However, as the year went on, living so close to one another became less and less enjoyable, so some friends and I decided we were going to take the big leap and lease a house for this year.

After almost a semester and a half living off campus, I feel like a freshman all over again, getting used to an entirely different aspect of college life.

The newfound freedom of living in a house has been awesome. No more supervision, no more getting written up and no more running outside for 1 a.m. fire alarms. I can be as loud as I want, whenever I want, and I don’t have to check in my guests after midnight.

Although all of those things are nice, having my own room again is, without question, the best part of living in a house.

Never again will I take that privilege for granted after repeatedly waking up to my roommate’s alarm or having to walk to the study lounge to take a personal call last year.

I appreciate privacy more than ever after a year in the dorms, and I finally have it again in my house.

Although living in a house has allowed for more alone time, it also has improved my social life. To walk from my room in Hubbard Hall to a party off campus last year took at least 20 minutes.

Now, I can step outside my front door and take my pick of which house is having the best party, or just host one of my own.

At the same time, the location of the dorms is something I miss. Instead of having a long walk to a party, I now have an equally long walk to class. I only live two blocks off campus, but it still takes me 15 minutes to reach my closest class.

Gone are the days of waking up at 10:15 a.m. for my 10:20 a.m. class and still making it on time because it was downstairs.

Even better than having classes in the same building was having a cafeteria. I never would have admitted it last year, but the cafeterias were the best part of dorm life.

The food wasn’t always great, but it sure was nice being a short elevator ride away from a meal someone else had prepared for me.

Worse than the long walks to class and having to make my own food is the new burden of paying utilities. Living in the dorms was far from free, but I did not have to worry about paying my landlord or sending a check to the power company every month.

As if the stresses of work and class were not enough, I now am constantly worried about the amount of money in my checking account or if my roommate paid the rent on time.

Despite the new responsibilities that come along with living in a house, I am confident I made the right decision.

The positives far outweigh the negatives, and I wouldn’t trade the experiences and the lessons learned for anything.