Rochester Institute Of Technology Freshman Dorms Ranked

Number 5

"I’m in the first floor of Fish C and it’s pretty good!

Cons:
1) Unlike most buildings Fish Hall doesn’t have AC, but I know they’re planning to update that in the coming years. My room did get up to the mid 80s in August/September, but has gotten comfortable (high 60s/low 70s) since late September as it’s gotten cooler out! When it is cooler you can control the heat level in each room.
2) Fish doesn’t have elevators as it’s a smaller building. Not a big deal, but is important to consider if you have accessibility considerations or just have a lot of stuff for move-in day if you’re above first floor.
3) I believe Fish is one of the older buildings in terms of renovations and overall look inside. I would expect this to change with time, but right now other dorms like Baker definitely look more modern when it comes to the hallways and bathrooms! However, Fish looks similar to a lot of the other buildings in my experience.

Pros:
1) Fish is very central in terms of the dorms, if not in the center of dorms. You’ll have about a 2-3 minute walk from your room to the Corner Store and Post office in the tunnels, and about a 5 minute walk from Beanz, Commons, College Grind, or Gracie’s (dining options on campus).
2) Fish is a small building so it’ll be easier to get to know everyone in Fish compared to dorms like Ellingson or Gleason.
3) Fish definitely doesn’t look the most modern and it will get warm without AC, but overall my experience at Fish has been really good. " - 1 year ago

1 student reviewers said they lived in Helen Fish Hall during their freshman year

Number 4

"Best location of the reshalls. Right next to Gracie’s, Beanz, shuttles, fitness center, and quarter mile. Given that Gracie’s is required now, live right next to it." - 1 year ago

1 student reviewers said they lived in Frances Baker Hall during their freshman year

Number 3

"I lived on the second floor of Gibson, which at the time was half honors students and half non-honors students; I have to say, the students on the floor with me were really awful. First, the two RAs were supposed to be on the floor only one was ever there: the other one just used the room to study and eventually got fired so we didn't have two RAs so the other one picked up the slack.

Unfortunately, this said RA was very buddy-buddy with many honors students on the floor and many complaints weren't taken seriously, especially with loud noises and said drunk honors students. Two female honors students across the way from where I had my room brought some random stranger into their dorm from a bar who ended up trying to take advantage of the two of them and had to be escorted out by public safety. For hours I was conversing with my RA about hearing them and worried about them not having anything happen until I called public safety who were getting multiple reports about the guy going down the hall drunk and punching the walls while trying to enter other rooms; we were all told in an emergency text to lock our doors while public safety handled it.

Obviously, this is probably a 1 time experience but it was in Gibson and I feel like I should mention it since it mainly happened with honors students causing the problems. The dorm is majority hidden in the shade so it's not too hot in the summer which is nice, and it's right by the food circle so it's convenient: but the honors students make it almost unbearable to do anything in it and I do hope that if you're an honors student reading this that you aren't the one causing these kinds of problems...

The rooms themselves are just like every other dorm on the RIT campus; small, have heating (and soon be air conditioning) and usually have at least one window. The bathrooms are just the same as the others, though the majority of the time people had sex in my floor's female bathroom because there weren't many females on the floor itself. Also, the bathrooms weren't cleaned very well and were only sprayed with water, causing some bacteria to spread and got some of us sick; with coronavirus though they have apparently fixed + changed their cleaning habits." - 1 year ago

1 student reviewers said they lived in Carlton Gibson Hall during their freshman year

Number 2

"Dorm rooms were fine! They're not huge but not uncomfortable. Bathrooms aren't really modern and they are communal, but I never had a problem with cleanliness. The shower pressure depends on who you ask and hot water can run out. Fine location. " - 1 year ago

2 student reviewers said they lived in Nathaniel Rochester Hall during their freshman year

Number 1

"suite-style layout is great for bathroom privacy. Great views and controllable heating and cooling. Mixture of deaf and hearing people, overall a very chill and quiet social environment.

Location is near two eating establishments, commons and sol's underground, and is right next to the NTID building. However, it is further from most of campus than the rest of the dorms.

There are a few drawbacks that come with the building's size. It is the tallest on campus at 12 floors, yet only has 2 elevator shafts like the other dorms. Elevators are often broken for weeks or months at a time, further exacerbating congestion. The building's large population also leads to more frequent fire alarms, around once per month.

Overall, it's a good dorm, but I'd advise looking for a room in peterson or res-D first. They have the same advantages of the suite-style layout, but are only 2 or 3 floors tall and slightly more central location." - 1 year ago

2 student reviewers said they lived in Mark Ellingson Hall during their freshman year