University of Southern California Freshman Dorms Ranked

Number 5

"I lived in a 2 bedroom 4 person 1 bathroom my freshman year and I enjoyed it 100%. Being apartment style, we were really spoiled to have our own bathroom, kitchen, and a fairly spacious living room. I was lucky enough to live on one of the higher floors so we had a great view too. These were definitely the biggest pros of living in Webb.
Some cons I would say is that it is definitely very not social compared to a traditional residency hall; I only knew like less than half of the people on my floor. Also the location is on the north most end of campus, which is a good and bad thing, in that it is very close to the Lyon center (gym) and the Village but a little bit more of a walk to get to most classes (but tbh if you bring a scooter/skateboard/bike then travel time is negligible). " - 3 months ago

7 student reviewers said they lived in Webb Tower during their freshman year

Number 4

"Lived in a 8PDBLE. Not as bad as you think – 2 bathrooms, 4 people to each bathroom. The rooms were spacious, AC worked a little too well during the summer AND winter, and the desks were nice. Wish that there was more sunlight coming into my room, but it is what it is. Annoying that you can only check in 2 guests per person. Laundry facilities are gross. Everyone leaves the laundry doors closed once they finish washing their clothes so there's mold growing inside the machines. $2 per load, $1 for drying. Kinda expensive. Study rooms are really nice but can get noisy. Super close to parkside dining hall (best dining hall tbh), but was a TREK to get to classes. Parkside is SOO far from everything (except Viterbi/architecture) so you had to allot maybe 15-20 extra minutes out of your day to get to class on time (or just get a skateboard). You can easily find shortcuts once you start exploring though. Gets super dark at nighttime near parkside but it's close to a fryft pickup and drop off location.

Overall super nice dorm rooms, (feels like) a safe location, good food right next door, decent amenities, BUT one hell of a walk to get to where you need to be." - 4 years ago

7 student reviewers said they lived in Parkside Arts and Humanities Residential College during their freshman year

Number 3

"Living in New North was really rough. The building is the oldest dorm on campus, the only one without an elevator, one of the few without AC, and was quite dirty and dingy most of the time. The bathrooms were dirty and the trash would stink from the vomit at least twice a week, or whenever people would go out and drink. The hardest part of me was trying to fit in with the community. New North is 95% white people, most of whom are in greek life, and as a person of color I didn't experience the "social" and "always open doors" reputation New North sold. I think New North is where the stereotype of the spoiled rich USC student holds. My floor was exceptionally loud, with people yelling and running around until 1 or 2 am almost every night, even during finals week and quiet hours. My room was decent, though again the furniture, carpet, walls, door locks, etc were all very outdated and not worth paying the same price as the newer, better dorms at USC. A couple positives were the kind staff and the location, close to EVK, the library, starbucks, and close walk to the Village. I would not recommend New North if you are any type of minority, or just don't vibe with the frat bro/sorority girl environment in general." - 4 years ago

7 student reviewers said they lived in New North Residential College during their freshman year

Number 2

"Honestly, communal bathrooms and the smaller room sizes isn't that bad if you're not too particular about your living situation. It does get hot in the summertime with no AC (that was maybe an issue from August to maybe October), and my room's heater doesn't work (but it hasn't bothered me that much). Location-wise, it's pretty convenient — some classrooms are pretty walkable, it's close to a rideshare pick-up area (EVK/McCarthy Way entrance) and it's right next to a dining hall (EVK). It is very close to McCarthy Quad, which hosts a lot of concerts and events in the evenings, which can be good (don't have to walk too far to attend events) or bad (it can be a bit loud at times, especially if you go to bed early). The customer service desk is in New North, so you need to walk a little bit to pick up mail, print, and borrow a vacuum cleaner. But overall, it's a pretty good way to meet a lot of new people for your first year on campus, and I think it was an integral part of my USC freshman experience." - 1 year ago

8 student reviewers said they lived in Birnkrant Residential College during their freshman year

Number 1

"Lived in a two bedroom with three people so two people in one room and then a single in the other room and the three of us shared a bathroom and small common space.

The double room was really spacious, but not as big as the 2 bedroom 2 bathroom- those rooms are huge. Our common space was a lot smaller than other suites, it didn’t have a small couch like other rooms.

The single looked kind of small but it was still really nice for a college single. Both rooms came with a mini fridge and a microwave.

Bathroom is very nice with a tub shower.
Lounges are always clean and nicely kept. Walls are thick so you can’t hear what’s going on in other rooms.
This room was still way better than the average dorm.

Cons- if you choose the three person you may end up living with the RA as they could have the single room. This didn’t happen to me but happened to others. Also the walls between the double and single are kind of thin so be considerate." - 4 years ago

22 student reviewers said they lived in McCarthy Honors Residential College during their freshman year