How To Make The Most Of Living On Campus

By Tamiera Vandegrift on October 24, 2018

Unpopular opinion: Living on campus is totally underrated. Many college students write off living on campus in favor of seeking apartments and houses nearby for the sake of freedom and distance. If you’ve found yourself with a signed housing contract and a move-in date, don’t despair. Despite what your off-campus friends may tell you, living on campus is actually one of the best experiences you will have during your time in college.

While your off-campus friends might brag about the absence of “quiet hours”  and how much cheaper their rent and utility bills are than housing fees, you just need to keep in mind that living on campus is a truly priceless experience that every college student should try — at least for a semester.

keys, hands, home, apartment

Image via: www.pexels.com

There are tons of benefits to living on campus that students tend to ignore. For instance, residence halls typically host all types of events and special promotions exclusive to current residents. Residence hall staff are almost always sympathetic to the plight of other students during finals week, so the literal worst week of the year is also chock full of free food, entertaining movie nights, and fun gaming socials to shake off the academic stress. On another exciting note, some companies offer exciting services, free swag, and discounts to students who live on campus! Not to mention, you will always make it to class on time and you will never have to worry about finding a parking spot for your 10 a.m. lecture. Can your off-campus living, apartment fair koozie-holding friends say the same? Didn’t think so.

With all of these awesome pros, it’s obvious why so many students do choose to live on campus, but with the cost of housing being so high, not everyone gets that opportunity. If you’re lucky enough to spend a semester or a year living on campus, you must do everything you can to make the most of it. Your college years will pass by faster than you can blink, so make sure to stop and appreciate the view every once in a while. Keep reading for tips (and a few of my own stories!) on how to make the most of living on campus!

Make it home

If you’ve ever seen a college residence hall (outside of the movies, of course!), your first thought will probably be along the lines of how your dorm resembles a prison cell. With cinder block walls and tile floors, bare-boned dorm rooms will appear to be the furthest thing from comfortable and homey. If you do the bare minimum with decorating, you’ll never be 100% comfortable in your space. Remember that even if you spend most of your time back and forth between your hometown and your college town or if you prefer to set up shop in the library on most days, your dorm will be your home for at least a semester. With that being said, you should do everything in your power to make it a positive space where you can relax and unwind after a long day.

Stores like Bed, Bath, and Beyond and IKEA are great to stock up on supplies, furnishings, and bedding material. In fact, Bed, Bath, and Beyond gives you the option to make a registry to share with your friends and family. If your high school graduation or birthday is coming up soon, it’s definitely worth it to encourage your loved ones to throw some love and merch your way to help you make your dorm into a home. Online stores like Redbubble and Shein will help you to give your dorm a unique kick of personality to set your space apart from the rest.

If you need help with theme and decor ideas, Pinterest and StumbleUpon will be your heroes. These websites will also help you out in getting the most bang for your buck. After all, living on campus also means becoming a member of the “broke college student” club so it’s better to start learning how to be frugal before you hit the shops!

How I Did It: 

When I came to Florida State as a freshman, I got assigned to the worst dorm on campus. The dorm was so bad that there was literally a disease named after it (The Kellum Cough) due to the outrageous amount of mold and mildew. When I started moving my things into the new space, I literally couldn’t believe my eyes. The walls reminded me of a prison or a hospital from a horror movie and to top it off, my bed had a pretty harsh expletive carved into it. But, despite all this, I made my first dorm into a home thanks to Bed, Bath, and Beyond and RedBubble. I taped a cute poster over the expletive and used my essential oil diffuser to rid my new home of the smell of mold and mildew. While my first dorm definitely didn’t have the same vibe as my bedroom back at home, it still became a place of comfort and safety thanks to perseverance and Pinterest.

campus, college, field, students

Image via: www.pexels.com

Meet your neighbors

When you’re living on campus, you will probably hear people telling you over and over about how their roommate became their best friend or about all of the fun times they shared with their suitemates. While it’s definitely not a requirement to become best friends with your roommate or your neighbors, you should do your absolute best NOT to cut yourself off from the world (Well, the world of your dorm) or refuse to give your roommate a chance. After all, you will be living with all of these people in pretty close proximity, so you should definitely make an attempt to get to know them. Thankfully, when you’re living on campus, you will have plenty of opportunities to meet new people around your dorm that won’t seem awkward or forced.

Residence halls typically host a ton of events for students living on campus. If you see everyone heading down to the TV room to watch this week’s showing of American Horror Story, ask your roommate or your next door neighbor if they would want to come down and watch with you. Tell your suitemate about your R.A.’s upcoming social function. If you’re going out to grab lunch at the dining hall, ask that person from the laundry room if they want to grab a bite to eat, too.

College is a new and sometimes weird experience for everyone and nobody can say that they have too many friends. Put yourself out there and meet as many people as you can. You will never know who might end up being a best friend for life or what sorts of fun experiences you can have if you don’t make an attempt to get to know the people around you while you’re living on campus. You’re all in this together, so put your best foot forward and get out there!

How I Did It:

hated my roommate from my first year in college. She was mean, passive-aggressive, and made my first semester into a living nightmare. I was fortunate to have switched dorms halfway through the year so that I wouldn’t have to deal with her behavior, but while I lived in that room, I made sure to make the most of a crummy situation. I made really good friends with a girl who lived a few floors below me and spent most of my time with her so I never felt alone with a roommate who hated me. In fact, I spent the night in this friend’s dorm a few times.

When I switched dorms, I found a really welcoming and fun community of people that I still catch up with to this day! We would always cook together and have “family dinners” or watch football games in each other’s rooms. My friendships with each of my neighbors took a new and unfamiliar situation and made it warm and homey. I would not have had such a cozy, supportive living situation had I not put myself out there and made an effort to get to know the other people in my residence hall, so I’m forever grateful to have taken that chance and made some wonderful friendships.

infographic, living on campus, making the most of living on campus, chalkboard

Infographic by: Tamiera Vandegrift

Seek new opportunities

By now, you’ve probably heard the cliche about how college is your time to grow and even though it is definitely corny, it is a very true statement. You will have a ton of opportunities to grow professionally and personally. You will definitely find these opportunities by living on campus. Residence halls typically have a ton of leadership and involvement opportunities available for students to take advantage of.

You could serve on a hall council and work to make your residence hall a great place to live for everyone. You could also apply to be an R.A.(Resident Assistant) and supervise the other students who live in your residence hall. Seeking out these opportunities will give you a ton of great experience to add to your resume. Also, it will be a really interesting, exciting experience to see how decisions are made for your residence hall and to have the chance to make some of those decisions yourself!

How I Did It: 

I sure wish I did!

Befriend your R.A.

When you’re living on campus, you will have someone known as a Resident Assistant, Peer Advisor, or Collegiate Fellow keeping an eye on your residence hall and keeping the peace among roommates. When you meet your R.A. for the first time, they will discuss roommate agreements and important residence hall rules.

You might feel a little bit intimidated by your R.A. when they tell you about the consequences of disrespecting quiet hours and underage drinking in the dorms, but keep in mind that these rules exist for your safety and well-being. Every R.A. is a student worrying about grades and graduation, just like you, so reach out and get to know them!

College is a stressful time, but your R.A. definitely has your back. If you need to know about resources for academic assistance, your R.A. will be able to point you in the right direction. If you feel really homesick and need someone to talk to, your R.A. has visiting hours just for you. In one way or another, your R.A. will be a lifesaver in all situations and you should definitely introduce yourself to them and break the ice.

How I Did It: 

I don’t know how I would have survived my first few semesters without my amazing Resident Assistants. When my roommate screamed in my face and told all of her friends how much she hated me right outside our bedroom door, my R.A. was there to calm me down and help me find a solution to the situation.

When I was having a rough time on Valentine’s Day after a really horrible breakup, my R.A. was totally there for emotional support. I was amazed by just how much all of my R.A.s really loved and cared about each resident as an individual. For them, it wasn’t just a job or a way to pay the bills. Each R.A. really loved what they were doing and really cared to make sure that every resident felt comfortable and safe in the residence halls.

While I was living on campus, each Resident Assistant made a huge difference in my life during my time on campus. Shout out to my Kelli, Mal, and Deyonte for making such an amazing, irrevocable impact on my time in college!

Always stay informed

Aside from fun social events and awesome neighbors, do you really know about all that your residence hall has to offer? Resident halls usually have deals with cable companies and streaming services, so you might be lucky enough to enjoy HBO Go and Showtime for either a discounted rate or completely free of charge!

Local eateries and campus dining halls may also offer special deals and discounts for those living on campus! If you need to use Microsoft Office Suite or Adobe Creative Cloud for a class project or an internship, you may be able to download this software for free or for a discounted rate just because you’re living on campus.

How I Did It: 

Florida State students, did you know that you can access HBO Go for free with your student login information? I didn’t know until my senior year and I learned from a friend who works in the university’s IT department. Whenever I spread the news to my other friends, they are typically just as shocked as I am!

During my senior year, I made sure to make myself familiar with all of the privileges and benefits I could take advantage of while I was living on campus. I was truly blown away by everything I was missing out on! Don’t be me. Do your homework and find out what’s available to you!

Living on campus is one of the best experiences anyone can have during their time in college. Even though living off campus is growing in popularity due to the freedom and lower cost of living in your own house or apartment, living on campus is worthwhile for so many reasons. It’s important to do everything you can to make the absolute best of your time living on campus, so do all you can with the time that you have! As a nostalgic recent graduate, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

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