Getting Along with a College Roommate

Hello and welcome back to my blog! In my first year at Thompson Rivers University I moved to Kamloops (specifically TRU Rez on campus) for the first time. I lived with three other girls in a four-bedroom suite. Whether you are a freshman that has already moved into a dorm, moving in the winter semester or even next year, this post can be beneficial for you! Below I have listed my top five tips and drawn on some personal experiences of mine. I hope you take away valuable information!

1. Discuss and create rules for your guys' place.

In college and university, it is normal to have roommates from different cities in your province, a different province, or a different country. With different backgrounds, comes different ways of living. One roommate could think it's okay to have friends over till 12am on school nights, cook at 6am, take up most of the fridge with their food, and so on. While another roommate could be dedicated to going to sleep at 10pm each night and be organized with which portions of the fridge is theirs. What I found effective is to sit down with your roommate(s) and listen to each others ideas on how to keep your guys' place organized, clean, and a positive living environment. Once you guys have come up with a list of agreed upon rules, then follow them! This will help avoid little problems or fights and make the transition to university a little easier.

** I found that deciding what areas of the fridge is yours, labelling commonly used food, and keeping track of whose turn it is to throw out recycling & garbage is really helpful!

2. Get to know your roommates and understand everyone has been brought up differently.

As mentioned in #1, your roommates will most likely come from a different city, province, or country as you. What you notice when going to university. is that people have been brought up in so many different ways than yourself. I am from just outside Vancouver, and I learned about cities in British Columbia that I never knew existed and how unique they are.. just because I had the opportunity to meet, talk, and/or become friends with people at university. High school and university are completely different environments, because you go from a school with 1,000 students that have all grown up in the same city, know the same people, and act and know the same things to a college/university with well over 1,000 students, different hometowns, different backgrounds and culture, and a new ways of thinking.

3. Communicate.

One of the worst things you could do is not tell your roommate(s) that something they do irritates you, leaves you cleaning more, etc. It will create a build up of anger and frustration in you and make your living experience a bad one. Creating a welcoming atmosphere starts with communicating respectively. Think about how important communication is with your family, friends, and relationships!

4. Respect your roommates belongings.

When you move in with your roommate(s) you guys will be in the "getting to know each other" phase. After a week or two in, you could end up lending clothes to each other, eating meals together, and maybe even studying together. No matter how close you and your roommates are, it's always best to respect everyones belongings as you would want them to do the same with yours. If you aren't sure if you can borrow something, it's always best to ask to double check!

5. Even if you don't become best friends with your roommate, be friendly.

I've seen roommates become best friends, acquaintances, and not get along at all. In my opinion it's pretty rare to become best friends with your roommate(s), so if you guys don't become close... remember that it's never a bad idea to be friendly. You will be living with your roommate(s) for eight months, and you definitely don't want your living experience to dread the whole time. If you do end up being friends with your roommate(s) take advantage of the time you guys have to hang out and have fun, because one academic year flies by so fast!

#college #univeristy #dormlife #collegeroommate