College is exhausting. Unless you are lucky enough to have a dorm room to which to retire, you are doomed to pull an all-dayer, right? Wrong! With some creativity you can nap anywhere, but here are the ten best places at Wichita State University to take a nap.
Before you nap, though, there are some precautions that you need to take. First, secure your belongings, so that nothing wanders off while you snooze. Second, set an alarm on your mobile device to wake up in time for class. Third, never sleep where you study or drive and never study or drive where you sleep.
1. Rhatigan Student Center Lounges
The RSC is littered with lounges named after wealthy people who donated ridiculous sums of money to an institution that already charges tuition and student fees for this kind of thing, but whatever. These lounges have comfortable chairs and couches on which a student can sleep; however, it does get a bit noisy during lunch time. If you are looking for quiet, the third floor of the RSC is your best bet. Otherwise, after lunch and dinner times the first and second floors calm down enough for a student to get a good rest.
2. Shocker Sports Grill and Lanes
Unlike the RSC lounges, it never gets quiet downstairs. Between the mix of pop music over the speakers and the bowlers knocking out constant strikes, Shocker Sports Grill and Lanes is perfect for those who prefer background noise while they sleep. Also, the couches are longer and more comfortable than the rest of the RSC.
3. Heskett Center
Although the Heskett Center is supposed to be where students can exercise and engage in recreational activities, it is also a good place for a nap. Just like the RSC lounges, there are many comfortable couches and chairs on which to sleep. A plus-side to the Heskett Center is that if you are still groggy after your nap, you can go for a run on track upstairs or take a quick shower in the locker rooms to wake up.
4. Jabara Student Lounges
Each floor of Jabara has a student lounge with wooden tables and chairs. If you are a math, physics, computer science, or psychology major, you are probably very familiar with these spaces. They were designed for students to gather between classes to study, but their best use is as a place to sleep. Although the chairs are not the softest, you will be in good company of like-minded, exhausted peers.
5. Above Blimpies in Hubbard Hall
If you round the corner past Blimpies and go up the stairs in Hubbard Hall, there is a little-used study space with a few tables and chairs. Like the RSC, it can get loud during the busiest hours of the day, but in the early mornings and afternoons it is peaceful. If you are a biology major, this is an ideal place to rest between lecture and that awful evening lab.
6. Hubbard Hall Lecture Halls
Speaking of lecture, the very back row of any Hubbard Hall lecture hall is a surprisingly good place to sleep. The slightly smaller lecture halls are notorious for getting warm, and when the lights go down for the projector, you’re a goner. Just be sure that the professor does not catch you snoozing through his class!
7. Shuttle Bus
If you are the kind of person who enjoys sleeping in the car, the shuttle buses are for you. Sitting in the very back seat, you can avoid most other riders and rest your head on the window. Then you can circle around campus with the engines humming you to sleep like a lullaby.
8. Your Car
If you like napping in the car, but find that you do not enjoy the shuttle buses, your car is the next best option. It is comfortable, quiet and private. I recommend, however, that you sleep in the passenger seat. Never sleep where you study or drive and never study or drive where you sleep.
9. Ablah Library 3rd Floor
The first and second floors of the library are buzzing with students studying in groups and working on projects together; however, the third floor of the library is designated as the quiet study floor. Although there are only chairs and study stalls, the quiet outweighs the discomfort. Again, do not mix studying and sleeping. It is very tempting to use your books as a pillow, but that will lead to your brain associating school work with nap time.
10. Ablah Library Study Rooms
On the library’s website you can book a study room for a maximum of four hours a day. If you forget to book a room online, the basement rooms are always open with a first-come-first-serve policy. These rooms only have tables and chairs, but there is really no better place to sleep. You receive a key to the room when you check it out, making it the most secure and private place to rest. Unlike your car, it is air conditioned, and like the back row of the lecture halls, the lights can be turned off for the perfect napping experience. Truly, the library study rooms offer the best WSU has to offer for places to nap!
Happy napping! :)
