Conveniently located and quiet, Schapiro is great for upperclassmen who don’t mind corridor living.
Location: 605 W 115th Street
- Nearby Dorms: Mcbain, Furnald, Nuss, River, Woodbridge
- Restaurants: Hooda Halal (!!), Pret A Manger, Shake Shack, Junzi Kitchen, Sweet Green, Pret A Manger, Starbucks, Pret A Manger, Blue Bottle, the list goes on!
- Stores: Book Culture on 114th, Hex & Company, Morton Williams, UPS, Lululemon, The Columbia Bookstore, Ivy League Stationers
Cost: $12,222 for upperclassmen in 2024-2025.
Amenities:
- Bathroom: Most floors have one men’s and one women’s room. On some floors, the hooks for your shower caddy are outside the curtain–grabbing shampoo can get a little awkward. Floors two through nine are the exception; the bathrooms are single-use, gender-neutral, and ADA-compliant.
- AC/Heating: In theory, Schapiro has seasonal heating and AC. In practice, everybody’s unit is different. As I write this, half of my unit is putting out AC, and the other half is putting out heat. I don’t understand it either.
- Lounge: Each floor’s lounge has a common room that has a lounge and kitchen section. The lounge has a TV (they recently installed Roku on them), a couch, and two chairs. The kitchen has a stove, two microwaves, and a sink. The sky lounge on the 17th floor has amazing views of the city but is usually pretty crowded. If you’re looking for a less crowded spot, the building lounge in the lobby is usually free!
- Laundry: The laundry room is located in the basement, only accessible from two of the elevators (I’ve had to transfer elevators in the lobby with my laundry basket more times than I can count). There are nine washers and 10 dryers, so getting a machine is doable if you pick the right time.
- Computers/Printing: Schapiro recently got demoted from having two printers to one. The remaining printer is located in the computer lab.
- Fire Escapes: None.
- Gym: None.
- Bike storage: Again, none.
- Intra-transportation: Theoretically, there are three elevators. The left one is often broken and may also be haunted. The elevators are slow enough that sometimes I just take the stairs.
- Flooring: Carpet in the halls, hardwood in the dorms.
- Misc.:
- The Stephen Donaldson Lounge in the lobby serves as a location for LGBTQ+ student groups on campus.
- Two vending machines on the main floor
- Music practice rooms and a dance studio in the basement
Room Variety:
- 245 singles and 85 doubles (55 regular, 30 walk-through)
Lottery stats from Room Selection 2024:
- 45% rising juniors, 33% rising sophomores, 22% rising seniors
- 83% of students selected into Schapiro as a group
- 6% in mixed-point groups
- 13% in rising senior groups
- 42% in rising junior groups
- 39% in rising sophomore groups
- 100% of sophomores were selected to be in doubles. Sorry, sophomores!
Bwog Recommendation:
Location-wise, Schapiro is one of the better dorms out there. It’s near enough to campus that late-night club meetings and early classes won’t be much of an obstacle, but being across the street allows you to escape the business of campus life. It’s also super close to Riverside Park, which is great if you don’t know the last time you walked on something that wasn’t cement. Beyond location, it all comes down to personal preference. EC-rejects will likely be disappointed because of the corridor-style living–if you’re going to throw a party, it won’t be in Schapiro. It’s possible to make new friends on your floor (I did!), but floor culture isn’t set up for socializing. I’m not even sure some of the RAs know the names of everybody on their floor. But if you’re looking for a quiet spot close to campus, Schapiro may be for you!
Resident Opinions:
- “I can’t speak for other floors, but my bathroom is as disgusting as the ones in McBain. Which is saying something.”
- “People in Schapiro tend to be quiet, which I like, but it’s definitely not a party dorm if that’s what you prefer. If you like privacy and the ability to be in your own room and be antisocial sometimes, and you don’t have a burning need to live in a suite as a senior, give Schapiro a try!”
- “Walk-through doubles are great if you’re with a compatible roommate, and they’re really slept on. If you’re a junior with the worst lottery number in existence, I would probably do Schapiro.”
- “It’s intimate and peaceful, and I will always miss sitting on the windowsill to read or watch the sunrise. Heaven—I mean Hooda Halal—is also 30 seconds away.”
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Images via Author