One of the most important things that I absolutely need in my life is privacy. I know that that is extremely unlikely to have in college, but it's still nice when the people around you respect your boundaries.
I love being around people especially my best friends. I hate the feeling of being alone even when I am going through hard times, but sometimes it's really important to me that I have alone time in order to process my feelings. Personal space is a great way to process stress, trauma and other stressors in life. There are certain things that your friends can't help with or relate to and that's completely understandable. But those things are meant to be dealt with yourself and if you don't have the personal space to deal with it, how will you ever overcome that obstacle?
Having a roommate is definitely something that is both hard and the best experience ever. My roommate is my best friend and I wouldn't trade living with her for anything. But, sometimes it can be a lot when we have class at the same time and are unable to have any alone time in the room. We aren't able to deal with our problems alone and instead, bottle them up inside to only be released in times of anger. I feel the same way about boundaries. If boundaries aren't set with your friends, it can create tension in the relationships because they are overstepping the line and you are too afraid to say anything about it. If you want personal space, you need to establish these boundaries with the people in your life otherwise your relationships will be in jeopardy. Take it from me. I have yet to have the courage to speak up about the personal space I need and it is slowly tearing me apart. I feel myself become more removed from the conversations and social events that my friends and I go to. I really need my personal space before I go so far into myself that I only become a shell of a person.