Key Takeaways
If you have n’t live in a dorm yourself , you ’ve probably at least heard stories about know in one . From colourful roomie and football in the hallways to dining dormitory food and shared bathrooms , dorm life sentence is a breeding priming for story to tell at dinner party parties years after you ’ve graduate from college .
There ’s a luck of playfulness demand , but dorm experience really is a hallmark of thecollegeexperience . Think about it : Have you ever heard anyone talk about the degenerate friendships they forge in their apartment complex during their first class of college ? student residence advance communicating and bonding among grouping of people who , while wide vary , are all grapple with the shared experience of a young life at college . The difference in cheek time alone between commuting students and dorm dwellers can be the remainder between a affable smile in the entrance hall and a lifelong friendship .
Despite the many perks of dorm life , which we ’ll explore on the next page , no one expects you to continue there forever ; third- and 4th - year students often move into apartments or homes in the surrounding community . Think of this changeover as a condensed version of moving out of the family family : Once you have your ground in the college environment , many feel the urge to explore the residential area – and adult liveliness – on their own .
However , not all students leave the college interlingual rendition of the proverbial nest ; in fact , some choose to quell in dorms throughout their intact high education experience . For example , at Massachusetts Institute of Technology ( MIT ) , Ashdown House , the university ’s first alum manse , plays an important role in the alumnus - tier community . In programs where research and collaboration are of predominate grandness , the closeness that dormitory foster is specially crucial for donnish and career success [ author : Ashdown House ] .
Whether you ’re anew college studentor just want a slip down memory lane , read on for some reasonableness you should give thanks your lucky juiceless - erase boards for dorm life .
5: It Gives You a Built-In Social Life
For many incoming freshmen , emotion run high as they begin that first year of college . newcomer year marks an exciting first step away from the family unit of measurement , but for many , college also means a breakup from admirer and relationships often ten or 15 years in the making . fortunately , RAs ( resident advisors ) and college living accommodations coordinators make it their mission to ensure that first - yr student do n’t get the opportunity to feel the sting of homesickness .
First , contrary to what the occasional horror film plot and pop culture figure of speech might have you believe , you may in reality like your roomie . Most universities conduct a thoroughgoing masking and resume process to mate incoming residents based on subject field habits , cleanliness and a variety of key personality traits . Sure , not every pairing is complete , but many student residence - dwellers end up survive with their first- and second - year roommates off campus as upperclassmen even after go out of the dorms .
Second , there ’s never a famine of activities to try . feel lonely on your first Saturday away from home ? Many RAs plan at least a full hebdomad of daily or every night field day ( ice cream socials , trivia nights , campus tours , karaoke and dinner party parties , to name a few ) to assist new or first - year scholar acclimate to their new living blank and bond with other residents .
at long last , you ’re in pretty close one-quarter with a bunch of people who are all on the same new , rocky , chilling and exciting ride as you are . If you just moved to anapartmentin a new city , you ’d be on your own to regain the best local haunt ( and the good people with which to frequent them ) , and there ’s very little that ’s more awkward and off - putt than go unaccompanied into a blade - Modern societal situation . student residence provide a build up - in societal connection of citizenry who are just as displace as you are – a perfect base for building friendly relationship and mastering the ins and outs of college sprightliness . Not only that , but your RA has done all of this before , and he or she can provide some pro tips as you get used to your new home and lifestyle .
But college is n’t just about having playfulness on the weekends . Read on to find out how dormitory living can help you conform to into the college community and why you should always keep some side paint handy .
4: It Builds a College Community
If college was just about getting good grades and making a friend or two , this article might be called something like " dormitory : Why They ’re Kind of Cool But You Could Really Just Take or Leave Them . " Quite the contrary , however : Dorms are crucial to the evolution of a college community .
If you ’ve ever observed a crowd at a universityfootball game(picture lots of bare - chested male students in full body pigment ) , you could in all probability guess that the development of school spirit is a cardinal element of college life history . attending at sporting event , arguably one of the good college bonding experiences available to students , often begins in the residence hall , whether engagement takes the form of sharing face paint or just walking to the stadium together .
But that gumption of community extends far beyond the field or the court , and it ’s often the catalyst for some pretty striking university - wide practices . For example , take the Stanford University tradition where dorm staff members greet new bookman by storm their auto as they make it and yell cheers of welcome . This lively greeting gripe off a week of hall spirit activities , during which scholar brandish their residence hall pin and attempt to out - cheer their rivals [ source : Stanford University ] . Or perhaps you ’d be more interested in the yearly pumpkin drop at MIT , during which scores of students let vanish a burst of Cucurbita pepo ( often choreograph and set to music ) from the tops of campus construction [ source : Peck ] .
But community - construction does n’t have to be as elaborated as a barrage of flying gourd ; it can be as simple as the unforgettable experience of divvy up a john with 20 or so fellow dorm residents . If there ’s one guarantee we can make about dorm living , it ’s that it ’s never boring .
3: You Can Do (Almost) Whatever You Want
If you live near the college of your choice , you might think living at rest home instead of venturing into the dormitory . And there are by all odds some perks to stay with your parents : You ’ll avoid the toll and hassle of moving , you ’ll sleep in your own bed and you’re able to still hang out with the family wienerwurst when studying gets tough .
However , many college students find that stay with their families specify their ability to discover their own independence . Living at home means that parents can still assign job , set curfews and settle what you have for dinner ; for most , there ’s very little opportunity to start making the more adult choices that dorm - denizen do .
While you wo n’t have parents nagging you about chores in a residence hall , these are n’t chore that you should eschew altogether . In fact , quite the contrary : You ’ll learn promptly that refusal to vacuum , do washables or take out the methamphetamine hydrochloride will not be looked upon kindly by roommates or others in close quarters . After a few nights of staying out too late before an 8 a.m. class , you ’ll learn to fix your own curfew as you see fit . And you ’ll still get to take advantage of pre - made intellectual nourishment like you might at base – but you get to opt the culinary art . Dorm lifetime does n’t exempt you from rule ; rather , it just allows you the freedom to pen them in ways that work for you .
Dorm life also put up increasedprivacy . " Privacy ? " you might postulate . " But I ’ll have a roommate ! " Very true , but a roommate is n’t a parent ; she ’s not watching your every move , and she probably wo n’t care whether you get your preparation done before or after go to trivia night at the student union . And while many dorms have security systems ( for instance , some require students to swipe their bookman Gem State to gain entry ) , you ’re allowed to come and go as you please .
Need a more practical reason to choose dorm hold out ? learn on to find out why dorms can be great for your bottom business line .
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2: It Could Save You Money
societal aliveness aside , for many college scholar and their families , dorms just make good financial good sense . During the 2011 - 2012 shoal year , the intermediate price of room and board at college in the U.S. was $ 9,047 ; that come to just over $ 1,000 per month [ source : Lytle ] . In equivalence , the 2011 intermediate rip monetary value for an apartment in the U.S. was $ 1,020 and rising [ reference : Yoder ] . Keep in mind that most leases for college apartments only last nine calendar month , rather than 12 month for formal one .
At most college and universities , elbow room and board fee includes all sort of agreeableness : a furnisheddorm room(often admit items like a mini - fridge , microwave , and cablegram hookup ) , a repast plan ( usually around 20 meal per week in on - campus dining halls ) , and access to often state - of - the - art recreational facilities like gyms and swim pools . compare to off - campus living , even the cost of food alone sans meal design can make a substantial dent in a family ’s cash in hand , not to mention expenses like transportation .
That ’s not to say that dorm costs have n’t move up . With consumer technology like iPods and iPhones , portable gaming systems and flowing , minimalist widget ( think miniskirt - fridges andmicrowaves ) becoming mainstay of the back - to - school shopping inclination , dorms require greater technological capability than ever before . It ’s no surprise that this tote up connectivity comes with a price : At the University of Illinois , for example , the cost of room and board on campus jumped almost $ 3,500 between the years 2000 and 2010 [ source : Cohen ] . However , even with this increase , you ’d be heavily - iron out to discover a dear bargain than a dormitory .
And if metre really is money , as they say , dorm habitant are in luck . We ’ll research the convenience factor of dorm life on the next page .
1: It’s Really, Really Convenient
Ample food that ’s already pay for ? Check . Built - in friends and sketch crony ? Check . entree to state - of - the - art technological and research adroitness ? Check . All of this within walk length ? Check . No matter how you slit it , dorm biography puts the smackdown on just about every other college housing option in terms of widget .
In fact , residence hall biography is designed specifically to verify that scholar have as much time as possible for the authoritative ( academics ) and playfulness ( social and amateur ) scene of college . Meal plan , often featuring wide varying cuisines and some surprisingly healthy choice , eliminate weekly grocery runs . eat up too much of the ruby-red velvet cake in the cafeteria ? Not to worry – many college and university sport state - of - the - art sport , exercise and other recreational adeptness . And not only are they within walking space if you go on campus , but the cost is also admit in student tuition .
The convenience agent also extends to faculty member . On - campus house physician can saunter over to the subroutine library or the lab at almost any prison term to work on a term paper or a tricky experiment ; professor and commandment assistant ( TAs ) also hold bureau hour on campus for students who have questions outside of lecture time . And while student residence are with child for social gatherings , chances are that some of the people you ’re heading into townspeople with on the weekends are also in a few of your classes . Most dorm halls also feature multiple lounges that are prevalent with opportunity for subject groups and tutoring .
Frequently Asked Questions
Lots More Information
I ’m an experienced college - hopper : I live in a student residence for part of my first year , moved home and commuted to another college through my soph twelvemonth , then commuted from my own apartment to a different university to gain my academic degree . I still had a flak , but I ’ll be honest : I feel a little cuckold out of the true college experience . My residence hall - lie in supporter were more tightly knit and did elbow room more fun affair than I did , and while the surface - level goal of college might be to graduate with a degree and a gamey GPA , I ’m a little , teensy bit sorry I move on from the dormitory fit so chop-chop . So if you ever read a tidings story about a girlfriend throwing pumpkin vine off the cap of her apartment , you ’ll know I ’m just prove to see what might have been .
