Living in an
apartment during college can be the highlight of a student's life. You're away
from home, living with friends. You don't yet have the stresses of a full time
job. You only have a few hours of class a day. And there are always
opportunities for fun. How can you maximize this chance to live while still
keeping school your priority?
First, it's
important to have a common understanding amongst your roommates that school is
the priority during the week. Everyone has different class schedules, so for
some of your roommates Thursday night is the weekend or perhaps Wednesday's
classes don't start until the afternoon. Hopefully you chose roommates who will
be courteous enough to understand that you have a different schedule then they
do.
If weeknight
partying continues despite your reminders, you may have to scout out some
alternate study zones. In my experience, obvious studying areas such as the
library or a coffee shop near campus are poor choices. They are typically
overrun with students and can, ironically, get quite distracting. Look instead
to some smaller study areas around campus or perhaps a nearby public library.
If the
problem isn't just getting your studying done, but getting your sleep in,
things are much more serious. It would be ridiculous to start sleeping
somewhere else since your spending hundreds of dollars a month to stay at your
apartment. At this point, a more serious confrontation with the offending
roommates may be in order.
In such a
confrontation, roommate alliances will play a major role. If you're up against
three other party people, there may not be much you can accomplish unless you
get an authority involved. However, at this point do you really want to
continue living with these people? You may need to start looking for a new
place to live in this extreme case.
Otherwise, you can probably work out an agreement. Restraining from hosting weeknight parties will seem reasonable to most people when you explain your 8:00 classes.
Keeping the
communication channels open is vital to living with college roommates. Always
be willing to give a little and chances are they will return the favor. Keep on
the lookout for some out of the way study spaces so you can get out of your
apartment and remember to maintain good relationships with your roommates in
case you need their backup.
Ian Byrd
runs websites dedicated to helping UCI [http://www.uciapartments.net] and UCLA
students find housing [http://www.ucla-housing.com].
Posted By: College Park Apartments http://collegeparkapartments.net/
