Dinwiddie is hands-down the best dorm on campus
But good luck getting anything done in the lounge
If you venture into the deepest recesses of the Botetourt Complex, you’ll stumble upon a freshman hall unlike any other. Dinwiddie Hall has been the source of William and Mary’s tightest-knit groups since it was constructed in 1972. It might not be the most spacious building on campus, and it may lack the bells and whistles of other dorms, but in my opinion, it’s the best place you could live during your freshman year.
A tight fit
The bedrooms in Dinwiddie are slightly bigger than broom closets (but only a tiny bit). The arrangements for each room depend on what you and your roommate want to do, but I’d strongly advise against bunk beds. There just isn’t enough space. You can add a touch of personal flair to make it a bit more of your own, but the small space can really cut down on furniture options. You probably will not have room for a futon or your favorite bean bag chair, but there’s more than enough wall space for your favorite posters.
The lounge
On the first floor, you’ll find the social lounge. This is where Dinwiddie residents will come together and pretend to be productive. You may enter the lounge armed with textbooks and good intentions, but the social atmosphere is simply too overbearing. You’ll likely be roped into a game of cards when you know fully well that you have a paper due in six hours. Or you’ll take a break to play “just one round” of Mario Kart, only to realize that you’ve spent the better part of a day throwing blue shells at your friends. Or, worst of all, you could be trapped in deep conversation with one of the other residents. You may think that you can snag a study spot when the lounge is empty, but that will never happen. There will always be someone else there, and there will always be something interesting going on. If you actually need to get something done, you’ll be much better off working anywhere else.
Not the best location…
Dinwiddie also happens to have one of the worst geographic locations on campus. The only facilities close to it are the Commons Cafeteria and the Rec Center. If you plan to go anywhere else on campus, it will be a bit of a hike. Whenever you go out on campus, you’ll always have to consider whether or not it’s really worth the trip. If you’re hoping to get very toned calves during your freshman year, the excessive walking might not be such a bad thing. Nothing will help you stave off the freshman fifteen like unavoidable cardio. There is a bus stop about two minutes from Dinwiddie, so that helps alleviate some of the pain.
Guaranteed friendships
The residents of Dinwiddie tend to spend a lot of time (some might even say too much time) together. There are only 44 residents in the entire building. After about a month on campus, you’ll realize that your fellow residents have become the extended family that you never knew you needed. Although the other dorms in the Botetourt Complex are also on the small side, this sense of camaraderie can only be found inside Dinwiddie. Before long, you’ll be eating most of your meals with your neighbors on a regular basis. You might actually schedule your meals around each other just so you can spend a bit more time together. If you become more involved on campus, you’ll frequently attend each other’s performances and events. Every time you do something on campus, you’ll have the opportunity to share that experience with another resident. And most of the time, you will. It’s very likely that the other freshman dorms will refer to Dinwiddie as a “cult.” Let me assure you—there are no secret ceremonies, sacraments, oaths, or sacrifices of any kind. When you live in a dorm with so few people, you can’t help but become close to them.
Life after Dinwiddie
You might be thinking that this sense of companionship will disappear once freshman year is over. When May rolls around, you’ll see each of your friends pack their belongings and return home one by one. The already small population dwindles down to a handful of people. For the first time all semester, the social lounge is actually completely empty. You wonder if those connections you made during your first year will mean anything when you return as a sophomore. I lived in Dinwiddie during my freshman year at the College. I am now heading into my senior year. The people I lived with three years ago are some of the best friends I have on campus. We still get meals together, hang out at events, and even visit each other between semesters. I can honestly say that the friends I made in Dinwiddie are some of the best I’ll ever have, even when my time at the College is over. Although Dinwiddie Hall is not the prettiest or most spacious dorm on campus, it’s the people that you’ll meet there that make it all worthwhile.
