College Roommates: Pros and Cons

Living with a roommate can be a very rewarding experience. It can also have some drawbacks if you and your roommate get off on the wrong foot. In college, most freshmen students are required to live in dorms on campus and have no say in choosing their roommates. Later, they may have their pick of roommates as they finish school or when they are out and starting work. Making a roommate relationship work starts with yourself and then getting know your roommate and his or her tastes and dislikes. A roommate contract is also beneficial in any roommate situation because it will list what each thinks is important as well as any rules for the living area.

In college, as freshmen, you are told who your roommate will be and you make the best that you can. You only get to change roommates if you each have irrevocable differences. However, minor differences can easily be cleared up if you both have open minds and want to make the relationship work.  Treating one another as you would want to be treated is the biggest thing that you can do. Also, remembering that your roommate may be just as insecure and uncomfortable as you in the beginning, can also help.

After that first year of college, it is easier to live with roommates – and getting to choose who you want to live with can make the experience even more fun. Living with friends you have already made will be a lot different than when you had lived with a complete stranger the year before. Aside from already knowing you get along, you will more than likely share some of the same classes with your friends, making it easier to study with someone in your own personal environment. Again, though , a roommate agreement could be beneficial and help to avoid any arguments that you and your roommate may have. Just because the two of you get along well as friends, does not mean that you will make great roommates because everyone has different living styles and preferences.

Roommates who also work either work at the same job or met after one rented the apartment and decided that a roommate would be beneficial in helping with rent and other living costs. Co-workers generally have the ability to carpool back and forth to work as well as be compassionate about any problems that may arise at work. Those that work at separate places can have differing work schedules, making it seem like you only share the apartment part time.

All in all, whether you choose your roommate or he or she is chosen for you, reminding yourself to make the best of it can go a long way towards keeping the harmony of the shared living quarters. A roommate contract can also help to lay down ground rules that you will each follow and adhere to, preventing a lot of arguments that are prone to happen.  An open line of communication is also best when you are living with someone else so that you can talk about any issues as they come up, rather than ignoring them and letting them worsen.