Many seniors still had complaints about the room draw process after its first real run on Monday and Tuesday, but there was evidence that some wrinkles are being ironed out after what was described as a chaotic and trying East Wheelock trial last week.
"It was a crazy, crazy mess," said Jessica Webster '01.
She said it seemed that both the students and the people running the event "didn't know what was going on."
Masachika Akashi '01 described the room draw Monday night as an "inefficient process."
Even with priority number 74, he said, it took him and his roommate an hour and a half to get through the line.
"We were really glad to get out of that place," he said.
Students were also upset by confusion surrounding the policy concerning '01s blocking with active olders.
Mike Bayer '01, who blocked with a "super senior" for a river apartment, said he checked with ORL before the room draw and was told that "it wouldn't be a problem." Monday night, however, he said he talked to students who had done the same and gotten both positive and negative responses.
"I guess it just depended on who you talked to in the department," he said.
Some seniors with good priority numbers were angry because they didn't get the "good rooms," Webster '01 said.
Director of Housing Services Lynn Rosenblum admitted that it was hard to predict how many students were going to show up the first night, which was designated for active olders and regular seniors holding priority numbers between 1100 and 1600.
"The first night we had a few hundred people" or about 75-80 percent of the rising senior class in need of housing, she said.
They were able to get through everyone, Rosenblum said, with the last person finishing at 9:30. Monday night's event took a total of three hours.
Her office posted information telling when and where the event would take place but had no way of knowing how many rising seniors wanted on-campus housing for next fall.
Approximately 50 rising seniors showed up for Tuesday's room draw.
Rosenblum pointed to the grouping option, which allows each person to bring up to seven people with them, as another reason for the large crowd Monday night.
Rosenblum said that she had expected problems because this was the first time something like this has ever been held.
But the good news is future nights should see steady improvement.
"We had to see how [the first night] was going to play out in order to plan better for the next time," she said.
Future rounds will be broken down into more time slots so as not to have as many students waiting in line, Rosenblum said.
She also acknowledged that there were discrepancies in ORL's responses to students' questions regarding blocking with super seniors but could give no explanation for why the confusion occurred.
"We did not change any of the policies as far as priority numbers and grouping," she said.
She also said that, although it happens to some extent every year, this year there were many more super seniors who took river apartments with regular seniors.
To choose a room, students must go through a five step process. First students visit an information table to complete proxy forms or special housing requests such as the quiet floor in Wheeler. Then, with the help of an ORL staff member, the student selects a room from the floor plans of each residential building on campus posted on bulletin boards.
As rooms are selected, staff members continually update these boards, marking through already-taken rooms so waiting students can see what rooms are still available to them.
After picking a room, students are given an index card with their building and room number on it. They then take this to another table where their choice is entered in the master book.
The final stop is a table to turn in the paperwork.
The room draw, which is being held in Leede arena will take place tonight and tomorrow night for the class of 2002, and May 9, 10 and 11 for the class of 2003.
