McMahon Hall Reviews
University of Washington North Campus
Reviews Summary
McMahon Hall is a dorm that offers a unique cluster layout where you share a bathroom and living space with a small group of roommates, fostering a social atmosphere conducive to making friends. While the building has an old legacy look, it provides stunning views of Mt. Rainier and Lake Washington from balconies. The dorm is lauded for its affordability, convenient location near campus facilities, and the social cluster vibe it promotes. Residents appreciate the ample storage in rooms, private bathrooms, main floor patio, and access to an on-site gym. Custodial staff maintain the cleanliness of shared spaces, including bathrooms. However, some students mention issues like the lack of kitchen facilities, occasional smell in the building, and varying room temperatures. Despite these drawbacks, McMahon Hall stands out for its community feel, proximity to campus amenities, and the opportunity to build friendships within the cluster setting.
Social
Affordable
Cluster
When students lived here
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Overall rating breakdown
Room
Building
Location
Bathroom
Browse 13 Student Reviews
Reviews with a Verified Student badge were written with a school email.
Great location: close to most of the main buildings on campus, and walking distance to UVillage. Very old legacy building with brutalist look and interior. You share a bathroom and a living room with 7 other people. Great view if you have a room facing mt. rainier if you're lucky.
Pros - the cluster layout allows you to meet more people/enhances the social atmosphere - most affordable double room on campus as far as I know - closest dorm to the IMA, UVillage, the Quad, bus stop, etc. - insanely beautiful views on the balconies - private bathrooms - main floor patio - exercise/gym room in the building - a lot of storage in each room - quiet Cons - no wifi is provided - no kitchens in the buildings, just a microwave and sink on each floor - a bit quirky (ie the persistent McMahon smell and the building's outdatedness) would definitely recommend, especially for first years
Best place for social life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The room itself is incredibly dusty behind the desk and would be very hard to clean. Rooms have pretty good windows and the balcony is a plus. East windows have views of the lake and Mt Rainier. It is nice to share stuff with a lot of roommates and the custodians clean the bathrooms for you. Good water pressure surprisingly in my bathroom. Close to a lot of things like Center Table, District market, and the 8 study/workspace is in the laundry level.
McMahon hall is cheap, but the pros outweigh the cons. You live in a cluster with 3 other rooms, all with two roommates, around a bathroom, common area (has a couch and table, with space for a TV and fridges), and a balcony. The location is also quite convenient, the majority of campus is less than a ten minute walk away. There are also bus stops nearby and the light rail isn’t too far. All the “incidents” reported by UW Alert happen in west campus and McMahon is on the opposite side in north campus. Food at center table, district market, and the HUB are also really close. There are grocery stores a bus ride away or a 15 minute walk to U-Village. The bathrooms are cleaned by custodians and there are vacuums you can use for your dorm.
CRIMINALLY UNDERRATED. The social cluster vibe is so great for making friends. There is a ton of storage (under beds, giant closets, drawers, cabinets), PLUS you USUALLY will only share a room with one other person. It’s such a great vibe. The living rooms and balconies are perfect for socializing and having people over. I am SO glad I chose to live here, save a considerable amount of money, and live with such great roommates. FOR REAL, do not sleep on mcmahon! (And yes I have a hot plate)
McMahon is super underrated in my opinion. Your best time at UW could be spent here with the right roommates. The bathrooms aren't super clean and private, but they work. The rooms are also fairly small, but the common room in each cluster is perfect for making buddies and just hanging out.
Didn't actually live here, but visited plenty of times. The first thing you notice when you walk in the building is the weird dead fish sort of smell you usually catch a whiff of at the pier. To make matters worse the elevator routinely breaks down and when it actually works its slower than my friend trying to get out of silver 2 in csgo. The urinals on the first floor are those long ones filled to the brim with water. Highly highly do not recommend this dorm, even with its cheap price.
The nastiness of mcmahon depends on the cleanliness of your clustermates. Luckily, you don't have to clean your own bathrooms. Someone comes in to clean 1-2 times a week. Talk to the other kids about not leaving food in the sink when they wash their dishes (there's a large hallway sink to wash dishes in as well) or not leaving hair in the shower. The worst thing about mcmahon would have to be the lack of temperature control and the lack of ventilation. It can get too cold in the winter if you leave the windows open or too hot and stuffy if you keep the windows closed. When the weather is warmer, rooms can heat up easily and bugs can fly in easily. Best if you can find a roommate that has the same temperature preference as you. The building...
The showers sucked! Very small, dark, and narrow. It’s located super close to everything, the rooms are fairly sound proof, I never had problems with my roommates being too loud but that could have just been my friends. You can get a really good view and a balcony is always a plus for hanging out or storage.
