Napping 101: Where to Sleep on Campus
By Trenton
Over the course of my time here I have gained a number of skills and learned a great deal. The most important of these is, of course, mastering the on-campus nap. During the assault on your brain and sleep schedule that is finals, finding a good place to take a power nap can be the difference between happiness and a complete loss of sanity. I’ve scoped out lots of napping places over the years and now that I’m about to finish my degree I’m finally comfortable sharing them.
The Rubric
In order to give a good assessment of each napping location I have created a very scientific method for reviewing them. Each napping location is graded according to the following criteria:
Comfort
Comfort is essential to a good power nap and this category will evaluate the comfiness of couches, chairs, and various other things to prop yourself on.
Ambiance
Lighting, background noise, privacy, and the beauty of your surroundings before your eyes finally close are important parts of having a restful sleep. This category will evaluate how easily you can feel at home.
Traffic
The most intimidating part of the on-campus nap is worrying about the people walking by. Nobody likes to be overseen drooling onto their jacket or murmuring in their sleep so this category will evaluate the amount of people that might happen to walk by.
Quiet
Quietness is essential to having a good nap. Nothing ruins a day like a rude awakening from a nearby crowd or some sort of bustling. This category will evaluate the quietness of the location and the potential to be woken up.
Mechanical Engineering Lounge
Tucked away in the bottom corner of the MechE building, the lounge features a number of couches of all different shapes and sizes.
Comfort
The ability to use the big, older style couches or the slightly smaller new ones presents a good opportunity to find the right place for you to lay your head. The couches are comfy and can be pushed together to form a comfy couch bed. Grade: A
Ambiance
Windows overhead give the room a nice glow without sending sunlight directly into your eyes. Its place in the corner of the building makes it fairly private too. Grade: A-
Traffic
The lounge is located near a pair of doors but it is not the most used entrance in the building. It is located next to a number of lockers but the traffic surrounding the area is fairly moderate. Grade: B+
Quiet
The aforementioned lockers create a little bit of background noise here and there and you can expect a moderate amount of white noise but the area is fairly quiet, especially given its location in a very noisy building. Grade: B+
The Old Arts Lounge
Located on the main floor of Convocation Hall, the lounge is one of the best kept secrets on campus. The Old Arts Building is a campus treasure and history will seep into your dormant brain when you sleep there.
Comfort
With a number of couches and chairs around the room, the lounge offers an average amount of comfort. It’s hard to shuffle chairs around to make the perfect napping nook but the seating is perfectly acceptable. Grade: B+
Ambiance
The lounge’s location in one of the coolest buildings on campus gives the place a great ambiance. Windows along one wall provides a little bit of light without being too bright. Grade: A
Traffic
There is very little traffic moving past the lounge and the people entering and exiting the room usually keep to themselves. Grade: A-
Quiet
While the lounge is not a designated quiet area, it’s usually pretty silent. Expect to hear the occasional conversation around lunchtime but for the most part it’s pretty quiet. Grade: A-
Education South Lounge
The most exclusive room on this list is located at the top of the stairs in Ed north. To access the room you have to take the elevator to the 9th floor then take the stairs up one more level to access this hidden treasure. See? I told you my time here has paid off.
Correction: An earlier publication of this post had listed this lounge as being in Education North… it is in fact in Education South. There is a pretty great lounge on the fourth floor of Education North though, so really either Ed tower you pick should have a pretty great spot for catching a few zzzz’s.
Comfort
Like the Mech E lounge, this lounge has a number of couches of all different sizes, types, and softness. With seating that can be easily reconfigured, the lounge has a number of ways to get comfortable. Grade: A+
Ambiance
The lounge is undoubtedly a little bit old with some of the chairs creaking and the tables wobbling but the blinds on the windows, easy access to water, and relative privacy of the room more than make up for it. Grade: A
Traffic
The lounge is rarely busy but is occasionally used by larger groups to host events. For the most part there is very little traffic though you never know quite what you’ll get when you make the trek up to the 10th floor. Grade: A-
Quiet
When there are other people in the room you can expect quiet conversation. The versatility of the room also makes it a place where large groups get together for activities which can be a real nap-disruptor. The quietness of this room varies so be wary of the long journey if you’re dying to sleep right away. Grade: B+
2nd Floor SUB
With the construction happening in SUB, the quiet room isn’t so quiet anymore. Those looking to have a power nap in SUB can check out the couches just outside Dinwoodie for a good alternative.
Comfort
The long couches leave plenty of room to sprawl out. Rest your head on a sweater or backpack and the SUB to make yourself at home. Grade: A-
Ambiance
It doesn’t quite live up to the SUB quiet room and nowhere in SUB is particularly comforting but this spot is serviceable. Grade: B
Traffic
The first two floors of SUB are fairly high-traffic but the people frequenting this area are mainly heading to the AgFor pedway. Nonetheless, the proximity to a fairly frequently used walking area makes the traffic in this area difficult to ignore. Grade: B-
Quiet
The quietness of this location is wholly dependent on if anything is going on in the nearby Dinwoodie lounge. The recent influx of dance competitions have made this spot wholly undesirable but when there aren’t any events happening it is fairly quiet. Grade: B-/C+
Humanities Lounge
Over my many years here, the lounge on the 2nd floor of Humanities has probably been the place that I have napped most frequently. It is a perennial favourite and will be missed when I graduate.
Comfort
In the Humanities lounge it is essential that you find two chairs, and put them together. This forms a perfect bed where you can dangle your feet over the edge or curl up on. I personally think this might be the most comfy configuration of chairs on campus. Grade: A+
Ambiance
The windows on all sides of the lounge can make the room pretty bright at times but throwing a jacket over your head can easily negate this and provide some anonymity. Grade: B+
Traffic
The humanities lounge is located in a fairly high-traffic area but is tucked enough to the side that very few people walk directly past you. If you can snag a spot along the back wall the traffic won’t bother you at all. Grade: A-
Quiet
When classes are in full swing there is a good amount of noise during class transitions but the building is virtually silent during exams. Grade: A
Depending what matters most to you in your choice of nap location and which place is most convenient, you now know some of the best places to lay your head and recharge your brain. If you have any favourites that you’re willing to share, leave them in the comments. Happy napping and good luck with finals, everyone!
