Finding a Home At MTSU

When I made my commitment to MTSU in April 2017, there was no doubt in my mind that I would be living on-campus for my freshman year. However, students like myself and a large portion of the other Recording Industry students have a unique situation compared to many other students who go here. I was coming from 748.4 miles away as an out of state student, which is unusual or a campus where the vast majority are in-state students.

I knew for a fact that I would be utilizing the on-campus residence halls during my freshman year, although I did not give very much consideration to some of my other options. I ultimately decided to stay in Smith Hall, which is well known for housing the “living learning community” for Recording Industry majors.

“The best part of communal living, is being able to actively engage with other students who share your major or share the overall college experience,” says Smith Hall Resident Assistant, Jaylen Thomas.

If you decide to live in the on-campus residence halls it is inevitable that you will find people who are similar to you. So make the effort to connect with anyone around you. Meet your resident assistant, get to know them, and actually attend the activities that are organized for students in your hall. It can be a great way to get to know the people on your floor (while getting plenty of free food as well). You may not be best friends with the people on your floor on your roommate, but it is still important to communicate with who you are sharing your space with.

However, it is also inevitable that you will run into situations you may not like and people that you are at odds with.

In a dorm it is basically impossible to have the same level of privacy as you would in an apartment or your parents house. Even, if you live in a dorm room by yourself (which is much more common now than ever) you can’t avoid sharing a bathroom, laundry room, and general area with people who are strangers to you. If you are someone who values privacy more than most, I would recommend an living in an apartment style building either on or off campus. Even if you end up living without a roommate, you will still have to deal with neighbors and noise.Naturally there will be people on any given floor who blast their music, jump and scream at their TV while watching sports, or think its a good idea to practice drums past 10 at night. Of course these are extreme examples that only happen every so often, but there will always be distractions and annoyances when you are living with others so close by.

It is important to come up with strategies to minimize the presence of these distractions. For example, if you know that your roommate or neighbor is a little bit noisier than most, there are study rooms on each floor that will allow you to isolate yourself from the noise. Bringing a good pair of headphones can always be a solution to block out any kind of unwanted noise.

Sharing a bathroom is another difficult part about the communal living experience, and from personal experience sharing a bathroom facility with 30 other guys is not the most flattering thing in the world. The main way to better your situation is to take personal responsibility, and do your part to keep the facilities clean for the cleaning staff. Simple things like flushing the toilet, not leaving soap behind in the shower, and picking up after yourself go a long way to making the dorm experience better for everyone. The key to making your community living experience a good one is to take responsibility for yourself and trust that your floor mates will do the same.

“[Living on campus] is vital to the college experience. It allows you to become privy to sharing spaces with people that you wouldn’t typically and immerses you in the campus experience.” — Jaylen Thomas, Smith Hall Resident Assistant.

Most students at MTSU tend to have a generally positive experience in their residence halls. A survey was conducted asking students about the quality of MTSU dorms and living accommodation, and the responses were generally positive. 14 out of 19 respondents rated the quality of MTSU’s dorms a 3 out of 5 or higher. 57 percent of students said that their experience living on campus has positively impacted their college experience. Most students who I know personally seem to have good, if not neutral relationships with their floor mates or roommate. But it is important to acknowledge that there will be people who you interact with will have different opinions and lifestyles. As a college student it is important to be tolerant of others who may be different than you no matter how cliche that sounds. My roommate and I could not be more different from each other. He holds very traditional Christian beliefs while I don’t subscribe to any particular religion. He likes country music (my least favorite) and I like metal music (his least favorite). He is from south Georgia, while I’m from Delaware, and that has lead to several hilarious cultural disagreements. But no matter how different we are we still co-exist and live together, despite our differences.

It is so important to be able to set aside differences and communicate with people who are different than you, especially if your situation is similar to mine. You could always avoid situations where you may be around people you don’t particularly like or agree with. That is part of the reason why many students opt to stay in an apartment style building as described in an opinion piece written by LSU student, Ethan Gilberti, titled “ Apartment life more advantageous than dorm life.” Many students decide to request single rooms to avoid a bad roommate experience. David Wheeler’s article “The End of The College Roommate?” illustrates why many students seem more willing to live on their own in college dorms.

All in all, college dorms are not the best option for everyone although they have their advantages. Apartments seem to be a common alternative, as they provide a student with more opportunities to take responsibility for their own well-being. Apartments also offer more privacy, and students can be more selective about who they decide with and around. While apartments off-campus can be a little bit more expensive then staying on campus, but some students I know say they save money in other ways. They avoid the meal plan expenses altogether, and some apartments allow you to split costs between roommates. Living in an apartment can also help a student develop become much more accustom to living as an adult. Apartments require students to take responsibility and learn some valuable skills, such as cooking. Many students at MTSU opt to live at home with their parents or with roommates and commute to school. The majority of students at MTSU commute from home, while a much smaller amount of students actually live on campus. So it isn’t unusual to rule out dormitories all together.

However if you decide to live on campus, remember that it is up to you to make the best of your own experience. Although I would defiantly encourage any student to consider living on campus, it may not be the ideal option. Whatever you choose should reflect the way you prefer to live and the type of people you want to surround yourself with. Ultimately you must make the best of whatever you choose by being a good member of the MTSU community.

A Few Of The Many On-Campus Housing Options for MTSU Students

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