Dorm life: Round 2

With dorms as the only option, selecting housing for freshman year is relatively easy. Once freshman year ends, however, students have several options: Rent an off-campus apartment or house, settle into a greek house, move into an upperclassmen Residential Programs and Services facility (such as Tulip Tree or Union Street apartments) or stay in the dorms. We talked to two IU students who decided to renew contracts in the dorms and hang out with the freshmen.

Emily Francisco
junior majoring in speech and hearing sciences
Collins Living-Learning Center

Josh Krushinski
sophomore majoring in biology
Wright Quad

Why did you decide to stay on campus?
Francisco I don’t have to worry about cooking for myself if I don’t have time or trying to find time to go grocery shopping. The location is also really convenient, so I have a fairly short walking time to each of my classes.

Do you think staying in the dorms was a good choice?
Krushinski It was. It helped me out with my grades because I have the best grades yet this semester.

What’s it like to live with freshmen?
Francisco If I didn’t have someone that I got along with well and wanted to keep living with, then I think it would be fine to room with a freshman. I have a friend who roomed with a freshman when he was a sophomore, and everything was fine.
Krushinski I feel a disconnect with the freshmen because I’m older. Also, I’m in a single, and there are doubles around me, so I feel a little out of place. But it’s not horrible.

Do you ever wish you lived off campus?
Francisco Not really.
Krushinski Yeah, I do.

Best thing about staying in the dorms?
Francisco Being around friends. My friends and I planned for this year to all live on the same floor right next to each other, so that has been fun.
Krushinski The best thing is having the food court in the residence hall. It’s quick and convenient.

Worst thing about staying in the dorms?
Francisco The worst thing is that sometimes you just want to have your own bathroom, and sharing a bathroom with 20 people is sometimes annoying.
Krushinski The worst thing is having to share a bathroom with 20 other guys and all the trash they leave in the hallway.