Housing Reviews 2024: East Campus (Highrise)

Take a glimpse into the coveted EC lifestyle!

Location: 70 Morningside Drive, or: across the bridge; right next to IAB and the Law Building; across from Faculty House; up the stairs from Wien courtyard.

Nearby dorms: Wien (quick mailroom trips!); President Shafik’s mansion!
Stores and restaurants: Arts & Crafts, HamDel, Appletree, Friedman’s, SubsConscious, Dunkin Donuts, Hartley Pharmacy, Elysian Fields and Massawa. Right next to Faculty House and Fac Shack and relatively close to Chef Mike’s and Chef Don’s. In a straightforward path to Grace Dodge as well!

Cost: $12,180 (projected upperclassmen rate for the 2024-25 academic year).

Amenities:

Bathrooms: Suite bathrooms have two sinks, a toilet in a stall, and a tub-shower combination. 2-person flats have a normal-looking bathroom with a sink, toilet, and shower. Bathrooms are cleaned by residents.
AC/Heating: Glorious air conditioning in the summer and controllable heat in the winter. Your temperature control mileage may vary depending on party size.
Lounge: There are lounges on the upper floor of every suite (the even numbered floors) that are rarely used as all the suites have living rooms. There is a large main building lounge on the 2nd floor with a piano, TV, and kitchen. Within suites, there are large living rooms with couches.
Kitchen: There is a kitchen in every suite, and it comes with a dishwasher, oven, microwave, and full-sized fridge. For those who are used to kitchens in houses or larger apartments, the kitchen space leaves a lot to be desired; for a NYC apartment, though, it is not too shabby, especially with the amount of cabinet space present! The two-person flats have slightly smaller kitchens with no dishwasher.
Laundry: There are washers and dryers in the basement. The machines consistently work, though one or two may occasionally not start.
Fire escapes: None.
Bike storage: Available in the Wien courtyard.
Computers/printers: There are computer lounges with one printer each on floors 10 and 18, and there are two printers in the lobby.
Gym: There are exercise rooms located on floors 8 and 16. These rooms have treadmills, bikes, and ellipticals in various states of order. Use as you see fit.
Intra-transportation: Each suite is actually three floors: the shared kitchen and living room are on the topmost floor; the bedrooms and bathrooms are a floor down; and there is a suite exit on the third floor. So, say one lives in suite 2002 (party hosting suite!): one would enter the suite on the 20th floor, where the kitchen and living room are. Then, a set of stairs inside the suite would take them downstairs to the 19th floor, where the bathroom and bedrooms reside. Finally, another set of stairs would lead to an extra suite door on the 18th floor. Two generally speedy elevators will take you wherever you want to go, as long as you do not mind frequent stops, especially right before class start times, and big crowds on the weekends.
Hardwood/carpet: The building halls are carpeted while the bedrooms and living room are hardwood. Linoleum in the kitchen.

Room variety:

7 all-single six-person suites—one on each floor. Four singles face campus (pretty sunsets!) while two face the park.
7 all-single five-person suites. Also one per floor. Three singles face campus while two face the park.
56 (eight per floor) suites with three singles facing campus and one double facing the park.
35 (five per floor) two-person flats. These have two huge singles, a bathroom, and a kitchen. The common area in these flats is mostly just a table in a hallway.
8 doubles on the sixth floor, each 200 sq. ft. and with their own bathroom.

Numbers:

Famously mostly seniors—and entirely upperclassmen. According to the Columbia Housing website for EC, for 2023, students who selected into EC were 89% rising seniors and 11% rising juniors. The all-single suites were the first to be taken, and they were all taken by rising senior groups.

99% of students who selected into this building participated as part of a group—84% in rising senior groups, 2% in rising junior groups, and 14% in mixed-point groups, with the average point value of 33.

May the odds be ever in your favor.

Bwog recommendation:

EC maintains its position as the crown jewel of Columbia housing. With an in-suite kitchen and living room, there is a lot of space for residents to work with. Whether it be extravagant decorations, elaborate dinner get-togethers, or hosting a raging party, EC suites have the space to do it all. Noise level during the weekends can be a bit high, but there is the silent recognition of that being alright—this is party central, after all! For people who want to host and attend parties, an EC suite is perfect. However, those who want a relaxed and (mostly) mature atmosphere can also find solace in EC with its many singles, generally nice amenities, and upperclassmen population. Overall, EC feels like an apartment in the city, albeit with CUID-only access and slightly cheaper rent.

Resident opinions:

“The views are AMAZING, and having the space to host parties is wonderful!”
“So worth it if you are able to get into EC—-my senior year has been so chill because of it.”
“Watch out for the infamous Barnard crowds, which flood the lobby on weekends. It is fun to walk right past them and sign in as they watch, though!”
“EC strikes a nice balance between fun and a sense of relief since most people here are about to graduate. We all just want to enjoy our last year before graduating, and that starts with where you live.”