Close your eyes and think back to the summer before your first year of college. I can remember my emotions from that time as if it was yesterday. Of course, things were unorthodox because of the COVID pandemic, but I was entering my sophomore year and had transferred to the university.
It would be my first time living away from home.
Students create memories on college campuses. These memories can be of friendship, travel experiences or just straight-up late-night shenanigans with roommates. While having roommates can be pleasant and enriching, it can also be challenging, especially when you are stuck living with someone who consistently causes issues.
A roommate from hell is a common experience in the media because it is something people can relate to. While the description may seem dramatic, it is accurate.
How do I know this? My own particularly unpleasant roommate came as a result of a room vacancy fill. A bed opened up and was offered to a specific number of students.
Having an open bed in your dorm can happen when a student leaves mid-semester or if a student never attended the university, but had a bed reserved. The Office of Residential Life at the university follows a specific policy when it comes to addressing room vacancies specific to room change for students already attending the university.
Curtis Clark, director of campus life and student support, said when a residential student already attending the university requests a room change, they are provided with the contact information of the current occupants of the space they are looking to move to. The student can then make arrangements to meet with those students to decide if they would be a good fit.
Sometimes, that meeting can’t be scheduled, said Clark, which can lead to mismatches and worse.
Then, too, you may only know if you connect with a person as a roommate by living with them. I was fortunate enough to get a meeting with my suite occupancy fill and it was not until moving in with my roommates that I realized it was not a good fit.
The reasons a roommate may be a poor fit can include but are not limited to, someone who upholds any form of bigotry or someone who lacks consideration for the people around them. This consideration could be regarding chores or the etiquette of having guests over.
We were stuck. With no options at our disposal, my roommates who were Connecticut natives could go home to get their peace of mind. I, an out-of-state student, was stuck in a state I didn’t know living with someone with whom I did not get along.
If the university does not take time to make sure its residential population is appropriately housed, the school can expect to see a drop in its retention rate. As of August 2023, the university has a 62% graduation rate with an overall 74%. How many of those students left because of a roommate from hell?