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Dorms? Residence?


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I don't know anyone who's lived in a university residence, apart from one building which is more apartment-style and caters more to international students.

 

Having said that, I don't think you'd want to end up living with a bunch of 18-year-olds.

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It'd depend on the school. Usually the "dorms" (where you get a room or half a room, share a bathroom with 40 people, eat in a cafeteria) are just for 1st and maybe 2nd year undergrads. Excessively loud, and comprised mainly of 17-19 year olds. I have plenty of stories about why you would not want to live in a place like that. :P

 

However, some schools have residences for upper year undergrads and grad students, and I know of a few med students who have done that. Some are pretty much regular studio/1-bedroom apartments and others are larger apartments (like 4 bedroom), where you rent out one room. I lived in that type of residence in the later years of undergrad if you have any questions.

 

One option, especially if you're moving to a new city, would be to try to find a shared house or apartment with some fellow med students. Also, one of the main reasons that living in res is good in undergrad is that it's really hard to meet people otherwise. But in med, at least the schools I've heard about, it sounds like the class is a pretty cohesive bunch and you'll make friends no problem.

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It sounds like a lot of you have at least had some experience with dorm life. I too have heard that the fun of living in a dorm gets old once you reach 3rd year undergrad, but for somebody like me who has never lived in a dorm, do you guys think the novelty would last until 3rd year med school (ie rotations)? :P

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It depends on the residence. But both of mine (Queen's and U of T), I had to share a (co-ed) bathroom with my floor. I will still never understand why men who can't aim, don't just SIT when they pee.

 

At least the guys in your dorm didn't pee in empty beer bottles and then leave them in the hallway.

 

xhort, keep in mind that your university might not even let you live in a dorm meant for 1st years, because they want to save those spaces for 1st years, so it might be a moot point. I suggest you look into the res options at your school. Maybe you'll find a res for upper year/grad students that's appealing.

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Personally, I would NOT live in a dorm.

 

Since I just finished first year (the baby among this group I'm sure), I can say that I would not even want to go back going into second year of undergrad.

 

For me, residence was not a positive experience and I made all of my friends outside my dorm. It was LOUD, smelly, and dirty. I was one of five students in science out of a 25 person floor, and... well my floor was the party floor of the building. I like to go out, but I like it to be quiet on Wednesdays at 3am...

 

If you really want a residence experience, I would go with one geared towards grad students or see if there are any clusters with science/med students. Many of the friends I met were in biological science clusters and LOVED it, because you have similar schedules and everyone has time off (ie... time to party :P) at the same time. I friend of mine at Queen's was in an engineering cluster and loved it as well.

 

Just my thoughts. :) I'm glad I had a res experience, but in no means think you missed a critical part of your life by not going

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There are a couple of things to keep in mind with residence. It works out great when your floor are all in the same program (rarely happens) and your exam/test/assignment schedule is very similar. But if you are in Med and you get a bunch of 1st year kids that want to have a huge party the night before Day 2 of 900 exams in 4 days, you aren't going to be very happy where you are.

 

You also have to keep in mind how much younger these kids are going to be. A 1st year student can be as young as 16 and on the high end up to 21. After completing an undergraduate degree you are most likely talking about being at best 21 if not older. That puts you in the wonderful "we don't want to hang out with you unless you buy us our booze" category. Not exactly a great place to exist on the social ladder.

 

It will also limit your ability to be the center of the Med party scene. You are going to have a harder time convincing people to come to your "place" when there are 17 year old kids running around.

 

My suggestion is that you get to know some of your fellow students from your 2014 class and look into getting a 4-5 bedroom place that you live in. You still get the "living with other students" experience but you are going to have people who do have their careers in mind at the same time.

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Honestly, I wouldn't mind living in the grad res at Queen's (if I had the option!).. its possibly in the most centrally located and convenient building on the whole campus, and its grad students so its not the immature environment you might expect in first year res!

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