Places of Study on North Campus

Having difficulty deciding where to settle down and study on North Campus? Here are some ideas.

Arts and Science Hall
In Arts and Science Hall there are three communal sitting areas, one on each floor.

First Floor Sitting
The first floor sitting area is located in halfway down the main hallway. It has about fifteen tables with four chairs each.

The Upside:

- Fairly good number of tables. Usually easy to find a spot any time of day (except during lunch hours).

- The area is supplied with four five vending machines (1 lunch food (avoid), 1 junk food, 2 soda, 1 miscellaneous drink (coffee, energy drinks, juice)), a microwave, a printer kiosk, and new mobile charging stations.

- Noise Scale (0 (no sound) - 10 (indoor basketball court)): 3

The Downside:

- This space doesn't have the greatest lighting.

- The chairs are some of the most uncomfortable around.

- The only place to charge your laptop is one of the three tables in the far back.

Second Floor Sitting
The Second Floor Sitting area is located at the east end of the main hallway. This is by far the best place to study and work on homework in Arts and Science Hall.

The Upside:

- The most comfortable seats in the house: four armchairs and two couches. And then there are the less comfortable tables against the wall (but we don't have to worry about those). This is great if you really just want to get down to some good reading. And the armchairs and couches are comfortable enough for those between period naps!

- Noise Level: 2 (It can get a bit noisy for the five or so minutes in-between class periods).

The Downside:

- Once again, just like almost all of Arts and Science Hall, it's rather dark. It's not enough to strain your eyes, but it's certainly not going to help your mood if your already feeling gloomy about having to study.

- Be careful: those comfortable chairs and couches will lure you into a nap! If you really need to study and are feeling drowsy it might be a better choice to feel the pain of the chairs on the first floor.

- Since the second floor seating is so popular, it might be difficult to snag a seat. You will probably have to wait until the next class period when someone gets up to go to their class.

Third Floor Sitting Area
The Third Floor Sitting area is located at the east end of the main hallway. The seating is comparable to the seating on the first floor.

The Upside:

- There are a fair number of places to charge your laptop.

- Noise Level: 1

- Lights make it just a bit brighter than the second floor

The Downside:

- The chairs are uncomfortable.

Cafeteria
The Upside:

- Lots and lots of seating. It's difficult even during lunch time not to find a seat somewhere. Of course, the quality of seating varies.

- Bright. Especially around the windows.

- There is food near at hand! And its real food, not just the crap you scavenge out of a vending machine!

- There are a good number of places to charge your electronics.

- Noise level: For the two hour lunch period (about 11:00 - 1:00), the noise level gets to be just about that of your average coffee shop. It's a bit noisy, but something you can easily tune out. Maybe a 4 or 5. For any time before or after lunch the noise level drops to around a 2.

The Downside:

- Students are possessive about the most comfortable seats, the booths. Even during slow times it might be hard to find a seat in a booth. If you really want one during the day, get there early.

- Not really a lot of downsides to studying in the cafeteria. It's my preferred study area.

The Mav Lounge:
Really? Does anybody really study here?

The Upside:

- Comfortable seating galore. Might be hard to find a couch during the busiest of times, say at the peak of the lunch hour, but even then you have a good chance at getting lucky.

The Downside:

- There are only two electric plugs that you can use in whole place. Do not come here if your computer is on its last leg of battery life.

- Everything is a distraction. There are two TV constantly playing. People are always making conversation. The majority of the people around you are not really working which makes you much less inclined to get anything productive done.

- Noise level: 6 (At busy times. People are having conversations, but its harder to tune out because they can get loud and are often interspersed with fits of wild laughter).

- Use this as a place of last resort for studying.

The Main Floors
The Upside:

- Interspersed throughout the library are a number of designated study areas where people are asked not to talk or use their cell phones or other mobile devices. These study areas have a number of individual desks that are walled off on three sides which keep you from being distracted by what may be going on around you.

- Noise level: 0

Individual Study Rooms:
- The holy grail for the serious student. Need to block off two solid hours of your life to dedicate to a paper? Go get one of the fourteen available individual study rooms at the library. These are small rooms with a desk, a picture hanging on the wall, a small whiteboard, an electrical outlet and not much else. Close the door and your are insulated in a sound proof study chamber. Get ready to hear your own thoughts!

- Noise Level: 0

The Downside:

- Study rooms have to be booked either on the library website or at the library front desk. You can only book these for two hours at a time. Luckily if no one else is behind you, you can ask to keep your study room for a longer period of time.