Iowa State University Freshman Dorms Ranked

Number 5

"Rooms are somewhat small and the hall itself is kind of old. Managed to get into a house with people I like and a den with a TV and ping pong table. No AC, so had to survive through a heat wave first 2 weeks of school then after that it doesn't matter. Has a nice common area. Smelly communal bathrooms that aren't half bad and are cleaned every WEEKday but it makes up for it with kind of smelly public bathrooms open to anyone but private with one at a time. Good location, as it is next to some of classes/TA sessions and 2 dinings halls as well as Dominos for after 12:00 am runs, and also close to the State gym." See all 1 review

Number 4

"Geoffroy Hall is the newest dorm building on campus so everything there is super mordern compared to the other dorms on campus. Something to note is that a lot of people in Geoffroy are greek life people that stills can’t live in there house, but I’ve made some of my closest friends on campus there. The amenities are great, there’s a den in every house where you can study or hang out, an activity room with games and a projector, and plenty of study rooms. Bathrooms are shared between the floor which isn’t the best but they’re overall nice bathrooms." See all 1 review

Number 3

"This is a really great dorm to live in. It is one of the dorms open through winter break and it makes it a good option for someone who doesn't have somewhere to go over the holidays. I had no problems with bugs or air-conditioning breaking down. It also has a great central location on campus and allows easy access to the MU. The biggest con is that this dorm is a minimum 10 minute walk to any dining hall and in the winter that becomes very inconvenient because of the cold and snow." See all 1 review

Number 2

"I lived in the Design Exchange learning community and loved that we had access to a studio space in Friley Dungeons. It was also super convenient having Windows right downstairs–my friends and I would frequently head downstairs for late night ice cream or cereal (Windows is open until 11 on weeknights).

The rooms are different in every house. I had a pretty big room with a real closet, but my friend down the hall had a pretty small room with a moveable wardrobe. Down the hall in the other direction, they had even smaller rooms with a wall of built-ins.

Most of Friley is air conditioned (I had a window air conditioner, not sure about the other parts of the building) but the western-most stack of houses is not.

There is one elevator but I never once used it because I lived on the opposite side of the building and it was faster to walk. It is important to note that the elevator does not go to Lorch-Russel house (5th floor) as that is on the other side of the building and the two sides of the 5th floor don't connect.

Overall, I loved my experience (although it was cut short due to COVID) and especially loved that it's in a super central location. My longest walk to class was 10 minutes and most of the time, I could get to my class in less than 5 minutes.

9/10 I do recommend Friley :)" See all 2 reviews

Number 1

"I lived in the middle hallway and did not like the built-in wardrobes. The whole dorm was pretty old and outdated. It was quiet, which was nice because I could study, but the downside was that it wasn't very easy to socialize. The middle hallway bathrooms were not as nice as the ones on the east/west sides. It was convenient to have Conversations dining center in the basement. I also liked the parlors and the rec room because they were good for studying with friends or to cool off in the AC when it was hot. Location was convenient for going to class, dining centers, Lied, and bus stops." See all 2 reviews