Whether we like it or not, dorm life is a huge part of starting college, whether you live in one yourself or have friends who live in one. For instance, at the University of Minnesota, 88 percent of first year students live in the dorms. There are both positives and negatives about living in the dorms, but either way there are some things that everybody who lives or who has lived in the dorms knows.
If one person gets sick, everyone gets sick.
This is an unfortunate truth about living in the residence halls. Sharing everything you have with the people you live with and around includes illnesses, and the small, shared living spaces are a perfect place for germs to grow and infect everyone. If you haven’t already, you’ll soon learn there’s no avoiding getting sick if someone else does, no matter what you do. So, stock up on those Vitamin C supplements and hope for the best.
Wearing shoes in the shower is the new normal.
Shower shoes definitely aren’t the most attractive fashion trend you’ll see around campus, but they’re definitely a college essential. The shared bathrooms in the dorms are less than sanitary and you don’t even want to know what would happen if you didn’t wear shoes while showering. You’ll soon grow accustomed to struttin’ your stuff down the hall in flip flops to the shower you have to share with way too many other women.
You miss everything about your room at home.
Remember the good old days when you didn’t have to share a room with someone who was virtually a stranger? Living in the dorms can have you reminiscing about your old room especially because your room at college feels small and foreign. The dorms are a great way to get connected on campus, but the rooms are tiny. It’s hard to spend a year living with another person in a room that’s an average 228 square feet, especially if you’re used to living in a bigger room on your own back at home.
Everyone has a love/hate relationship with the dining halls.
It’s always nice to have a place where you can go to eat almost whenever you want. It’s also nice to have food you enjoy. The dining hall is a great place to have meals in between classes, meet people and gain the freshman fifteen; however, the food isn’t always the greatest. That said, beggars can’t be choosers, so we suck it up and eat the food we’re offered anyway.
You meet some of your best friends.
It’s true what they say: you’ll meet some of your best friends in college. Living in the residence halls is a great way to do that. When you get to live right down the hall from other people experiencing the same things you are, you create bonds and friendships that’ll last a lifetime. Whether you meet each other from the activities your RA plans for you, from struggling in the same class, or from helping each other after a night of too much fun, the people you meet on your dorm floor will positively influence your college experience and leave you with memories you’ll never forget.