With the first waves of off-campus permissions being granted soon, it’s a good time to consider the benefits of off-campus living, especially for juniors about to enter their last year of college.
Dorm life has merit for incoming college students, as they provide a safe environment for students to transition into adulthood independence.
After a few years of being coddled by RAs and house moms, however, many students are ready for a new challenge and adventure. The skills students learn, like self-governance and independent living, will serve them well in the real world.
Though students are told they will grow to self-governance, the living environment is often not conducive to achieving that fully. Hillsdale strives to allow their students to rise to self-governance, and giving students off-campus permission is a tangible way to provide students with an opportunity to learn to live prudently.
Living off campus requires students to create a budget and learn to pay rent on time. They learn how to pay utilities, handle conflicts without RA involvement, and keep a house clean. Instead of jumping off the deep-end and going from dorm living to adult life, students are able to dip their toe in the pool of adulthood before going off to live on their own.
Off-campus living also aids in the creation of an authentic campus community. With off-campus permissions, students may leave the dorms and pursue a community of their own. Students who aren’t living in the dorms don’t miss out on Hillsdale’s vibrant campus community. Instead, they build their own small communities in their houses, all of which contribute to campus at large.
Off-campus living benefits the individual students who take advantage of the opportunity and campus as a whole. It allows students to exercise self-governance and creates an intentional community within the greater college community.