College residence life and student development

¶ … freshman college students do not have the option to live off campus. Instead, they are forced to live in dorms the first year. For many students, however, the cons of on-campus far outweigh the benefits. Financial motivations, the ability to study, lifestyle choices, and roommate compatibility are some of the many reasons why freshmen should have the right to choose their housing situation.

Many financially challenged students may find it more affordable to live off campus. They can reduce their housing expenses by living with relatives or friends, finding an apartment to share with several roommates or renting out a cheap room. Students burdened by financial issues should not be restricted in their options to make college more affordable.

For many freshmen, the dorm does not provide an ideal study and work environment. They find the dorms too noisy and the presence of a roommate in a small space too intrusive to concentrate on their studies. Students should be allowed to decide for themselves which environment will allow them to perform the best that they possibly can.

Certain lifestyle choices make it difficult, if not impossible, to live in a dorm. For example, dietary restrictions may require students to have access to their own kitchen facilities. Others may find putting up with messy dorms and shared bathrooms to be unpleasant. Gay students may prefer to have an off-campus residence to avoid discrimination. And, some students may wish to avoid the party lifestyle common in college dorms. Whatever the circumstances, a healthy environment for a student is the one that most closely matches the lifestyle that the student feels comfortable with.

Further, roommate assignments don't always produce a suitable match for college freshmen. A student may either wish to live alone for privacy reasons or to select roommates of their own choosing who are likely to be more compatible than randomly selected strangers. College life is stressful enough without forcing a student to deal with a bad roommate situation.

Most colleges require residence life for freshmen because colleges view the experience as an integral part of a student's complete education and social interaction. This opinion is shortsighted for several reasons. First, finding and paying for housing is a great lesson in financial responsibility. Secondly, off-campus students can easily have positive social interactions with other students without living in the dorm through class attendance, club membership, roommates and participation in various campus activities. Thirdly, some students may actually have less social interactions in the dorm than in off-campus housing if they have to work extra hours to pick up the cost.