Senior Simon Pulman transferred to Duke last year and lived on Central Campus—a bus ride away from the center of University life.
He said he would have preferred living on West Campus because it is difficult to meet new friends as a transfer student, and communal dormitory life is an advantage in that respect. Last year, however, most of the male transfer students were forced onto Central Campus because there simply was not enough room left for them on West.
The problem, officials said, was that transfer students simply were not given adequate consideration with regard to the housing process. “They felt like they were leftovers,” said Ryan Lombardi, assistant dean of students.
Lombardi said what the students wanted was a choice. They wanted to be in a residence hall, next door to someone and among the regular student population.
This year transfer students were given a choice of where to live and are spread across campus, rather than clumped together in one hall like the transfer women were last year.
“Folks have been pleased,” Lombardi said. “This was a really good example of the student population speaking up about an issue they weren’t happy with and how the University responded.”
Transfer students were also given the option to live off campus. In general, the University requires students to live on campus for six semesters in an attempt to foster a strong community. “Getting integrated into Duke’s social scene [and] being a part of campus life” are big concerns, said Donald Love, interim director of housing assignments and communications. Thus transfer students are encouraged to live on campus.
Transfer students who want to live off campus often have extenuating circumstances that make living on campus for six semesters impractical. Of the 49 transfer students that matriculated at Duke last year, four chose to live off campus. Of those four, two were older than the average college student and one had a family.
The policy of allowing transfer students to live off campus before their senior year is not just to save space and ameliorate the housing crunch that occurs now that the University is enforcing the six semester rule. Transfer students are, relatively speaking, a small part of the population needing housing. Housing these students is not really an issue of having enough space, Love said. But since transfer students are not admitted until May, they often find themselves lost at the bottom of the barrel because room picks are over.
“Chances are you’re going to get bad housing,” said junior Iris Bierlein, who came to Duke last year. “We’re the last ones to get anything, but it’s gotten better.”
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