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  • What to Be Prepared For When Living With Roommates

    What to Be Prepared For When Living With Roommates

    So, you’re living with a roommate – or two, or more! Whether you’re in school or working, sharing a house or apartment with other people can be one of the most fun experiences of young adulthood, and an exciting step into independence.

    You may live with friends or with someone new. Post-secondary institutions who operate campus residence housing usually assign roommates randomly. Regular apartments and townhouses can rent by the room, in which case you will likely live with strangers, or rent as a unit you apply for with a friend or group of friends already agreed to be roommates.

    Whatever your roommate situation, there are a few things guidelines to remember:

    Be considerate and respectful. This is priority one, and applies to any incident that may occur between yourself and your roommate. Treat them, their space, and their belongings in the same way you want them to treat you and yours.

    You may have very different schedules. We all live with a variety of personal schedules: work, class, social life; being a night owl or an early bird, studying better at night or during the day. Again, the most important thing is to be considerate. If you wake up early or stay awake late, try to keep noise and activity to a respectful minimum.

    Not everyone is the same level of tidy/messy or organized/disorganized as you are. Some people alphabetize their cereal boxes; others let their laundry pile grow high as a mountain. Sharing living space will bring these differences front and centre. The key again is consideration and compromise: make an effort to keep shared areas like the kitchen, bath, and living room clean, but remember that everyone lapses sometimes.

    Your personalities and social lives can be very different. Living with roommates can bring these traits into conflict, and how you handle it shapes your friendship. You might be more introverted or extroverted, social or a homebody, than your roommates. If you need alone time to recharge, and your roommate likes to have friends over all the time, set out some ground rules, such as being in your room with the door closed means “do not disturb”. If you are social and like to party, but you know your roommate doesn’t, try to give them a heads up when company will be over, and don’t host the party at your place every time.

    There are other considerations: rules for guests and significant others, cooking duties, splitting groceries and bills, or using, sharing, and borrowing others’ belongings. Sit down at the beginning and write up a roommate agreement for all parties, to have the opportunity to discuss and agree on ground rules ahead of time, rather than trying to sort things out after there is a problem. For campus residences, Resident Advisors and Mediation Services are available to advise, or to arrange a mediation session to help resolve roommate conflicts.

    All roommate situations are different, but generally come down to the “Three C’s”: Consideration, Compromise, and Communication. As long as you remember these, living with roommates can lead to lifelong friendships, and a heck of a lot of fun!

    SOURCES:
    http://www.rezlife.uwo.ca/roommates_livingtogether.pdf
    http://www.residenceatwestern.ca/roommates.cfm
    http://www.residenceatwestern.ca/roommate_responsibilities.pdf

  • How to Live with Roommates

    Many of you may be currently attending post-secondary away from home, or on your way to do so. Whether you’re living in a student residence or have decided to sign a lease on the apartment, chances are you’re not going to be living alone.

    A roommate is not just a great way to save on rent and groceries; in fact, many roommates eventually become very close friends. That said, sometimes it can be difficult to share a space with another person, especially if you’ve gotten used to your old habits. It’s certainly going to be different than living at home.

    Firstly, don’t be fooled by the glamourized Friends-style dynamic—it’s likely that you and your roommate won’t be perfectly compatible. Their sleep schedule, eating habits, and daily routines in general can be completely different than what you’re used to. Moreover, your personalities may clash sometimes, which can lead to conflict over even the smallest issues. However, living with someone different than you can also help you realize how different people live their lives; it can be a positive learning exercise for the both of you.

    Tip: Share your routines. Tell each other about when you go to bed at night, what your class schedule is like, and whether you like crunchy or smooth peanut butter. If you’re clear with one another, you might be able to find some common ground.

    Moreover, living with a roommate can mean that your privacy is limited. Not only are you sharing a space, all of your stuff is in there with you! Some roommates are perfectly fine with sharing everything (lending one another clothes, spotting each other money for pizza, etc.). Many roommates share a bedroom without being bothered. But if you really like your privacy or you’re used to being on your own, this can be a difficult transition.

    Tip: Set ground rules. Maybe you aren’t comfortable if your roommate borrows something without asking you first, but if you didn’t make that clear to them, they might not think they’re doing anything wrong. It also helps to let one another know if you want the apartment to yourself or if you want to be left in peace one day (e.g. studying for finals).

    Finally, considering that your apartment needs upkeep, you have to pull your weight. You’re probably used to doing chores at home, but living on your own is a totally different level of responsibility. You and your roommate are going to need to clean, shop for groceries, do laundry, and pay bills, among other things. If you have a roommate who tends to slack off—or you are the roommate who slacks off—things can get annoying, fast.

    Tip: Split and schedule. There is a lot to do, but you don’t have to do it by yourself! Create a chore list and commit yourselves to following through on your particular duties. You can also change it up every couple of weeks if it gets boring (you do laundry this week, and dishes next week).

  • Why Choose a School Away From Home?

    Why Choose a School Away From Home?

    Better opportunities
    You may decide to move far away to attend a college or university that will give you more opportunities. Even if you currently live near a post-secondary institution, that school might not have the resources you require. These could include a prestigious faculty, excellent scholarships to help you fund your studies, and renowned academics to give you the best start in your career. Here’s some great advice: choose a school that best suits you. Don’t let the location of the school and how far it is from your home deter you from pursuing your dreams.

    Grow up
    A university or college, with its residence or “dorm-style” living, can be the perfect environment for you to develop into a young adult. Such living arrangements give you sufficient support while also providing you with the space you need to spread your wings and “grow up” at the same time — but not too fast. Under the shelter of the university or college bubble you can make smoother transition into adulthood.

    Indeed, moving far away from home will give you plenty of independence. No one will be there to wake you up in the morning, drive you to school, or check up on you when you come home late at night. Away from your family, perhaps for the first time, this freedom can be intoxicating. Yet, even though you will have more responsibilities than ever before, when you live in a dorm you won’t have to worry about paying a hydro bill and most of your food will be provided for you on campus.

    These responsibilities will prepare you for the following year, when you probably wont be living in a dorm anymore but will instead be living with your friends in an apartment or house for the first time. Living far away from the shelter of your family home, you can grow up much faster than you ever expected.

    Become a World Citizen
    Step outside your comfort zone. Why not move to a metropolitan area that has a much more diverse, multicultural population than your hometown? Such a prospect might terrify some who are afraid to leave the “nest” and venture out into the world. But for those who are up for the challenge, moving away from home can be an excellent opportunity to expand your worldview. You can meet new people from diverse cultural backgrounds and make friends with a wide range of people — especially if you choose a university or college that’s really far away from home (in another province or even another country). Either way, new experiences and adventures will abound: the world is your playground.

    Personal growth
    Have you ever heard the saying “you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone?” Well, sometimes spending time away from your roots and your regular routine can help you see your life from a different perspective. Such fresh insight might help you appreciate your life and relationships in ways you never imagined possible. Your sense of gratitude for all the wonderful things and people in your life can actually strengthen your bond with your family and friends. Ironically, moving away can help you move closer to your loved ones.