As soon as you get accepted to college, you start planning your move out of the parental home. You are excited about the upcoming student life: new acquaintances and friends, independence and freedom, a lot of parties, maybe part-time work, or even your own business. You even start looking for a professional paper writing service like WritingAPaper to be sure you have someone to rely on when you are struggling with your writing assignments.
And, of course, one of the very first things you think about is where are you going to live. There are two options – renting an apartment or staying on a college campus.
We will tell you what to expect from living in a dorm.
Common room and bathroom
Shared living space is a major criterion for dorms. Undergraduate students usually live from two to four people per room. The dormitories themselves are of the corridor, block, and apartment type. In the first type, the residents of all the rooms on the floor share the bathroom and kitchen. The second has a toilet and shower for every 2-4 rooms. And the third is similar to apartments – with a separate kitchen, bathroom, and hallway, with doors leading to several rooms.
Pros:
- The more people who live in a dormitory and the fewer the usual conveniences, the cheaper the cost of living. Even if the conditions don’t seem comfortable, you can use the dormitory as a “staging post” in an unfamiliar city to find a part-time job and a cozier room.
- Furniture, bed linen, blankets, and bedspreads are issued at the request of the residents. When you receive official property, you should inspect it and record scratches, stains, and other damage. If you are receiving linens, you probably do not need to spend money on laundry but can change them for clean ones at the housekeeper.
- On campus, there are electricians, plumbers, and carpenters on staff. So if any of the dorm property fails, contact the administration.
Cons:
- Sharing space with strangers is not always possible without conflict. In order not to accumulate irritation, you should make a cleaning schedule in advance and agree on what specific activities are included in the “cleaning”. Also discuss what should be a comfortable temperature during the day and at night, and what time you need to turn off the lights.
- Special attention is always paid to the cleaning of bathrooms and kitchens. Since they are used by residents of several rooms, you need a separate schedule. Mentally prepare for the fact that not everyone likes to clean up after themselves, not on their day – everyone has their quirks.
- An unpleasant consequence of different views on cleaning is cockroaches, worms, and rats. The hardest to get rid of are the first ones.
- Rooms are usually small, so students take their winter clothes and shoes home at the end of the season and bring their summer clothes and shoes. Bringing everything at once is not the best option: there is nowhere to store things.
- Personal space is very scarce. If your roommates are “homebodies,” you are rarely alone in your room. That’s why students prefer library reading rooms for studying or working on their projects.
- In the mornings and evenings, there are lines in the kitchen and near the bathrooms. This problem most often affects corridor dormitories. You can be late for class if you get stuck in a “traffic jam” to the shower or the stove.
Location
If the college has many faculties and visiting students, dormitories are often located on campus. Here the complex can be supplemented with a stadium, swimming pool, gym, reading room, and even a clinic. However, some dormitories are located randomly and do not differ from other buildings in residential neighborhoods.
If the dormitory is located near an educational institution, you can save on paying for public transportation. If you live in a residential area, locals spend much more time and money than newcomers do to get to your college or university.
Dormitories located far from the city center have their advantages, especially if the building was built recently: fresh interior renovations, new furniture, and more comfortable conditions.
The Student Community
For many students, a dormitory is their first home away from home. It’s where students make real friends and learn to live independently.
Pros:
- You’ll never get bored in the dorms. There is a special atmosphere here: new acquaintances and an opportunity to find a companion by your interests and spirit almost at any time of the day. Extraverts and active people live here the most comfortably.
- Help and mutual assistance – are also characteristic features of the residents. In the neighborhood, you can find anything from a pancake maker to a Halloween or wedding costume.
- Settlement is usually by the department. So it’s a quick place to find the study materials you need or to get a link for a reliable essay writing service reddit reviews when you need some help with your papers.
Cons:
- Since the boundaries between people here are less obvious, be prepared for more than just you to use your stuff. Make a note of who you lend your belongings to, and check to see when they are going to be returned.
- It is forbidden to make noise at night in the dormitories, as anywhere else. It is forbidden to carry alcohol and has loud parties. In practice, the rules are not always respected. And if the walls are thin and you have a sensitive ear, even the conversations and snoring of the neighbor behind the wall will be disturbing.
Administration
The staff of the dormitory maintains everything in order. These are cleaners, janitors, educators, and the commandant. Their main task is safety and cleanliness, so they impose strict restrictions:
- Banning the use of electric kettles, boilers, microwaves, and multicookers in older dorms, where the overload will not withstand the wiring.
- Curfews require guests to leave the dormitory overnight and residents to return home early. Some have restrictions on the use of the kitchen and showers.
- In many dorms, you can be reprimanded if someone in the administration notices signs of alcohol or drug intoxication, bottles of alcoholic beverages, or smoke from cigarettes.
- Despite the special staff, students are also asked to help: the janitor – with checking passes, cleaners, and janitors – with washing floors, windowsills, and weeding. The rules are different from the internal rules of the school.
We hope that our article has helped you weigh up the pros and cons of living in a dormitory.
