University of Chicago - Campus Housing

Blackstone
Floors: 6
Number of Occupants: 79
Bathrooms: Shared by suite
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen and upperclassmen
Room Types: Singles
No first-year residents live in this quiet dorm, which is located just off campus. There is little house spirit or history, since all residents are transferring from other dorms. Rooms are nice, with walk-in closets, and private kitchens and bathrooms shared with an adjoining suite. Computer lab, game lounge, elevator, grand piano, residential neighborhood

Breckenridge
Floors: 3
Number of Occupants: 90
Bathrooms: Communal
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Singles
This refurbished residence hall is found just across the midway from Burton-Judson Courts. Oak-paneled lounge with a grand piano, recreation room, kitchen, weight room, piano practice room

Broadview
Floors: 7
Number of Occupants: 198
Bathrooms: Private; some with full bath
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Mostly singles
A former hotel built in the classical style, Broadview offers off-campus, apartment-style living in a quiet residential setting. There is a small overall population, serviced by on-site accoutrements like a large, well-appointed kitchen, ballroom, music rooms, and a game room. Located two blocks from Shoreland, it is near the lake and is serviced by the University bus system. Turn-of-the-century hotel design with kitchens, a dining and game room, library, and computer labs.

Burton-Judson Courts
Floors: 4–5
Number of Occupants: 313
Bathrooms: Community bathrooms on each floor
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Mostly singles
Living arrangements are in the traditional East-Coast style: entryways with stairwells leading to a small number of rooms per floor (4–6), connected by a short hallway with a bathroom at the end. “BJ”, as it is called, is, along with Hitchcock-Snell, a quintessential U of C dorm, in both form and function. Single rooms give way to a highly-cohesive house system with students congregating in common rooms and hooking up in private. Located across the midway, BJ residents tend to study in the adjacent Law Library, and eat in the BJ dining hall, making them, by default, somewhat of an exclusive bunch. Gothic architecture, Law Library adjacent, basement game room, large house lounges, computer lab, television room, outdoor recreation area, in-dorm dining hall, a late-night snack shop

Maclean
Floors: 4
Number of Occupants: 98
Bathrooms: Community bathrooms per floor
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Mostly singles
A former retirement home, Maclean offers students mid-sized singles in a quiet neighborhood a few blocks north of campus. Residents are said to study in their rooms and somewhat keep to themselves. It is a smoking dorm. Residents here have been known to throw occasional room parties. Residents are assigned to dine in Pierce. Kitchen, assembly hall, exercise room, computer room, television lounges, a game room

Max Palevky Commons
Floors: 4
Number of Occupants: 718
Bathrooms: Per room
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Mostly doubles, singles for upperclassmen
All three dorms (Palevsky West, Central, and East) have a very high percentage of first-years. Placed on what is now being called “Bartlett Quad,” they are close to the library (perhaps an intentional reminder for first-years) and the Bartlett Dining Commons. House culture usually depends on the residents, since most students leave after their first- or second-years. Language labs, large two-story lounges, music practice rooms, shared basement between three buildings (for underground access), close to the quads

Pierce Tower
Floors: 11 (8 residential)
Number of Occupants: 250
Bathrooms: Coed or single-sex as voted by residents at the beginning of the year
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Doubles, singles for upperclassmen
Constructed in the late 1950s in a period of urban unrest, Pierce was designed to be riot-proof. Poured concrete, narrow hallways and stairways, and elevators that only go to even or odd floors are some of the characteristics that students either love or hate. Rooms are small, forcing residents into the spacious common areas. An interior dining hall means they don’t have to walk outside in the winter for food, but that does not prevent Pierce residents from leaving their dorm—in fact Pierce residents are often stereotyped as the most social of U of C students. Located seven minutes from the quad, four minutes from the library, two minutes from the gym, and one minute from the 55/Garfield bus line (which takes you to the Red Line subway). This creates a somewhat urban environment that eschews the traditional Dungeons-and-Dragons customs that often pop up in other dormitories. Residents are statistically the most likely of U of C students to become the CEO of a corporation. Dining Hall attached, music practice rooms, dark room, TANSTAAFL, a student-run late-night snack bar

Snell-Hitchcock
Floors: 4
Number of Occupants: 156
Bathrooms: By floor
Coed: Yes
Residents: Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Hitchcock has mostly doubles; Snell has all singles
These two connected dorms are not only the oldest on campus, but they are, along with BJ, the most representative of the ideal Chicago residence. Gothic architecture, vertical “sections” instead of hallways, similar to BJ, though indoors, wood-paneled rooms with views of the central quads and the main library, and a house lounge straight out of the smoking room at a 1920s country club (down to the leather chairs, grand piano, oak tables, and portraits of former University presidents on the wall) make the historic Hitchcock-Snell an integral part of the U of C housing experience. High ceilings, carpeting, tea room, game room, community kitchen, computer lab, location right on the quad

South Campus Residence Hall
Floors: 6
Number of Occupants: 811
Bathrooms: Communal
Residents: Upperclassmen
Room Types: Singles, doubles, and apartments
550-seat dining commons, gorgeous glass facades with an emphasis on open space

Stony Island (The 5700 House)
Floors: 4
Number of Occupants: 78
Bathrooms: Per apartment
Coed: Yes
Residents: Sophomores, juniors, seniors
Room Types: Two double rooms per apartment, with enclosed kitchen, dining room, balcony, and living room
Residents have to sign a waiver guaranteeing that they’ll keep the noise level down to live in what most U of C students call “the nicest apartments in Hyde Park.” There are no first-year residents. Located across the street from the Museum of Science and Industry, four upperclassmen share every Stony Island apartment, which is equipped with two double rooms, a living room, a balcony, and a kitchen. Elevator, location along a major CTA route with easy access to downtown, close to 57th street restaurants and shops