By: Mariel Ramos Dorm life for upcoming freshmen students could be really tough, especially on their first month. Simply because they would be far from their family, making them homesick. It requires adjusting in a new environment and socializing along with their dormmates. No one would be there to wake you up in the morning, prepare breakfast, snacks, lunch, and even dinner, wash the dishes after eating, clean the bedroom, wash the clothes, and more. |
However, they will learn a lot of things not only in academics, but also in life. Making friends easily, commiserating about school with dormmates, studying with groups of friends, always having someone to eat with, and staying up late socializing almost every night. Sharing their college experience with other people who are going through the same ups and downs, and that makes everything easier. Most importantly is teaching them to be independent.
Many roommates become the best of friends, while many others spend the year resenting and hating one another. Some share everything; others opt for the “tape across the room” style of living, where the room is halved and neither roommate can invade the other’s space. Unless you request to live with a friend, you don’t know whom you’re going to get. But your school does its best to pair you up with someone compatible based on the survey you fill out when you apply to live in the dorms.
The first rule of being a good roommate is to be considerate. Yeah, we know, it’s not always easy. But the best way to get what you want is to allow the other person to have what he/she wants too. It’s called compromise. If you don’t do anything to step on your roommate’s toes, you have a lot of leverage if he/she steps on yours. Instead of living in a constant tug-of-war, be nice and accommodating from the start. If you start out on a bad note, it can last all year.
Each of you should post your class, work, and practice schedules in a visible area so that everyone knows when the others are coming and going. That way you can schedule some private time in your room if you need it. But don’t be shocked when your roommates don’t stick to their schedules. Skipping classes and other commitments happens quite often
Studying can be difficult in a dorm, because socializing often takes priority over grades. But it doesn’t change the fact that they were living in a dorm to be more comfortable to study.
All of these advantages don’t erase the fact that dorm life can be challenging. They’re living in close proximity to a lot of other people, and that’s a recipe for conflict. But conflict is part of life, and learning how to deal with it successfully is essential to becoming an adult.
Not all dorms are like what you see in movies. Some are downright luxurious, looking more like plush apartment suites, which are cheaper. Some colleges have a lot of money to spend on housing, and their dorms tend to be more livable.
You will probably be making a list indicating your dorm preferences, but there’s no guarantee that you’ll end up there. You don’t have a lot of choice when it comes to where you’re going to live. The amount of staying in a dorm for ten months that your parents are willing to spend is not a joke.
Majority of college freshmen will have at least four roommates. It is possible to get one roommate, but the chances are low. Also, you could get a single room just for yourself, if you prefer to be alone, but of course the price is bigger. The quadruple is the most common arrangement, where four people share a room. Some dorms are made of suites, which are basically two or more rooms in an apartment with two students in each room. Suites often include a shared bathroom, a common area, and sometimes a kitchen area.
Since almost all of the dorms here in manila are not coed, there is not much of a problem with having a common bathroom. Communal bathrooms are, well, based on my experience. If you have a lot of siblings, you’re not particularly shy, or you don’t mind sharing your space, the communal bathroom experience shouldn’t bother you too much. But if you’re not used to having your privacy invaded, you’ll have a lot more adjusting to do.
Sometimes, you would have to wake up early to fall in line for taking a bath, but this rarely happens. Since, everyone’s schedule is different, so you shouldn’t have to wait so long to soap up.
The most important piece of equipment you’ll need for your trips to the bathroom is a pair of flip-flops to protect your feet. Communal bathrooms aren’t the cleanest of places, and some are downright nasty. You’ll also need a basket to carry your toiletries to and from the bathroom.
Some dorms have bathrooms in each room, so you’ll only have to share with your roommates. You’ll come up with a cleaning schedule, and if all of you will follow it, the bathroom would remain fungus-free.
Dorms have a lot of rules. Here are some of the rules: No liquors, fire hazards, weapons, opposite sex going inside the room, pets, loud music or voices, etc.
Most of the dorms often have a CCTV installed on the main entrance and hallways. Some even have a security guard. This is to prevent thieves and maniacs to harm the students. Also, you should always keep the door locked all the time; this is a good ways to discourage kleptomaniacs to steal your things. You should also but a padlock for your cabinet and keep expensive and important in there.
Lastly, never ever ignore a fire alarm in your dorm. Fires are very common in dorms, often caused by smoking, illegal candle use, cooking, or overloading electrical outlets. Every year students die in dorm fires because they disable the fire alarm in their rooms. Read your dorm’s fire plan and get to know all of the exits. Ignoring a fire drill might be tempting, especially in the middle of the night in the winter, but you never know when it might be the real thing.