draw calendar and a ton of other helpful resources to guide you through the process.
You’ve got your priority number, but now what? Here are some questions to consider:
Multiple-occupancy, hall group, or single? Don’t forget to fill out the relevant forms.
Roommates? It’s not just about how well you get along with each other socially, but also about how well your living habits cooperate.
Dorm? Consider location, and ask current residents about their experience, i.e. how’s laundry?
Room? Consider size, proximity to the common room, bathroom, pantry, etc.
If your priority number isn’t the greatest, don’t freak out. A certain number of rooms in each dorm is reserved for a certain number of students of each class, so you still have a chance to get the dorm you want. When it gets to room selection, seniority takes precedence.
(My strategy has been to choose Brecon, a dorm that isn’t too popular with most of the community due to its location, which is furthest away from everything, so people with lower priority numbers tend to end up in this dorm, so in comparison, my priority number would rank higher, and I’d get a better chance of getting the room I want. I personally quite like Brecon, as it has wonderful sanitation, laundry, and room sizes. Some people think I’m crazy.)
Everyone has their own strategy, and I hope these considerations can help you figure out yours!
May the odds be ever in your favour!