Putting two strangers in a room together for 9 months and seeing how things work out sounds like a reality television show. In actuality, this is a common occurrence at colleges all across America. Often, students will fill out some type of vague personality survey online or on paper that is sent back to the school, which is then supposedly used to match that student up with a compatible roommate.<\/p>\n
Miraculously, this approach does sometimes work, although it is unclear whether it is because of the method of the personality survey or just because the two people are easy going enough to not switch rooms. However, there are times when people are paired up who do not mesh with each other, and problems ensue.<\/p>\n
Jill Borer, a past Morningside student, is all too familiar with life with a bad roommate.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy first roommate at college, things started off badly and got progressively worse,\u201d said Borer. \u201cShe was nice, but equally as weird.\u201d<\/p>\n
Borer\u2019s roommate was a lesbian, which she specified didn\u2019t bother her, but things got awkward when her ex-roommate asked to see her in her underwear.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was just fascinated by the kind of underwear I was wearing and asked me to show her more. I felt so uncomfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the semester progressed, Borer\u2019s roommate filled their room with bonsai trees, read books about witchcraft, and constantly made Chinese soups that would stink up their room and her clothes. Her roommate moved into a room with her girlfriend the following semester.<\/p>\n
This is one instance where thing just would not click, but luckily the end result wasn\u2019t too disastrous as the two never had a big fall out; they just decided to live separately.<\/p>\n
In the new age of technology, people will take to Facebook and Twitter to express thoughts and frustrations. The problem is they often forget that those posts are public and can be seen by others.<\/p>\n
Just ask Andrew Snyder, sophomore at Morningside.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne day I happened to stumble upon my roommate\u2019s Twitter feed, and it turns out he has been talking crap about me since school started. It\u2019s sort of fun because he doesn\u2019t even know that I know, but it\u2019ll come out before too long, I bet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another student, who wished to remain anonymous, had a roommate who would steal her debit card while she was in class, use it, and return it before she was done with class.<\/p>\n
\u201cI finally noticed on my bank statement after she had been using it for gas, food and shoes for 5 months.\u201d<\/p>\n
In cases like this, it is essential to involve the college to prevent future problems and to notify the thief what can happen if they do not stop stealing.<\/p>\n
According to Pablo de la Cruz, resident assistant (or RA, for short), stealing is not tolerated by Morningside\u2019s residence staff.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe residence staff will generally organize a meeting between the two roommates and the Associate Dean of students to go over what steps will be taken if the thievery does not stop. If the stealing was bad enough, sometimes it is decided in these meetings to involve the police.\u201d<\/p>\n
Former Morningside student Ryan Schneider had a friend whose old roommate ran an unspecified business from their dorm.<\/p>\n
\u201c[He] tried to sue my friend because his alarm went off too early every morning. Apparently, it was \u2018interfering with his business.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire De Roin, senior, dealt with a roommate who was more passive than up-front with her issues.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy roomie left me passive-aggressive notes everywhere and wouldn’t talk to me at all, ever.\u201d<\/p>\n
In these cases, according to Cruz, a roommate contract is drafted that lists what each roommate can do to help alleviate the problem.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf that doesn\u2019t work, then the last step would be that usually one of them will move out.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s obvious that there are often problems between roommates, but what does the college\u2019s residence life do about it?<\/p>\n
Sheri Hineman, head of Residence Life at Morningside College, basically said that they move them around and don\u2019t ask questions.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce the housing freeze [amount of time at the beginning of a semester where a student can\u2019t move out from his or her dorm unless there is a very good reason as deemed by the residence staff] has ended, I don\u2019t ask why the person is moving.\u00a0 They may tell me; they may not.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are no numbers on how many students change roommates due to problems each year, mainly because, as said by Hineman, students often move because they would rather live with someone else they are better friends with on campus. And since Residence Life doesn\u2019t ask questions, they don\u2019t know whether these room changings are because of problems or just a desire to live with someone else.<\/p>\n
There are many different reasons that two roommates might want to split, as discussed above. Hineman gave a little insight on the typical reasons for a roommate to move out.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most common issue is differences in values.\u00a0 One student is into the party scene and the other is not.\u00a0 One student \u2018borrows\u2019 their roommate\u2019s belongings without asking.\u00a0 Sometimes it is schedules that cause the problems, if one person has to be up early for practice and the other does not.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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