Top Five Study Spots
Written by Graceanne Warburton
Heritage Room
Classy, quiet, and serene, you can’t go wrong with the Heritage room. Located in the upper level of the library, this room just has a way of putting students into study mode. It’s a great place to study for an exam or to get some reading done for your U.S. Constitution, Western Heritage, or American Heritage classes. However, sometimes it can be a little too calming – it is not uncommon to see a few nappers dozing off in those big leather chairs or hard wood conference tables. Still, if silence and serenity are your requisites for effective study, or if you’d just like to feel like an enigmatic eighteenth century intellectual every once and a while, the Heritage Room is the place to be.
Classrooms – Lane and Kendall
Although not as classy as the Heritage room (though literally the classiest of options, being, well, class room buildings), Lane and Kendall are nevertheless great options for students. Hosting classes by day, these halls stay open until two in the morning, making them the perfect areas for the late-night cram session. Another great thing about these buildings is that they have a lot of options: large study groups can find a lecture hall to work in, smaller groups can colonize a conference room, and those on a solo-mission can find a small classroom to himself or herself in which to hibernate.
Lane Computer Lab
Perhaps the most underrated spot on the list, the computer lab in the basement of Lane is a fabulous place for essay writing. Boasting dozens of high quality Acer desktop monitors, Apple processors, and a printer and copier, the facilities hidden beneath Lane hall are widely underused. This is a quiet, yet effective, place to study when the internet is required but no laptop is at hand.
Old Student Union
The Old Student Union is a fabulous place to study. It has all the amenities of the current Grewcock Student Union without the crowd of fellow students kicking back, chatting loudly, or otherwise vitiating your simple desire to stress about schoolwork in peace. This place has a little of everything: a computer lab for essay writing, some sofa chairs for reading, and several booths and tables for everything else. It doesn’t have an A.J.’s Café, but it does have a few vending machines fully equipped to satiate your late-night hunger and crippling caffeine dependencies. Plus, it has a pretty nice courtyard area for those times of the year when weather permits outdoor study.
Dorm Room
When all the class buildings are full, when the old and new student union alike are noisy, and when the weather is too frigid to make going outside seem anything less than miserable, your dorm room will always be there for you. True, other areas on campus might seem a bit more appealing, but staying in definitely has its merits. For one, all of your school supplies are there, so you don’t have to worry about forgetting some book or binder that you need. Besides that convenience, you’re at home. You can kick back, pop some popcorn, brew some tea, or (perhaps the best benefit of studying at home) study in your pajamas.
Graceanne Warburton is a freshman at Hillsdale College majoring in History, with plans to minor in either German or Journalism. She participated in forensics and theatre during her first semester, and is looking forward to picking up volunteer work at the Humane Society in the spring. She is a member of the Hillsdale College Honors Program.