Nothing beats on-campus housing in tertiary institutions. In a state like California, where housing is generally unaffordable, campus dormitories offer more students the only shot around affordable housing. So, which California community colleges have dorms?
Eleven California community colleges have dormitories. They are Columbia College, Feather River College, Reedley College, Cerro Coso Community College, Lassen College, College of the Redwoods, Shasta College, College of the Siskiyous, Taft College, Sierra College, and West Hills College Coalinga.
However, you should note that the available variety of campus housing includes traditional dormitories and apartment-style buildings. In addition, not all college-provided accommodation is even on campus. Some are near campus grounds. Here, we discuss the California community colleges with dorms.
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Community Colleges with Dorms in California
There are over 100 community colleges in California. But only a few of them have accommodation for students. If you’re planning to attend a community college in the state, you might want to target one of those with dormitories to have a wholesome college experience. Here are the community colleges with dormitories:
1. Columbia College
Columbia College is in the Sierra Nevada mountains foothills. The college has four residential buildings for students, each being three-story high and near the Sonora campus. The buildings are apartment-style, with two bedrooms each. Each bedroom houses between 2 and 4 students, and there’s a kitchen for each apartment.
2. Cerro Coso Community College
If you’re attending the Cerro Coso community college Mammoth Campus, there’s on-campus housing for students. There are Studio apartments for just one student and 1-bedroom apartments that can take two students. There’s a kitchen for each apartment. The student housing here is South Gateway Student Apartments. The Mammoth Lakes Foundation non-profit manages it. Only students in Mammoth Lake can stay here.
3. Feather River College
The student housing for Feather River community college is at its Northern California campus. There are apartment buildings consisting of one and two bedrooms for students. Each bedroom takes two students, and coed boarding isn’t allowed. Every apartment has a kitchen, so it’s possible to cook here.
4. Lassen College
Lassen College is in Susanville, Northern California. The school has traditional dormitories for its on-campus housing, with most rooms taking two students. But some bigger rooms can take up to 4 students. There are shared bathrooms on each floor. The pair of four student rooms have common bathrooms. There’s also a kitchen where students can prepare their meals.
5. College of the Redwoods
This community college is in Eureka and has two on-campus residences for men and women. The dormitories are at the northwestern end of the campus, and the dorms include a recreation room, study room, and laundry facility. As part of the rent, students enjoy the internet and basic cable TV. But they have to buy a meal card to be able to use the on-campus dinner services.
6. Reedley College
This college is in San Joaquin valley, central California, and has a hall of residence. The hall has two wings, the men’s wing, which can take up to 100 students, and the women’s wing, which can only take 40 students. Each wing has separate restrooms, each floor has laundry facilities and a kitchen for everyone. The hostel also has a recreation room and computer room. There are two students per furnished room.
7. Shasta College
You’ll find Shasta College in Redding, and it has two dorms, each with the capacity to take 60 students. There are two people per room in each of these dormitories. In addition, there’s a common building housing shared meeting and recreational rooms. The school also has two restaurants on campus, and students can buy meal cards to eat at those restaurants.
8. Sierra College
Here’s another college in Northern California. It has a 2-story building coed dormitory on the Rocklin campus. There’s a bathroom between every two rooms here, and the campus also has a coffee shop and cafe. Once in a while, a mobile food truck stops by.
9. College of the Siskiyous
The community college also has two coed dormitories for students. The dormitories have four wings, two for women and two for men. There’s one bathroom for each wing. Residents have to get a meal card to use the dining hall on campus.
10. Taft College
There are three dormitories at Taft College that cater to the students. All students living in the dorms have meal cards to eat at the student dining center. One of the dorms in Taft hall is for Transition to Independent Living. This is a Taft college program for students living with disabilities.
11. West Hills College Coalinga
The on-campus residence herd includes a male dorm that can take 121 men and a female dorm that can take 56 students. The female dorm has one student per room. There’s a cafe on the campus where students can eat their three daily meals. Each hall also has a microwave oven.
Why Stay in Dormitories?
There are several benefits to living on campus. According to some studies, students who live on campus are more likely to graduate and have higher GPAs. Beyond that, it allows students to get fully involved in the college community and participate in activities they would have missed if they had stayed off campus. Of course, it’s also a cost-effective and convenient housing option.
What to know about Staying in California Community Colleges Dorm?
Not everyone will get the chance to stay in dormitories. There are restrictions, such as the person must be a full-time student and have good standing. Rooms are usually 2-person or 4-person rooms, with 2-person rooms being more common.
If you’re planning to get a room in any of the colleges with accommodation, you should apply early to stand a chance. There is also on-site staff at all of these dormitories and on-campus residences.
In conclusion
Very few community colleges in California have dorms. Even in those that have, the available rooms are very few, so it’s very competitive to get a room in any of the dorms. But the benefits of staying on campus make the competition worthwhile for many.