Advice For Getting Through the Chaos of the Housing Lottery

"We understand that this can be a confusing process, especially for First-year students who have not yet gone throug-h it before," read the Housing Lottery e-mail-- sent to students on March 23.Confusing, indeed. A two-day fiasco that begins on Thursday, April 30, and ends (in emotional drainage) on Friday, May 1, the housing lottery brings eddies of ambivalent emotions.

On paper, the housing lottery selection looks only quasi-confusing, or more like organized chaos. Yet, once it all begins, chaos suppresses any attempts at organization. No preparation can ready you for this grand and special day; however, there is trivial and vital advice to be conveyed to our rising sophomores. Along with advice, I will try to offer a solution to the annual housing conundrum.

There are many pre-requisites (some more pressing than others) and statutes that inexperienced rising sophomores should be aware of, such as: "Per Connecticut statute: any student living in campus housing must be vaccinated against Meningococcal disease." Be sure to get that shot.

Another guideline requires that you have enrolled in classes. For the students who have unfortunately or, perversely, fortunately, been banned from the lottery process, sigh in relief because you do not have to take part in the bedlam.

But for those who will participate: First, do not forget to search meticulously for your housing number deep in the gizzards of Web site http://my.trincoll.edu. Remember, your housing number is subject to be tampered with and changed the day of the housing lottery, depending on the capricious housing lottery machine as quoted in the guidelines, "In addition, please be advised that the lottery numbers have been posted prior to the room rating appeal process as well as changes made due to judicial sanctions." Why is that? Nothing is certain or reliable in this mystifying process.

Grab a calculator, add your housing grade, average your housing number with your desired roommate(s) and be ready to not get the housing you want. Take note of your housing grade (on a letter scale D- to A+). Once again the rules and guidelines mysteriously state: "When considering your lottery number, please bear in mind that many residents have the same overall housing rating and at some point the element of randomness will enter into your lottery number calculation." Success by the means of first choice housing is rare, especially as a rising sophomore.

Most importantly, know exactly where you are attempting to live, and have three alternatives. You will probably end up living in your third choice unless you are a rising sophomore picking all roommates from Little (still, nothing is guaranteed).

Be prepared for fear and loathing amongst your peers at the housing lottery in the Washington room, located on the second floor of Mather Hall. Once Thursday and Friday hit, you will be lost. The selection room will look more and more like the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during a state of disaster, where some win, but most lose. There will be tears, smears, and celebrations among those in your rising sophomore class. You can witness people fighting. You can witness supposed-to-be future roommates separating at the last second, resulting in heartbreak, disappointment, and confusion.

Bring a stress ball, a book, and computer; do whatever can take your mind off the insanity and heat. But stay focused. If you are tired, find the nearest caffeinated beverage.

Do not miss your number being called, because- someone else will gladly hop in front of you.

There is also the ghostly and unfortunate possibility of not landing a room at all; enter the summer housing lottery.

The summer lottery is where you sit in limbo, with your fingers crossed and your breath held. Avoid the summer lottery at all costs. Be sure to improve your number average if it is poor to start with, and remember, you can always appeal. The SGA will do their best to ensure you a place to live for next year, but their powers are limited.

An alternative process must be assembled. A quaint, easy, and less verbose list of guidelines should be drawn up for current students' and posterity's sake. A short checklist and assigned (and updated) hourly intervals of housing selection times online would ease tension and provide housing lottery novices an opportunity to smoothly transition. This would help upperclassmen too, as housing lottery apprehension is inevitable. It is, in fact, possible that this new method would assuage the tides of anxiety.

For instance, different ratings and averaged numbers within the same range, such as 700-785, could sign into my.trincoll.edu and register at 1 p.m. And the next rotation would attend at 2 p.m., alleviating the pervasive chaos that occurs when students are fighting in the Washington Room. My.trincoll.edu must also improve and simplify its navigational ease. Additionally, lottery numbers should be e-mailed directly to students in order to increase efficacy and protect against tampering with an electronic system, which we have now.

However, until a new housing process has been implemented, it is important to note that at the end of this turbulent occasion you may be unhappy, distraught, and down.

Remember that things work out in the end. That is, unless you have to live in North Campus again. The housing lottery is an experience that will only get better and more entertaining as you get older. So, do not let this year get you down if you don't get what you want. And, there is always the gamble of the summer lottery.