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Do you dorm for college???

Depends on the college. At some you can get an exemption with parental aid, but I'd advise against it.

Living in the residence halls is part of the college experience. You'll meet a lot of people. Most you'll want to forget. Some will be future business partners, and one might be a friend for life. Its a fluid environment, one not to miss.

There are downsides. In the scope of things, they are minimal.
 
I did my freshman year - and sophomore year I lived in a big on-campus apartment complex which was essentially a dorm with less rules (in fact the first 4 floors of the 17 floor building was owned by the school).

I highly, highly recommend it. Are the rooms small and not always the best? Yes. Does it generally mean you'll be stuck with a college meal plan too? Yes. It is worth it. You meet so many people in the dorms - my best friends through 5 years of college were the people on my floor freshman year. Plus, you grow a lot and learn a lot about life as a whole when you don't live at home - something commuters really miss out on in college.
 
I didn't live in the residence halls, however I go to university in the same town I grew up in, so it's not exactly like I needed to meet people. I still hang out with a lot of my HS buddies as well as people that I've met in classes. 🙂

But this situation is probably somewhat unique for college students, I'd assume you've enrolled in college as far away from home as possible, lol. If that's the case dorm life would be a great opportunity to meet new people and get involved on campus.
 
My freshman year (only one in the dorms) is one of the best years I can remember. Definitely made a lot of friends, definitely met a lot of forgettable folks, but it's a bunch of people who've never had that level of independence before -- logically, binge drinking ensues. I think a lot of people ask this who are sort of shy by nature or like to spend a fair amt of time alone. I was definitely that type going into college, but the dorm life was really good for me. Even typing this out I'm thinking about how much fun I had. Definitely do it. Also, my college had really good food, I ate on campus a lot even after I moved off.

2nd - 4th years I lived off campus in an apartment for 2 years and a townhouse for 1. All were student housing, although not school-owned. So you end up with a similar environment where we hung out w/ our neighbors a lot, but you got a lot more space (own bedroom, bigger living room, kitchen, etc).

Definitely do the dorm thing even if you can get out of it. You'll look back on it as an important time in your life (even if not for the same reasons as mine). Everyone on campus is making friends with each other, you don't want to be left out of that even if you think you don't care right now. I remember I wanted to go home really bad my first night, but the next day my roommates moved in, orientation started, met a lot of folks, drank more than we needed to, and I realized how much fun it was. Don't miss out. If you end up hating it, you can publicly berate me, and then move into a 1 bedroom your sophomore year (or spring semester at most schools if its that bad).
 
At the college I'm attending, it is mandatory for freshman to live in the dorms, for good reason. I got an exception because I'm 27 and married however. 🙂
 
I would strongly recommend the dorm room. As others have stated you'll make some life long friends and can have an absolute blast. There is always someone awake to do stuff with - Nothing like walking down the halls at 2am on Wednesday looking for someone to play smash brothers or madden with. Plus, I consider not ever having to cook for myself a positive thing.
 
Do you like quiet? If so, either stab out your eardrums with a knife, or find somewhere else to live. Oh, and the equivalent of a public restroom will be your bathroom for however many semesters you're there.

A suite will be a bit better, like what CraKaJaX described.

Apartments are another step up, except that you won't have cleaning service. But then you get to have upperclassmen running around drunk and causing trouble.

Take your pick. I absolutely hated living on campus (1 semester in the dorms, 3 in the campus apartments). Too much noise, either from people running and yelling in surrounding rooms, or from really damn loud music, and there was nowhere I could really go to just get away from everyone. Now I've got an off-campus apartment by myself - it's quite nice. No noise, no neighbors, no one else around.
 
Originally posted by: Jeff7
Do you like quiet? If so, either stab out your eardrums with a knife, or find somewhere else to live. Oh, and the equivalent of a public restroom will be your bathroom for however many semesters you're there.

A suite will be a bit better, like what CraKaJaX described.

Apartments are another step up, except that you won't have cleaning service. But then you get to have upperclassmen running around drunk and causing trouble.

Take your pick. I absolutely hated living on campus (1 semester in the dorms, 3 in the campus apartments). Too much noise, either from people running and yelling in surrounding rooms, or from really damn loud music, and there was nowhere I could really go to just get away from everyone. Now I've got an off-campus apartment by myself - it's quite nice. No noise, no neighbors, no one else around.
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The solution to the bathroom problem is to locate a nice remote handicapped stall in a nice building. Roomy, clean, and empty. Great place to take a number 2!
 
Jeff7...most colleges have a "library", its new I know, but usually they enforce pretty strict noise standards there....
 
Lol exactly what I was going to suggest, for studying just head off to the library. If you're just hanging out in your room and want peace and quiet buy earplugs or something. I'd probably just put on some headphones and crank up my music.

To be honest the noise wouldn't really bother me, what would drive me nuts is people living like slobs. Bathrooms with vomit all around the toilet, stuff like that. :/
 
i lived in dorms in my first 3 years, i wished i could've stayed a bit more due to dual oc3 connections. however, i'm happy living in an off campus house which is sightly cheaper than dorms.
 
Actually where I'm at isn't bad. Everyone is quite good when it comes to running around being idiots. Some people on the first and second floors have a tendency to blast their crap ass music though. But that's why everyone should have a pair of Sennheiser headphones. 😉
 
at my college if I wanted to dorm I'd have to join the ROTC. Thats not very appealing to me so I got an apartment just off campus. I enjoy it actually. Little noise, plenty of room, and I can walk to wherever I need to go.

and I'm really glad I don't have to dorm in the rooms they have here anyway. I had to sleep in one for 2 days and it was terrible. I probably would have gone crazy trying to live in those things.
 
Yes.

If you're not a commuter student, you usually are required to dorm your first year.

I like my college's dorms; there are no freshman only dorms, everyone is mixed together. And plus, I'm so conveniently located and I only have a suite mate to worry about (my dorm has single and double suites, of which I have a single).
 
dorm at least for the freshman year, then if you meet some people you can trust, you can go in for an apartment thereafter
 
I lived in on-campus apartments my freshman year. If you're looking to meet people, then the dorms are probably a better idea. I didn't meet much people while living in an apartment, but I had a much bigger room and our own kitchen.
 
Thank god, no.

But then again, I'm doing my first 2 years at a community college.

Originally posted by: Fullmetal Chocobo
At the college I'm attending, it is mandatory for freshman to live in the dorms, for good reason. I got an exception because I'm 27 and married however. 🙂
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Same here. The kids in my class make me feel so old...
 
Originally posted by: MrPickins
Originally posted by: Fullmetal Chocobo
At the college I'm attending, it is mandatory for freshman to live in the dorms, for good reason. I got an exception because I'm 27 and married however. 🙂
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Same here. The kids in my class make me feel so old...
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I'm 8 years older than any other student in the class. I'm also the only one that isn't a teenager. I know how you feel.
 
Originally posted by: Deeko
Jeff7...most colleges have a "library", its new I know, but usually they enforce pretty strict noise standards there....
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It's out in the open, which I don't care for. I'm the sort who likes being alone, and I don't like open spaces or large rooms.
Second, the noise policy is fairly lax there.

The dorms also had "quiet hours." If you were judging with your ears, you'd never know when quiet hours were. The clock was the only indicator.


So, OP can decide. I put out my opinion - if you like quiet, if you like time alone on a regular basis, the dorms might not be for you. If you like partying and being loud, indulge.
 
Originally posted by: Jeff7
Originally posted by: Deeko
Jeff7...most colleges have a "library", its new I know, but usually they enforce pretty strict noise standards there....
Click to expand...
It's out in the open, which I don't care for. I'm the sort who likes being alone, and I don't like open spaces or large rooms.
Second, the noise policy is fairly lax there.

The dorms also had "quiet hours." If you were judging with your ears, you'd never know when quiet hours were. The clock was the only indicator.


So, OP can decide. I put out my opinion - if you like quiet, if you like time alone on a regular basis, the dorms might not be for you. If you like partying and being loud, indulge.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the real problem occurs when you have a midterm or final at 9AM in the morning and you're trying to sleep, but your neighbor is blasting music at 1AM and you're going nuts trying not to fail your test. Earplugs are necessary. That, or be ready to yell at some people when necessary. The number one thing I've noticed about (typical) college students is a complete lack of concern for others.
 
Dorms suck. Bad for your health. Like beer, only you're not the one drinking it, you just get the hangover.
 
Originally posted by: esun
Yeah, the real problem occurs when you have a midterm or final at 9AM in the morning and you're trying to sleep, but your neighbor is blasting music at 1AM and you're going nuts trying not to fail your test. Earplugs are necessary. That, or be ready to yell at some people when necessary. The number one thing I've noticed about (typical) college students is a complete lack of concern for others.
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Indeed.

It took me a long time to figure out a solution to noise - earplugs + a vibrating alarm clock. It's the sort of alarm clock that deaf people might use. It has something that goes under your pillow, and it buzzes like crazy at the set time. Only thing is, you might want to put it on a UPS. My campus had constant power outage problems, I think 7 during my last semester there, sometimes lasting a few hours. The clock I bought has battery backup for the time, but the vibrating thing had a 1 amp 12V power source.
 
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