A Comprehensive Guide to Princeton Residential Colleges and Housing

So, you got into Princeton. First off, HUGE congrats! That’s amazing. Now comes the fun part: figuring out where you’re going to live for the next four years. Honestly, choosing a dorm at Princeton is a pretty big deal. It’s more than just a place to sleep; it’s your community, your home base, & your launching pad for everything this incredible university has to offer. Finding the right student accommodation Princeton has to offer is one of the most important decisions you’ll make during your university journey. Whether you’re an incoming freshman or a graduate student, securing quality housing near Princeton University can significantly impact your academic experience and overall well-being.

The Residential College System: Your Home for the First Two Years

Princeton’s residential college system is pretty unique. For your first two years, you’ll be a member of one of seven residential colleges: Whitman, Mathey, Butler, Forbes, Rockefeller, Yeh, or New College West. Each college has its own distinct personality, architecture, & community. It’s kind of like the Hogwarts house system, but with more a cappella concerts & less magic (though some of the architecture is pretty magical, tbh).

Your residential college is where you’ll eat most of your meals, hang out with friends, & get academic advising. It’s designed to create a smaller, more intimate community within the larger university. & honestly, it works. You’ll get to know the people in your college really well, from your fellow freshmen to the upperclassmen who serve as Residential College Advisers (RCAs).

Princeton guarantees on-campus housing for students for all four years. First- and second-year students are required to live on campus, and nearly all juniors and seniors choose to live in on-campus housing. All residential colleges house students from all four class years as well as some graduate students. The residential colleges offer a welcoming environment and a host of social and intellectual opportunities throughout the academic year. As an incoming member of the freshmen class, you will live in one of the Residential Colleges during your freshmen year. Your class is separated into seven residential college sections so that each section reflects the demographic profile of your incoming class as a whole. Each section is then randomly assigned to one of the Residential Colleges. After your name is assigned to a Residential College, the Residential College staff as well as the Housing Department staff review the Residential College Interest/Activity Sheet you filled out online with your Housing and Dining form. While there is no guarantee that all of your preferences can be accommodated, every effort will be made during the process to make an assignment based on the content of the information you provided.

Each first-year has a junior or senior residential college adviser who is on hand to answer questions and help with the adjustment to college life. Freshman seminars and writing seminars often meet in residential college classrooms. Colleges also organize dances, barbecues and movie nights. They compete against each other in intramural sports such as soccer and volleyball. In assigning your new home, the incoming class is divided into seven sections-reflecting the make-up of the class as a whole-and then each section is assigned electronically to one of the seven colleges. With the staff at each Residential College, we review the information you submitted on your housing and dining forms and assign your roommate based on that information.

Read also: Decoding Princeton Admissions

Each college has a faculty head, dean, assistant dean, and director of student life, and academic advising for first-year and sophomores is based at the colleges. As a first-year, you’re assigned a faculty academic adviser, who is also a fellow of your Residential College. Your faculty adviser is your primary source of academic guidance and approves your course selection and course changes. He or she works closely with your college dean and assistant dean, who also provide advice on courses and programs and handling academic administrative matters. Every first-year has a Residential College adviser, a junior or senior, who is on hand to help with your adjustment to college life, answer questions, and act as leaders and mentors in all aspects of life at the University. You can also get guidance from peer academic advisers, juniors and seniors who assist your faculty adviser and offer a student perspective on selecting classes and successfully navigating academics. Resident graduate students from a range of academic departments live in your college and share their wisdom on courses and paths of study.

In your first days on campus, you’ll quickly get to know your fellow Residential College members, learn about the college’s culture, and, if you’re like most students, adopt with pride and enthusiasm your college’s identity. As individual communities, the colleges help define life at Princeton. Each has its own distinctive architecture, with a cluster of dormitories, dining halls, common rooms, academic spaces, and arts and entertainment resources. The colleges offer a diverse range of activities and events-from intramural sports, organized study breaks, foreign language tables, and book clubs to 5K running races, Broadway show outings, lectures, and concerts. A casino night is a staple of one college’s social calendar, while others host regular barbecues, themed meals, and numerous social events.

Now, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of each college.

Whitman College: The Lap of Luxury

If you’re looking for a dorm that feels more like a five-star hotel, Whitman College is your spot. It’s one of the newer residential colleges, & it shows. We’re talking state-of-the-art facilities, gorgeous gothic architecture, &-most importantly-air conditioning. Seriously, don’t underestimate the power of AC during those first few hot & humid weeks of September.

Whitman is made up of seven dormitories: Baker Hall, Hargadon Hall, Fisher Hall, Lauritzen Hall, Class of 1981 Hall, Murley-Pivirotto Family Tower, & Wendell Hall. The rooms are generally considered to be some of the best on campus, with many students raving about the clean, modern amenities. You’ll find a mix of singles, doubles, & quads, & most rooms are pretty spacious. One student on RateMyDorm even mentioned that their quad was big enough to fit a futon, an ottoman, a TV, & three scooters!

But Whitman isn’t just about the fancy rooms. It also has a really strong sense of community. There are always events happening, like the weekly “Whitman Whale” where they give out free food & drinks. The college also has a bunch of great amenities, including a dark room, a game room, a theater, & study lounges. Plus, it’s in a prime location, close to the center of campus & the new Yeh & New College West dining hall.

Shiny new Whitman is still fresh off the Acme Gothic machine, and seems to have been a success with its first two years of students. It boasts tons of roomy singles, and includes a nice selection of doubles and triples for your next room draw. It has a decent library (but with no books that I can recall), a warehouse-sized dining hall with somehow limited seating, and a broad range of facilities like the University's Writing Center and printing stations throughout the college. Plus, there are some amazing falafel wraps at the grill sometimes that you have to try.

Of course, all this luxury comes at a price. Some students find Whitman to be a bit “artificial” or “crammed” compared to the older, more traditional dorms. & while the dining hall is beautiful, some students say the food isn't the best on campus. But honestly, when you have AC & a room that looks like it’s straight out of a castle, those are pretty minor complaints.

Mathey College: The Quintessential Princeton Experience

If you’re dreaming of that classic, ivy-covered Princeton look, Mathey College is where it’s at. With its stunning gothic architecture & picturesque courtyards, Mathey is what most people imagine when they think of a Princeton dorm. It’s even home to Blair Arch, the largest arch on campus & a popular spot for a cappella concerts.

Mathey is one of the oldest residential colleges, & it has a very strong sense of tradition & community. Students here are proud to be “Moose,” & they show it with their maroon gear & enthusiastic participation in events like the Clash of the Colleges. The college also hosts “Moose Monday,” a weekly social event with free food that’s open to the entire Princeton community.

Read also: Princeton Transfer Guide

I'm going to be honest here; I have no idea where Rocky ends and Mathey begins. They look the same, they share a kitchen, all the buildings are interspersed with one another. That's about all I can say for that. The only thing that distinguishes the two in my mind is that Mathey has Blair Arch (campus's largest one), which is impressive, sure. As for the food, since Mathey and Rocky share their kitchen, it also gets top honors, by default.

But living in a historic building has its downsides. The biggest one? No AC. Those first few weeks of school can be pretty brutal, so be prepared to invest in a good fan (or two). The rooms can also be a bit of a mixed bag. Some are huge & perfect for hosting parties, while others are on the smaller side. & be prepared for some quirks, like having to walk up several flights of stairs to do your laundry.

Despite these challenges, many students absolutely love living in Mathey. Its central location is a huge plus, with easy access to Nassau Street, Firestone Library, & many of the main academic buildings. & there’s something undeniably special about living in a place that’s so steeped in Princeton history. As one student put it, "you're guaranteed to spend your first two years living in an actual castle."

Rockefeller ("Rocky"):

Do you like pretending you're Harry Potter? Dreaming about running into Hermione? Should have gone to Brown! But if you chose Princeton anyway, Rocky's the place for you, but hopefully not too many freshmen are into reenacting acts of wizardry. (Because Whitman actually has Harry Potter night, and it's as sad as you think it sounds.) Rocky does indeed have some of the most stunning buildings on campus (check out the dining halls and Holder Courtyard if you haven't yet), and some of the oldest to boot. Plus, Holder and Witherspoon are widely considered to be some of the poshest accommodations on campus. So if you landed one of these, enjoy it, you lucky bastard. As for the food, we'll have to give it top honors, as it boasts an impressive selection of fresh salads, well-made daily pasta and typical grill fare, a pizza oven, and some of the tastiest entrées on campus (calamari salad, anyone?). Also: Amazing waffle fries, I believe on Wednesdays.

Butler College: A Tale of Two Dorms

Butler College is a bit of a paradox. It’s a mix of old & new, with some dorms that are a bit rough around the edges & others that are brand new & beautiful. The older dorms, like 1915 Hall, have that classic Princeton charm but can be a bit dated on the inside. The newer dorms, on the other hand, are modern, spacious, & have that all-important AC.

Okay, again, Wilson and Butler are in many ways one and the same to me. The big difference, of course, is that Butler has a brand new set of dorms, known as Wilf Hall and the affectionately named Buildings A, C, and D (Any donors out there? This is your chance.). We can't speak too much about these, seeing as they're brand new. All we know is that there are gardens on top of them. And since Butler shares a kitchen with Wilson, things just got a lot rosier for Butlerites. But they're still called Butlerites, their dining hall is the weird-looking Robert Venturi-designed Wu Hall, and…Nassau Street is really, really far away.

Butler is located in the southern part of campus, near the "Ellipse Neighborhood" & Poe Field. It’s a bit of a walk from the center of campus, but it has its own vibrant community & a ton of great amenities. Wu Hall, the dining hall for Butler, was recently renovated & is a popular spot for students from all over campus. Butler is also home to Studio 34, a late-night food spot that’s a lifesaver during those all-night study sessions.

The dorms in Butler include 1915 Hall, 1967 Hall, 1976 Hall, Bloomberg Hall, Bogle Hall, Wilf Hall, & Yoseloff Hall. Bloomberg Hall, in particular, is a popular choice for its modern amenities & spacious rooms. One of the cool things about Butler is its unique architecture. The newer dorms have an undulating brick facade that’s meant to echo the curves of the nearby oval-shaped field. It’s a really cool, modern take on the traditional collegiate gothic style.

Overall, Butler is a solid choice for students who want a mix of the old & the new. It may not have the same historic charm as Mathey or the luxurious reputation of Whitman, but it has a strong sense of community, great amenities, & some of the best rooms on campus.

Wilson:

Ah, Wilson. In so many ways the unloved stepchild of the Princeton residential college family. Its buildings all look different, ranging from gothic revival to modern ugly. And its common room and library are kind of… Let's face it, they're ghetto. But! Room locations are all pretty centrally located on campus, which means Frist is close, and other dining halls are all within a five-minute walk. But after this summer's Wilcox renovation, you won't have to! The new dining hall is more cafeteria than dining hall, but the food is stellar. Why does the frozen yogurt taste better here? I guess you could say Wilson's like the scrappy runt of the pack, which gives it some character and makes it kind of cute, but still makes it a scrappy runt.

Forbes College: A World Away

Forbes College is known for a few things: its distance from the rest of campus, its amazing Sunday brunch, & its incredibly tight-knit community. Located on the site of the historic Princeton Inn, Forbes has a unique charm that sets it apart from the other residential colleges. It overlooks the Princeton golf course & has a beautiful patio & back lawn that are perfect for relaxing on a sunny day.

Yes, it's far from everything. No, the brunch isn't good as people say it is (in fact, it's the same food as everywhere else). Suck it up. But really, everyone in Forbes gets to know each other really well, and, yes, "have a tight-knit community." You'd sort of expect that when everyone leaves together for class 15 minutes early in the morning. There are advantages, of course: your room may have a personal bathroom, you never have to go outside to get to the dining hall (so you can literally spend the entire day indoors and in pajamas if you can live with yourself like that), and to make up for the sub-par food, there's a generous selection of, uh, cereal and salad. And there's chocolate fondue on Sunday mornings. P.S. Don't eat the pizza. Ever.

The distance from the center of campus is both a pro & a con. On the one hand, it can be a bit of a trek to get to classes, especially if you’re an engineer. But on the other hand, the distance fosters a really strong sense of community. Forbesians (as they’re called) are a proud bunch, & they’ve created a warm & welcoming environment that many students describe as a “home away from home.”

Forbes is a living & learning community that houses about 500 students in a mix of singles, doubles, & triples. The rooms are generally considered to be pretty nice, & the college has a bunch of great amenities, including a black box theater, a dance studio, & its own organic garden. But the real star of the show is the dining hall. Forbes is famous for its Sunday brunch, which features a chocolate fountain that’s the stuff of legends.

If you’re looking for a quieter, more relaxed residential college experience with a strong sense of community, Forbes might be the perfect fit for you. Just be prepared for a bit of a walk to get to the rest of campus.

Yeh College and New College West:

These are the newest residential colleges at Princeton, designed to expand the residential college system. They aim to provide modern facilities and foster a strong sense of community, similar to the other residential colleges. Being the newest, they often feature innovative designs and amenities.

Upperclassmen Housing: The Wild West of Room Draw

Once you’re a junior, you’ll have the option to move into upperclassmen housing. This is where things get really interesting. You’ll be entering the upperclass room draw, a high-stakes lottery that determines where you’ll live for your last two years at Princeton.

The upperclass room draw is a complex process, but here’s the gist of it: you’ll form a group with other students, & your group will be assigned a draw time based on a point system. Seniors get more points than juniors, so they get to pick first. Within your draw time, you’ll get to choose from a list of available rooms. The most coveted rooms go fast, so it’s important to have a strategy & a backup plan.

So, which dorms are the most popular among upperclassmen? According to the Daily Princetonian, Dod Hall, Scully Hall, & Wright Hall are the most in-demand dorms, with all of their rooms being drawn in the upperclass room draw. Patton Hall, Pyne Hall, 1903 Hall, & Walker Hall are also very popular.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the most sought-after upperclassmen dorms:

Dod Hall: Located in the Elm Drive Area, Dod Hall is a popular choice for its central location & beautiful architecture. It’s close to many of the eating clubs & academic buildings, making it a convenient option for busy upperclassmen.
Scully Hall: If you’re looking for a modern dorm with all the amenities, Scully Hall is the place to be. It’s an air-conditioned dorm with mostly singles & doubles, which makes it a hot commodity in the room draw. It’s also located in the southern part of campus, near Poe Field, so it has a more relaxed, residential feel.
Wright Hall: Like Dod Hall, Wright Hall is located in the Elm Drive Area & is known for its beautiful architecture & convenient location. It’s a classic Princeton dorm with a lot of charm & character.
Spelman Hall: For students who want a more independent living experience, Spelman Hall is a great option. It’s a co-op where students have their own kitchens & are responsible for their own meals. It’s a bit of a walk from the center of campus, but it has a very strong sense of community.

As you’re preparing for the upperclass room draw, it’s a good idea to start thinking about what’s important to you in a dorm. Do you want to be close to the eating clubs? Do you need a single room? Is AC a must-have? Answering these questions will help you to narrow down your choices & create a realistic wish list.

Off-Campus Housing Options

For those seeking alternatives, Princeton off-campus housing presents numerous opportunities to experience independent living while maintaining close proximity to campus. Princeton student apartments for rent in the surrounding area provide independence and often more space than traditional dorm rooms. Student housing Princeton NJ encompasses areas beyond the immediate campus, including Princeton Borough student housing and neighboring communities. The Princeton rental market offers various neighborhoods ideal for student living.

Princeton Borough provides the classic college town atmosphere with walking distance convenience to campus. Princeton North student rentals offer a quieter residential setting while maintaining reasonable access to university facilities. For those seeking more affordable options, cheap apartments Princeton students can explore include locations in nearby townships.

Understanding Princeton student housing rates helps in making informed financial decisions. Budget accommodation Princeton options require careful research and early planning. Princeton rental prices students face typically include base rent, but additional costs like utilities, internet, and parking should be factored into budget planning. The Princeton housing application process varies depending on whether you’re seeking on-campus or off-campus accommodation. Princeton housing search for off-campus options requires different strategies and timelines. International student housing Princeton may have additional requirements or support services available through the university’s international student office.

Proximity to campus significantly impacts daily life and should be carefully considered when evaluating Princeton student accommodation options. The university provides shuttle services connecting various off-campus areas to the main campus, making Princeton housing search viable beyond immediately adjacent properties.

Essential Princeton student housing amenities include reliable internet, study spaces, laundry facilities, and kitchen access.

Tips for Finding the Right Housing

To find student housing Princeton that meets your specific needs, start by clearly defining your priorities regarding location, budget, amenities, and living arrangement preferences. Book student accommodation Princeton as early as possible, especially for popular locations and prime university housing options.

Begin your Princeton housing search 6-8 months before your intended move-in date. Most students prefer locations within 2-3 miles of campus. Required documentation typically includes proof of enrollment, financial documentation, references, and completed Princeton housing application.

Additional Considerations

Princeton student housing rates vary significantly by type and location. Princeton residential colleges include utilities in their fees, while Princeton off-campus housing varies by landlord.
Pet-friendly student housing Princeton options exist but are limited, requiring early planning for students with companion animals.
Student housing with parking Princeton is particularly valuable for students who own vehicles or plan to acquire them during their studies.

Resources Available

Princeton student accommodation guide resources are available through multiple university departments. Student accommodation services Princeton extend beyond initial placement to ongoing support throughout the academic year. Princeton housing for international students may require additional documentation or support services.

Graduate and Summer Housing

Graduate student housing Princeton often requires different considerations than undergraduate options. Summer housing Princeton students can access through various programs allows students to remain in the area for internships, research, or summer courses.

Roommate Arrangements

Princeton roommate housing arrangements can significantly reduce individual costs while providing social benefits.

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