How to choose the best Ram Village Apartment

It’s that time of the year. The room selection process for the academic year 2016-17 starts tomorrow on Feb. 11.

The dates are here, for those of you who need a reminder.

For some people, this time of year can be exciting. You can be experimental and venture into different dormitories every year, just for the sake of it.

But there are some students who really don’t have a choice.

Students like me, an international student with no family or a place to call home in the United States, are pretty much stuck with on-campus apartments, because UNC requires students to vacate their dorm rooms for Thanksgiving, winter, and spring breaks. Only a selected few buildings and Odum and Ram Village apartments remain open during these periods.

I definitely didn’t want to be homeless and I didn’t want to migrate from building to building every semester, so I lived in Ram Village apartments ever since I was a sophomore. You may call me Ram savvy.

Here are some things to consider if you’re trying to choose a room in one of the Ram Village Apartments:

Location

Ram Villages one, two and three are located along Paul Hardin Drive. These buildings are super close to the Morrison Package center. They’re also around two to four minutes away from the Chapel Hill Transit bus stop on Manning Drive at Public Safety. If you don’t ride buses, you can walk to South Road in approximately 10 minutes.

Ram Villages four and five are not so attractive in terms of their location. Both are nearly at the very end of south campus, so it’s a nightmare to walk to classes, unless you have a class at the Kenan-Flagler Business School. You also need to walk uphill (yuck) along Skipper Bowles Drive and Manning Drive, which can be a nightmarish experience. Don’t worry, though. There’s a Chapel Hill Transit bus stop three to five minutes away on Skipper Bowles Drive at Tennis Courts.

Laundry Rooms

I would not recommend Ram Villages two, three and four to those who don’t want to be seen lugging around their dirty laundry. The laundry rooms are only located in Ram Villages one and five. As some of you may already know, your laundry can get extraordinarily heavy, so unless you’re looking for some extra workout, stick with Rams one and five.

Conveniences

Residence hall offices are located in Ram Village one and four, so if there are any pressing concerns, you’ll have access to immediate aid. You can also borrow cleaning utensils from the office, such as vacuum cleaners.

CCI printers are only in Ram Village one and four also.

There are study lounges in all of these buildings, but if you like to study alone, I’d stay away from Ram Village four. There’s only one lounge per floor and is usually occupied.

Other tips

Pick a room near an elevator. It makes moving in and out so much easier.

Corner rooms are usually bigger.

Ram Villages two and three are shared rooms — they’re just like a double room in dorms, except you pay $240 more a year (according to 2015-16 room rates).

There are no double rooms in Ram Village one.

Some double rooms in Ram Village five have TWO BATHROOM S — if you’re lucky enough to get in one these rooms, you’ll have a bathroom all to yourself.

@khjinni