This is a thrilling time of year for Iona students: spring is in the air, summer is on the horizon, and the subject of housing is on the lips of all your friends.

The Ionian conducted a survey of 100 students’ living experiences on campus to help make the crucial decision easier for returning students.

Conese:

Convenience: 9.2

Safety: 8.2

Condition of the room: 8.4

Environment: 8.6

Overall Experience: 8.6

Overall Rating: 8.6 out of 10

Conese Hall is home to honors students, science students and a handful of student athletes. While the population is now predominantly first year students, there are sophomores and juniors scattered amongst the floors. The students that were interviewed expressed an overall happiness with their current living situation.

Yet there was a recurring theme within the Conese residents that they didn’t have many friends outside of their suite.

However, sophomore Sebastian Gonzalez said, “I love [Conese] because the whole floor is close. I have 9 of my friends and the rest of my other friends on the floor. There are challenges but we make it work.”

South:

Convenience: 9

Safety: 7.5

Condition of the room: 5.5

Environment: 7.4

Overall Experience: 7.5

Overall Rating: 7.4 out of 10

South is primarily occupied by upperclassmen. Maintenance issues were cited as the primary downside to living in South. Students said that there are constant plumbing problems, which coupled with the hot water outages that were experienced periodically last semester resulted in South getting a condition ranking of 5.5.

“For me personally, there are pros and cons to almost every situation, including living in South,” said sophomore Sarah Dembek. “As much as I love the community and sense of independence I have here, there have been many times when work orders were placed and nothing was fixed along with security issues.”

Eastchester:

Convenience: 8.2

Safety: 6.6

Condition of the room: 5.6

Environment: 7.1

Overall Experience: 7.6

Overall Rating: 7.1 out of 10

There is a strong sense of independence at Eastchester since it is located far away from campus while still retaining the perks of on-campus living. The only problem that students expressed with Eastchester is safety, with the primary concern being walking around at night.

“I feel we are constantly being looked over due to the campus security vehicle driving by for a check up,” said sophomore Roger Rojas. “It’s quiet and has a sense of independence because Eastchester is an apartment compared to South and Conese where doors are constantly open to anyone.”

Marriott:

Convenience: 3

Safety: 7.2

Condition of the room: 7.4

Environment: 5.7

Overall Experience: 5.6

Overall Rating: 5.8 out of 10

Due to the increased amount of students that dorm at Iona some students were placed in the Mariott Residence Inn in New Roc City. Many of the students polled gave the Mariott a low rating because of a feeling of isolation.

“It is far from campus, far from meal card places except Applebee’s, housekeeping can be very rude and doesn’t always listen to what you ask (I.e. don’t vacuum people are sleeping),” said senior Tom Pennington. “Four people in a small space is not conducive to studying and the library is far.”

When deciding where to live next year, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons of each option.