Daggett Lounge filled again with anxious students seeking housing on Tuesday and Thursday night—for the triples and singles lotteries on Tuesday, and the doubles and open lotteries on Thursday.
The Tuesday lottery started with triples at 7:30 p.m., and did not move to singles until around 9:15 p.m. This long wait was due in large part to the transformation of 25 Brunswick doubles into forced triples for next year.
Despite the tighter living conditions and the time-consuming process of the lottery, Director of Residential Life Mary Pat McMahon said, "People were remarkably good spirited, patient, and willing to work with the options that they had. I was very impressed with the singles and triples participants."
McMahon said that 207 students entered the triples lottery for only 177 beds in 59 available triples. Last year, 132 people entered, and 120 were assigned triples.
However, because of the additional beds in Brunswick Apartments, McMahon said, "It was harder this year to predict and extrapolate from last year year's numbers."
Like past years, though, top picks for rising seniors and a few blocks of rising juniors were unforced Brunswick Apartment triples. Of these, Dana Riker '10, who will be head Proctor for Brunswick Apartments next year, said that units located on the Brunswick Quad were chosen first.
McMahon said 79 participants remained after the triples lottery to try and get one of 69 singles. Some students left early, although everyone who stayed until the end was assigned a bed.
Associate Director of Housing Operations Lisa Rendall said that the small number of efficiency apartments in Stowe Inn, which have kitchens, went fast.
"People clearly knew they wanted those, they had done their homework," she said.
After those, most students chose between singles in Stowe Inn and Chamberlain Hall.
Additionally, the 10th floor of Coles Tower was reserved for singles within suites. Sarah Loeb '11, who got a relatively low number, was one of the students who chose this option.
"The singles lottery worked out because everyone wanted different things," she said. "But it did take a lot longer than I expected."
Last year, only 68 of the 109 students who entered the lottery were assigned beds, and only one first year was able to pick, according to Rendall. However, fewer seniors than in the past entered the lottery on Tuesday and several students did not show up, giving more students a chance to choose singles.
On Thursday evening, Residential Life set up shop in Daggett Lounge for the last of this year's housing lotteries, this time for the doubles and open lotteries.
Two male spaces in Coles Tower remained and went into the open rooms lottery, along with four beds in Burnett, one bed in Howell, and two quints—one in Stowe Inn and one in Stowe Hall. Rendall said it was the first time that any singles were not selected.
According to McMahon, the 37 available Brunswick apartment doubles were selected first. The only exception was an Osher two-room double, the only one of its kind, selected by rising seniors with a good number.
"It's been kept kind of quiet," said McMahon.
Nathan Merritt and Sean Healey were the first all-rising-junior block to select a Brunswick double.
"We got the first pick for our class two years in a row," said Merritt.
Grant Easterbrook '11, whose block picked the last Brunswick double, said, "I'm truly lucky. We knew we were at the border, and we were on the border for the quads lottery too, so it feels really good."
After Brunswick, several junior and sophomore blocks were left frustrated, selecting between rooms in Osher and Chamberlain Halls. A few rising juniors opted to defer housing until the fall.