Living in International Village is actually pretty nice.
As I said in this post, International Village is a two-year-old residential hall open to upperclassmen and honors freshmen. It’s a bit isolated from the rest of campus, requiring a short walk across Ruggles Station to reach the rest of campus. Thus, Northeastern apparently designed International Village to be a sort of “campus of its own.” I wouldn’t exactly call it that, but it’s got some nice perks.
I mentioned before that the dorms are nice, but the building itself is too. We’ll start with the basics: International Village, unlike many of the residential halls at Northeastern, has air conditioning.
There’s a miniature gym for students’ convenience.
There’s a gorgeous bamboo courtyard nestled between the IV towers.
International Village is 22 stories high. It’s essential that we have multiple nice, fast elevators.
With 22 stories also comes a nice view. You can actually see Fenway Park from the upper floors of IV, whose bright lights stand out at night:
Every floor has an common area with a flat-screen TV.
Every even-numbered floor has a pool table.
But my favorite part of the whole building? Hands down the dining hall! IV’s dining hall, in my opinion, is the best on campus. It’s a certified three-star green restaurant (whatever that means) but more importantly, it’s unsurprisingly international-themed. The dining hall serves a variety of foods, including daily wood-oven pizza, Indian and Italian food, and my personal favorite…
Though I also dig that there’s sparkling water. I’ve missed it since Germany! However, the hall often runs out of milk, which is unfortunate.
Other features of International Village? A small computer lounge by the dining hall, which is nice. There’s some classrooms, though I have no classes here. IV is also “LEED Gold certified,” meaning it has green features such as “motion-sensor lighting, recycled building materials, low-flow showers and faucets, and a roof garden.”
So I rather like International Village. As my roommate aptly put it, Northeastern is “pampering” we IV kids. But hey, I enjoy it! Keep going NU!
Okay, first off, that view is GORGEOUS. And your description of the food the dining hall serves is making me hungry. >.<
I love food! IV isn’t that bad in terms of college food, which is notorious for being fat and greasy… but I have to make an effort to combat the freshman fifteen, though 😛
I looooove Boston! I went there for spring break, and I fell in love with the city (even though it was pretty cold). I envy you for being able to study there 🙂
If you’d really like to study in Boston, I know Northeastern is huge on accepting international students! They love them! I’m sure other universities do as well. I do love Boston, though! And I envy you for being able to study in Denmark, I’ve heard it’s a beautiful country!
feed me some sushi grr
Yo I want sushi. Though after a week or so all the sushi here still tastes the same: delicious.
lololol the “mini gym” in your dorm is the size of the gym for my entire school…
Whoa. How big is your school?
2400 kids! And we’re D3 so no one cares about sports pretty much. I went this morning at 1030 and there were two people there. It was great!
Your college is smaller than our high school! :O That sounds nice, though! In the evening here, the gyms are ALWAYS full. The only sport we really care about here is hockey, and only when we’re playing BC or BU.
I know you might not know, and I am sorry if you don’t. But I have to give it a shot lol. Is it possible for freshmen to apply for IV housing if they are not in honors? Like some sort of loop hole?! (LLC )? Also, in your opinion, how does West Village compare? Is it anywhere near being as cool? Thanks 🙂
For incoming freshman in the fall, I don’t know of any loopholes. The only freshmen I know in IV are part of the “Honors LLC.” There are some freshmen who, through NUIN, are placed in IV when they return to the US for the spring semester. Unfortunately, NUIN is only offered to certain students. I’d e-mail our housing department (http://www.northeastern.edu/reslife/) for a definite answer, though!
To be honest, though, a regular freshman dorm can be just as good as well. While IV is newer, it’s definitely isolated from the rest of campus. There’s less freshmen camaraderie, and we’re separated from the bustling freshmen dorms on the other side of campus. There’s good and bad!
West Village is a complex of upperclassman-only apartments. They’re the nicest ones available– they’re the newest and have the best location, and are definitely the most desired housing after freshman year.
I hope that helps!
AAAAHHHHH!!!!! SUSHI IS THE GREATEST FOOD OF ALL TIME!! I LOOOOVVVEEE IT!!! You are so fortuitous! (yeah, looked that word up).
No worries, dictionaries are my friends! I LOVE SUSHI TOO! It makes me wish I still lived in that dorm! XD