Student Housing at USC, UCLA

In “College Students Cramming--Into Dorms” (Sept. 28), the pictures speak for the entire article: The UCLA freshman is trying to figure out where to put all of her stuff in a room meant for two people, but housing three, while USC students kick back in a hotel Jacuzzi at their makeshift dorm rooms. As a public relations major at USC, I am insulted at the picture that was literally painted of the housing situation at our school.

The students living in the Radisson are paying more per semester than the on-campus students; they receive the same amount of maid service as an on-campus dorm dweller--an occasional wipe-down of the bathroom; they do not receive the pampering normal hotel guests do. Students are required to bring their own bedding. The UCLA freshmen are seen as poor sufferers of an unusually large class, while the USC students are portrayed as the stereotypical spoiled children.

Many of us live in housing that is less appealing than that at UCLA--and have already been dealing with it for over a month. Our football teams may fight over who is better on the field, but in this circumstance, we seem to be in equally bad situations--and they should be treated as such.

SARAH MAST

Los Angeles