Give Sophomores a Choice

As a first year “diversity student” at Miami University, I was invited to attend a conference with other diversity students called “Made @ Miami”. During Made @ Miami, there were several break-out sessions lead by different faculty members where we would talk about different issues/concerns that would relate to first year college students and students in general. One break-out session on particular was lead by Ms. Valerie Hodge, the first lady of Miami University. Before we started the discussion, we did the standard “go-around-the-room-and-introduce-yourself” routine. It was finally my turn: “Hi I’m Kevin,” I said. “I’m from Cincinnati, a Psych major, and I live in Dennison Hall.” Then, the girl next to me introduced herself: “Hi I’m blah, I’m majoring in blah, and I live in an apartment off-campus…” Valerie Hodge paused and just kind of looked at her. In fact, most pairs of eyes in the room were on this girl. After an awkward silence, Ms. Hodge said “You live off-campus? First-years aren’t allowed to live off campus.” The girl immediately turned red as she projected this expression of embarrassment and terror. Ms. Hodge then asked “…Do you commute to campus?” “Yes! The girl quickly responded. “I do commute!” “Oh okay…” said Ms. Hodge. And then she said: “You know, starting next year, even sophomores are required to live on campus…” At the time, being a brand-new freshman, the words didn’t really stick with me. But now that I have been in college for a few months and am not particularly fond of my current living situation, I have found myself thinking next year’s living situation quite often. It is then that I am reminded that as a sophomore next year, I am forced to live on campus. There are benefits to living both on and off of a college campus, but it is undeniably better to have the option of living off-campus.

Do not get me wrong; there are obvious advantages to living on campus. Michael Emilio, a blogger, notes that “you are fully connected to your college social scene.” I won’t deny the truth in this statement. I think it would have been unsettling to come into college and not live in a dorm with a bunch of other students my age. It made it easy to make connections with people initially. However, it is important to keep in mind that as sophomores, we will not need to make initial connections with people; they will already have been made.

Emilio also talks about the easy access to resources that living on campus provides. One does not have to worry about driving to classes or the library. He uses a quotation in his entry by Terry DeFontuna, a student at Miami International University of Art and Design. He says “I live 30 minutes away from school, so it’s a pain to be driving just for the library. What I usually just do is schedule any library time for right after I get out of class.” For Terry, school can turn into an all day event, where when living in a dorm, one could easily make a trip there after classes before hitting the books at the library. Sure, living on campus gives allows one to get to the library easily, but what if the library is not the most ideal place for one to study? Plus, I have never met a Miami student living 30 minutes off-campus unless they are commuting, which is another story.

On the website for Miami University, I came across a letter that was written by Richard Nault, the Vice President for Miami Student Affairs. The letter was written in early 2008 and concerns the policy. In the first few lines of the letter, it blatantly states that “our intention is to make our second-year program a national model.” The section of the letter continues to talk about data that the university has taken that shows that “second-year students who live on campus have higher grades and are more engaged in campus cultural and academic life than students who move off campus.” This is interesting to me. Getting higher grades is one thing but involvement in campus life? I assure you that people who want to “engage” themselves in campus activities will do so whether they live on campus or not. The people that do not get involved in extracurricular are not doing so because they choose not to.

The next section of the letter, entitled “The Critical Second Year”, talks about how all sophomore students are “lost” in the sense that they do not get as much attention as freshmen being new college students, nor do they get as much attention as juniors and seniors about to take a giant step into the real world. The letter claims that by forcing sophomore students to live on campus, they are helping them “find their voice” and they plan on providing “programs and advising that will help them be as reflective as possible about the decisions they will make,” as well as “information about living in a community and dealing with landlords and local laws.”

My question is: “What do these new and innovative programs have to do with where sophomores live?” During the week, even those who live off-campus spend the majority of their days on campus due to the fact that they have classes. Students with campus meal plans will spend even more time on campus. So would it not be possible to still have these programs available for sophomores to take advantage of? I don’t see why not.

When I read the next section, I laughed to myself. The first two sentences are as follows: “This change in our residency requirements is not intended to increase Miami's revenues. We made this decision for educational reasons.” It is just so funny to me because when I first heard about the issue, the first thought that came to my mind was “the university is definitely doing this to make more money.” Regardless of whether or not this is the hidden goal of the policy, I guarantee you that the university will not be complaining about the extra room and board revenue. This is also interesting considering the terrible state of the US economy right now. The extra revenue will certainly cushion the effects of the economy on the university.

Living on campus may not be the best choice for every student financially. Angela Rivas, a writer hosted by Helium.com, breaks down why it is more beneficial to live on campus. “Living off campus can be much cheaper if you find a good apartment, or choose a slightly more expensive apartment but add a roommate to split the costs…” I do not want to give money to the university if I do not have to. If one has the opportunity to pay less living off campus than living on, then it is just not ethical to force them to pay more because “studies” show that he will get better grades. If he studies, he will get good grades. Period.

Allstudentrentals.com is a website that assists college students in California in finding off-campus housing. The website has a blog section that outlines common pros and cons of both on-campus and off-campus living. One of the cons of living off-campus, the blog mentions, is “Miscellaneous expenses - There will be many hidden costs associated with living off campus that can greatly increase the cost of living. This includes utilities (hydro, water, etc) cable and internet bills, parking (at school and off-campus) and commuting costs.” This might seem scary on the surface but when you think about it, as students living on campus, we already get these bills…they’re just clumped together into one and we call it Bursar. As long as one is conservative with their consumption of electricity, water, etc, he should have nothing to worry about.

Another benefit to living off-campus is the freedom and flexibility versus living in a dorm. In an opinion piece written by the board of student editors for Western Kentucky University newspaper, the 9-member board addresses how sophomores should be able to live off campus. The article talks about how in many cases, trying to study in a loud and crowded dormitory can be difficult. “One essential thing a college student needs is an ideal study and work environment. Some will realize after their freshman year that they cannot do quality work while living in a dorm. Why force them to be in an environment that stifles them from doing their best work?” I can certainly relate to this. In my dorm, there always people running around, screaming, and slamming doors, so it is difficult to get studying done in my room. Even the study lounge has been turned into a place to take phone calls and play loud music. I often find myself making the long trip to Shriver or the even longer trip to King Café to get my best studying done. After an entire year of this, I deserve the option of living in a secluded area where I can study more peacefully and conveniently, thus getting better grades. Is this not what Miami wants for its students anyway?

“Life off campus isn't perfect, but it's a positive change, a step in the right direction, and I definitely made the right decision,” says Anthony R, a blogger for the MIT admissions website. His blog entry is about how after living on campus as an underclassman, living off campus as an upperclassman was much better. He writes about how living off campus has made him more responsible in the sense that he has to do a bit of planning when going to class (waking up earlier, making a schedule for on-campus activities, etc.).

Also, he notes that when living in a dorm, in between classes, he would normally just do back to his building and socialize with his friends. Living off campus, he finds it inconvenient to go home after classes, so he ends up going to the library or a coffee shop to get his work finished. “You'd be surprised how much time during the day I used to waste! I've become a better student, a better employee, and a better citizen,” says Anthony. It seems as if the ones who do well academically off campus do so because they are good students. This also means that the ones who do poorly do so because they are not-so-good students. Plus, if living off campus is making certain students perform poorly, it must be kept in mind that they still have the option to live on campus.

Starting the fall of 2009, Miami University sophomores will be required to live on campus. The university claims that sophomores living off campus is a hindrance to their success. After taking a look at this issue in depth, it can be seen that living off campus can actually benefit students in many ways.

What the university has failed to realize is that people just perform better in certain environments. Tests may show a common trend among sophomores but they do not account for every single one. Sure, there are students who can excel academically living in a dorm, but those who feel they would do better living off-campus should not be forgotten. By giving sophomores the choice of where they live, they are able to thrive in the environment that will allow them to do their best.