Most four year universities require freshmen to live on campus in their choice of dorm halls. While the seemingly unlimited freedom and ability to live on your own for the first time is definitely a positive, living on campus is actually not as glamorous as it seems and here is why.
1. Walking, so much walking
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Back in high school, all of your classes were literally five minutes away from each other in the same regulated building. In college, depending on the location of your residence hall and overall size of campus, you could be walking 15+ minutes to get where you're going. Classes usually don't get cancelled due to weather as often like it did in high school so you'll have to walk in all sorts of weather. At least you'll get crazy toned legs.
2. The dining hall food is not the greatest.
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Ah yes, the dining hall, where you can use your meal plan to your heart's desire (or whatever your swipe limit is). While it is a step up from the food at high school, it is still can be pretty gross at times. There are lots of other food places on campus, but they are probably overpriced or put a strain on your swipes. So the dining hall can be the only option at times.
2. Limited living space.
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I know we're all told about how small dorms are but exactly how small it is is still a shock. There's not a lot of space to store your things, but if you brought alternative space-saving storage, that definitely helps. However, having too many makes your space feel even smaller and cluttered. Reminiscing about your room back home can really bring about some homesickness.
4. Suite style/communal bathrooms.
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No matter what type of residence hall you live in, you'll have to share a bathroom. If your bathroom is suite-style, you have to share with three to five other people. While it's not the whole floor you share with, you and your suitemates are responsible for cleaning the bathroom. Which can truly be a pain since unfortunately, not everyone has the same definition of clean. Now with communal bathrooms, you don't have to clean it, but it's still only one bathroom per gender for the whole floor. Sharing is usually caring, but not when it comes to bathrooms.
5. Noisy neighbors and strange smells.
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Whether it is an apartment or a house, you will never escape noisy neighbors or weird smells. But it's just especially annoying when your suitemates or the people above you are blasting music or screaming at 2 am when you have morning classes. It's also concerning when you're just chilling in your room and the smells from other rooms seep into yours, disturbing your peace.
The minimum wage is not a living wage.
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