Tips for Living Off-Campus for the First Time
Leaving the dorms behind and moving out for the first time can be intimidating. These tips will help to boost your confidence and make the transition to living off-campus seamless.
By Ceanna Hayes Daniels — July 17, 2023
Whether you and a group of friends have rented a house near campus together for your senior year or you're heading to another country solo to study abroad, it can be intimidating to leave the dorms behind and move out for the first time. These tips will help to boost your confidence and make the transition to living off-campus seamless.
Pack for Functionality, Not Aesthetic or Gimmick
When you're picking the items to bring to your new living space, walk yourself through an average week and prioritize packing the items you'll need to make it possible. For example, if you love tea, you need mugs and a kettle; if you spend long hours at your desk, then a chair with good back support is a must. Be sure to consider the climate, as well — if your study abroad program is taking you to a cooler country, pack a few sweaters and blankets in your checked luggage so you can keep cozy while studying.
While it can be easy to get swept up in the excitement of living on your own for the first time, don't fall for marketing spiels or gimmicky products designed to take advantage of students' limited life experience. Product lines advertised to college students (and even recent graduates) tend to prey on your desire to be prepared for anything this new stage of life could throw at you by presenting an overwhelming array of color-coordinated products. They may be eye-catching, but they're also generally unnecessary. (Even if it does match the coffeemaker you came to buy, no one needs a tiny blue waffle maker for their dorm room — you've already paid for a meal plan. Plus, how often are you really going to go to the trouble of making waffles before your 8am physics seminar?)
In general, it's safe to say that if you see something and find yourself thinking that you didn't even realize you'd need that product, then, frankly, you don't. Be wary of any ad or article that promotes a long series of "must-have" items for your first home or apartment, particularly if many of them are single-use appliances, and watch out for cheap products that you'll need to replace quickly — they'll end up costing you more money than they're worth in the long run.
Map It Out
Nobody wants to find out the hard way that it takes ten minutes longer than you thought it would to make it to class, or that parking is far more limited than you realized it would be. To prevent first-day-of-school stress, take some time a few days before the semester begins to map out the route and timeframe of any relevant trips. Knowing the time it takes to get to the dining hall from your new home will help you to make it to lunch before the doors close, and knowing the time it takes to get to your furthest classroom will keep you from missing important announcements before the lecture begins. This is especially valuable if you're in a new, unfamiliar city, but even if you're on the same campus you've known for years, you might be surprised by how different your route to familiar destinations will be.
Sort out the Logistics of Transportation
Even if you're only moving a few minutes away, the logistics of transportation will look different living off-campus than they did when you lived in a dorm. For example, the rules for parking in the parking lot behind a dorm will be different from those that apply to the residential street of your rental, so you may need to acquire a city parking permit as well as the campus parking permit you already have.
If you'll primarily rely on public transportation this semester, but haven't had much experience with it in the past, set aside some time before the semester starts to familiarize yourself with the process. You might need to purchase a bus pass or a metro card, in addition to downloading helpful apps with the timetable and routes of your preferred options for travel. Load your card with enough fare to get through the first week or two rather than the entire semester — if you lose a card with hundreds on it, you'll kick yourself for the rest of the academic year — and familiarize yourself with a few of the most important routes you'll use. Don't forget to do a test run of the route to the nearest grocery store!
Open the Lines of Communication with Your Roommates
If you'll be living with roommates, it's important to create and maintain open lines of communication to keep your life and living space peaceful. No matter how well you get along with your roommates, there will be times when someone is stressed and responds poorly to something neutral, or when the semester is so busy that someone falls behind on their portion of the cleaning. Making sure to communicate honestly but respectfully with your roommates is just as vital as preserving a space for them to do the same with you; remember, communication is a two-way street.
One of the best ways to reduce potential tension and conflict is to set aside time at the start of the year for everyone to communicate their expectations about visitors, noise levels, and overall tidiness, then reach a joint decision on what's best for the house as a whole. This could include a chore rotation, where each person is responsible for a specific task at a specific time. Try to set up this schedule with a range of days rather than a hard deadline each week; if someone gets sick or is overwhelmed with exams, the last thing they need is for everyone in the house or apartment to be nagging them about something comparatively inconsequential, like vacuuming.
Learn How to Talk to Your Landlord
It's important to take time now to develop skills that will serve you well in the future, like learning to communicate effectively with a landlord — especially with long-term renting becoming steadily more common than owning a home. Having a good rapport with your current landlord will help to open doors down the road when you're applying for other rentals after graduation. Plus, you never know when you'll need a repair, so it's helpful to know how to succinctly summarize a problem and ask about the solution.
Learn How to Perform Minor Household Repairs
While many landlords reserve the right to perform major repairs and renovations on their property, it's not always worth their time to come out and fix something small, especially the day that the problem arises. As a result, you could be stuck with some inconveniences for days or even weeks while they finish more urgent repairs at other units. Being able to resolve minor household issues on your own will not only save you from having to wait on someone else's schedule, but will also empower you to confidently tackle the same repairs in the future.
When there's a need for a minor household repair, head to YouTube for a video tutorial or call your dad for a verbal walkthrough. You'd be surprised by how easy it is to plunge a clogged bathtub drain! Remember, however, to always exercise discretion as you analyze a repair project — there are a lot of things you can't fix without training. When overconfidence could lead to you losing your security deposit, it's wisest to call your landlord so they can bring in a professional.
Constantly Build up Three Crucial Life Skills.
Perhaps the most valuable way to improve your off campus living experience is to invest time in building up three basic but crucial life skills: cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry. Improving any of these skills is easy with the variety of resources available online; after spending just a few minutes reading, you can head into the kitchen with a promising new recipe, efficiently tackle a variety of household projects, and remove that stubborn coffee stain on your favorite t-shirt.
Although these life skills can seem prosaic, it's well worth the effort to increase your skill in each of these areas. Every small improvement will not only have an immediate short-term impact on your physical environment but will also dramatically improve your confidence, peace of mind, and overall well-being. for example, being able to cook tasty and nutritious food will not only help you to stay healthy but will also help you to foster a connection with new friends by sharing a meal. Being able to efficiently clean your room and do your laundry will not only help you to take care of your space and possessions but will also help you to reduce stress by eliminating mess, clutter, and other forms of visual overwhelm.
Ceanna Hayes Daniels
Ceanna Hayes Daniels is freelance writer and editor. In 2022, she graduated Hillsdale College summa cum laude with a degree in politics. In her free time, she continues to enjoy studying philosophy, political theory, and literature. She and her husband live in Michigan, where the two enjoy perusing bookstores together for new books and old records.
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