Living with Roommates
Living in a residence hall is an important and exciting part of college life. Chatham, like most residential colleges, require students to live in campus housing for their first two years and ask first-year students to share a room with one, two or three roommates. Learning to share a space with a roommate is a huge step in your personal growth and development while in college. You will learn to be considerate of your roommate(s) needs in addition to your own, to communicate honestly and respectfully about your concerns and room needs, and to seek assistance from residence life staff when needed.
Living with a roommate isn’t an addition to your experience, it’s an integral part. Learning interpersonal skills; initiating communication are essential skills that you will need to possess to be successful as a Chatham graduate (as an employee, a partner, and a parent). Living with a roommate in college will help you to learn to establish successful, mutually respectful and courteous relationship throughout your life. We do our best in matching roommates based on information gathered on your housing forms prior to your start at Chatham.
As you experience living with a roommate, below are some tips to keep in mind to get off to a good start and to obtain a healthy relationship:
- Call or e-mail your roommate(s) before school starts to get to know each other and to see who is bringing what (microwave, TV, refrigerator) to conserve space. Make an effort to accommodate your roommate’s needs.
- Have realistic expectations of your roommate(s). Your roommate(s) will not necessarily be your best friend(s) on campus, but you can still be great roommates. Finding a life-long friend in your roommate is a bonus; finding someone who you can live with in an atmosphere of mutual respect is most important.
- Remember that first-impressions can be deceiving. Avoid making snap decisions during your initial conversations with your roommate(s). Relationships take time to develop. It’s not fair for you to conclude that you and your roommate(s) will not be successful in sharing a space before you both have an opportunity to give it try. Roommate change requests prior to your arrival in the fall will not be granted.
- Communicate. A key to successful roommate adjustment is open, honest and respectful communication – it’s vital to any relationship. Your best tool is to fill out a roommate contract when you first arrive each fall, and then to update it as needed.
- Keep a balance of rights and compromise. Be flexible, but not at the expense of your studies or health. Honor your roommates’ rights to guests and socializing; after all, they are paying for the room, too. Separate your “wants” from “needs” and don’t insist on having everything in your room operate according to your preferences.
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