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| My American dorm, there was another behind mine |
Here in the UK, today is the start of ‘Fresher’s Week’.
The week when all new freshman are driven to their respective university
campus, dropped off with their clothes, taken out for a last meal, and then
left by their parents. The rest of the week is packed with learning their
course schedule, finding their way around campus, food shopping, and above all,
drinking. A lot!
You will find, that there is a major difference between ‘Fresher’s
Week’ in America and the UK. Buzzfeed is going into a frenzy over this
difference, so I thought I would give an insider’s perspective. In the UK,
freshman don’t have to share a room when they live on campus. In fact, most get
an en suite with their private bathroom and bedroom. They do however, suffer
with sharing a large kitchen, which is cleaned regularly by staff. After one
year of this misery living in dorm halls, nearly all students move off campus
and live in flats, shared houses etc. But, they still believe that their
fresher year in student living was rough.
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| British dorm kitchen |
If only we had it so easy in the US. First, we MUST live on campus
for the first two years of university (age 18-20). Secondly, as a freshman
students usually share a room that has two sets of bunk beds, four desks, and
two large shared wardrobes (that’s four people per room). The bathroom isn’t
shared between just these four people, instead it is shared by an entire floor
of people. Most universities keep the male and female dorms separate for the
first year. There is locked security to keep them separate, and visitors are
only allowed to stay in until a certain time at night. Freshman are strictly
monitored in America. After completing the year of hell in a freshman dorm, you
get slightly more space by sharing a room with just one other person, and sharing
a living room and bathroom with four people. That is luxurious compared to
freshman living. Most dorms have a floor kitchen, but there is no designated
fridge space.
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| The closet in my room |
Why do we have this system? After all, Americans pay large
amounts of money to attend university, while British people pay pennies in
comparison. Why do they get a better living situation in the UK? Well, I
believe it is because from the age of 16, Brits are given more freedom and
choice in the UK (people are legally adults at 16 in UK). So, by the time they
hit 18 they should be independent enough to live on their own and cook for
themselves. In America, at 18, kids are just finishing high school and being
thrown into the big world of university. Some have never done a load of laundry
before or cooked anything but mac&cheese out of a box. The shared living
situation with dorm monitors and rules helps ease the younger university aged
students into being away from home. (It also makes parents feel more
comfortable writing massive checks to schools if they believe their children
are being looked after) Finally, freshman in the US have it so bad because they
need to pay their dues. We all did it, we all had a rough freshman year. It’s
part of the experience to share a room with strangers, to go to morning
classes, eat weird food and study till the early hours of the night. It bonds
people together.
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| British private dorm |
What Brits fail to see in the US dorm system
is that it is a form of socialization. Most university students travel far and
wide to attend school, few of them go to the same place as their high school
friends. By having to share a communal space, people are forced to bond and
create friendships. I know many freshman roommate friendships that have lasted
beyond university for years. Sharing rooms give you a built-in support network,
a group to sit with in the dining hall, and someone to help you figure the in’s
and outs of new adult life.
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| Dorm joke |
I admit to envying the spacious living of the UK freshman. But,
the American way has its merits that most British people fail to see. The most
random fun things happen when you share rooms with people at university. I’ve
gone out for Krispy Kreme donuts at 2 am just because we were bored and hungry.
I’ve woken up to lipstick writing on my mirror that made me think my shower was
haunted but was just helpful warning from my roomie. Sharing dorms can be fun.
My university experience would have been duller and lonelier without it. So,
Brits, don’t knock it till you have tried it.
Here is the Buzzfeed article that caught my attention
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