Is Risley Residential College the best dorm at Cornell?

Good place to live if you're looking to join the theater crowd/want a really convenient location. There's a few average students like me and other architecture students since it's the closest building to the studio, but I find the crowd a bit too weird (although most people were very nice). The location's really convenient as a freshman cause it's the closest to the bridge to north, although kind of far from the main cafeterias/gym at RPCC and Appel. However, there's a dining room right in Risley with a lot of vegan and other alternative foods which is SO nice in the winter. The bus stop is right in front of the building and that's really nice too. There are art workshops and a dance studio in the basement, but sadly I never really got to use them often since I was too busy. Drawbacks: the kitchens and bathrooms are alwaysssss dirty, especially on the second floor where I lived but the further up you go/more in the secluded halls, the cleaner the bathrooms and the kitchens were. There's also no air conditioning and the building itself is super old. My room was tiny, but I didn't realize it was so small/old until I went to other people's dorms. Probably wouldn't live here again.

Very old building with loud doors. Also a pretty social dorm so can get loud, especially at night and on nights when there is a performance in the theater. Small shared kitchen which isn’t great. Bathroom cleanliness is pretty good. Single room size varies; I got lucky and got a decent sized single. Room was in good quality, though had a particular smell at times. Many resources, especially if you’re into anything art related. Woodshop, digital media room, painting, theater, dance room, etc. Good location, with bus stop right out front. Would only really recommend if you will use the resources though.

Kinda weird vibe and definitely a popular group, which kinda sucks. if you go to events its ok. good dining hall

I got randomly placed here and felt like I didn't fit in with the students there, which was upsetting. I had a running joke with the friends from other buildings that my room was converted from a janitors closet. Not only was it extremely small but it was located right next to the stairs and had a water fountain right next to my door so I felt like Harry Potter sometimes and always had to deal with people coming around through 3-4AM. I'm not extremely liberal (I am left-leaning) and found the RAs to be really annoying and some of the students to be ironically super judgmental. However, there's a dining hall in the building and it has a great location.

There's definitely a predominant theatre kid culture at Risley. I enjoyed rooming here, despite not being a theatre kid or being in the "In" group. Do not go random for roommates if you choose to live here unless you're okay with the theatre kid archetype. Will say though that the room sizes vary a LOT, Risley has some of the largest doubles on campus and some of the smallest singles. No two rooms are built the same, so it's kinda a crapshoot. I really lucked out and had a ginormous walk-in closet to myself while my roommate had a smaller but still decently sized closet. Other friends shared closets that were smaller than mine alone. Also, most bathrooms are Co-Ed, Risley does NOT have pod style bathrooms like some other halls. There are two halls that have gendered bathrooms. Risley is charming in its own way though- it's a great conversation starter to tell people that you live at Risley during O-Week because you get to explain about an artistic side of you. The dining hall is fantastic and actually healthy, always makes you feel good after eating there. As someone who isn't used to the cold, I loved not having to leave my building to get food. Risley programs were overall alright, Rocky-Horror is enjoyable if you've never done it before. Harry Potter night is supposed to be really fun. Some of the RA programs were actually pretty good. Murder Mystery was a hit. For those who want a quick community and march to the beat of their own drum, Risley is pretty fantastic.