How to live in a dorm at New York University: personal experience

New York University freshman Zoe Applebaum has begun a new phase of life in New York City. She was lucky enough to get into the university's new dormitory building, the John A. Paulson Center. Modern, high-tech, comfortable - this is the place that every applicant dreams of. Zoe shared her emotions and made a short excursion especially for the magazine Business Insider. The following is the text in the first person.

I'm a freshman at New York University and live in the newest dorm building. Modern rooms and spacious study areas - I present to you my personal tour of the hostel.

When I meet NYU students and tell them I live in the John A. Paulson Center, they tend to roll their eyes enviously. I must admit that if I were them, I would feel exactly the same.

Since this is the newest residence hall at NYU, there are a lot of cool things to do in my building. In my opinion, the Paulson Center is unparalleled among other NYU residence halls.

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I live in a spacious three-bed studio with two other roommates. We share one large room. Separately, it is worth noting the floor-to-ceiling windows, which, in addition to natural light, provide an incredible view of the city. You can even see the Empire State Building from our window. In addition, it conveniently has a bathroom attached to it, which we also share between three people.

My part of the room is under construction

I plan to decorate it with posters and plants as the semester progresses. For now, I'm sticking to minimalism and cleanliness, and using the space under the bed to store clothes and miscellaneous items. My desk is decorated with some souvenirs from Canada, as well as new ones from New York.

As I explore the city, I hope to fill my information board with photos, postcards, and other souvenirs that I can find. I have several books on my shelf, some for personal use and some for study—though I don't tend to do study assignments in my dorm room. I try to go outside and use all the study spaces that NYU has.

Modern and spacious bathroom

This layout suits my roommates and I just fine—especially since we don't have to share a bathroom with four other people, as we typically do in traditional NYU apartments.

Our closet is divided into three sections so we each have our own space. The closet is spacious enough to accommodate several top drawers, which we use to store cleaning products and bath towels.

During the first week of school, we purchased a mini-fridge for our room, which has been a lifesaver for us. We stock up on fruit from the cafeteria and store the week's leftovers in it in case we don't feel like going to the restaurant.

If the mini-fridge isn't enough, there's an excellent Crave restaurant in the building

Crave, located on the sixth floor of Paulson, is one of NYU's dining options. They offer a wide variety of interesting dishes: banh mi sandwiches, sweet potato BBQ chipotle bowls, vegan falafel sandwiches, tikka masala rice bowls and much more.

I can pre-order through the Grub Hub app or order on-site at one of the kiosks, which is what I usually do. With its convenient location and unique menu, Crave has become one of my favorite places to grab a bite at NYU.

Cozy places to study

The quiet study room on the third floor of Paulson is my favorite place in the entire building; this is my favorite place to study when I need some peace and quiet.

I usually spend at least a few hours here every day after classes, sometimes taking breaks in between to grab a snack or go back to the dorm for a while.

Gym

Although the gym in the Paulson building is relatively small, it cannot be underestimated. It is located on the ground floor and has everything you need for a great workout.

There is a wide selection of cardio equipment, including treadmills, stair machines, stationary bikes and elliptical machines. There are also several machines here for chest press, shoulder press and leg press enthusiasts, although I am not a fan of this type of training.

Since many NYU students choose to use other gyms on campus, Paulson Gym is usually empty, making it an ideal place for a quick workout before or after class.

It's safe to say that NYU's John A. Paulson Center has everything you could want in a student residence. Thanks to all these amenities, I sometimes do not leave the hostel building for several days.