But not everything can be sugarcoated — living in the dorms was as much an adjustment as it was a godsend. And residing in the dorms for my second year, I feel as if I have had enough and am looking forward to living off campus in the future.

When I came to MSU I had never before shared a room, never before been away from my family for more than a week and had never even left the U.P. for more than two weeks.
Dorm living was a bit of a plunge for me. I wouldn’t consider myself sheltered, but I did have a big transition when I came to school.
Though the dorms provided me with an opportunity to make friends, I also had to learn and adapt to living in close quarters with a bunch of girls I had never met before.

Adjusting to someone else’s living style was the most difficult — whether it be sleep schedules, class schedules, or even just clashes in personality — living with a roommate was a huge learning curve I had to overcome.

Nonetheless, I did end up enjoying dorm life and adjusting well enough that I chose to live on campus again for my sophomore year.
I now live in Snyder Hall and have very much enjoyed the amenities, conveniences and involvement on campus dorm life provides.

One of the biggest reasons I chose to live on again was for the pure nostalgia of MSU’s campus. MSU is a historical and beautiful place, one that is renowned for the Red Cedar River and ivy-covered brick buildings.

It made me wonder what the chance was of me ever living in such an environment again in my life. Also, I didn’t want to grow up too fast. I felt as if I have the rest of my life to spend living in an apartment. So I decided to stay and live on this campus for at least one more year, to really take it all in.

I soon realized older building have their downfalls. Now I live in an even smaller room than last year, have barely a window, live in the basement and have had the pleasure of cockroaches to keep me company. It’s come to a point where I feel like I’ve been there and done that, I’m over living in a 12-by-14, crammed little room in the pretty part of campus.

I’ve had some great experiences and made some great friends but at some point you realize how nice it would be when you have your own space, kitchen and laundry machine. But it’s to each his own; living in the dorms does provide many positive opportunities, especially coming in your freshman year. It just depends on what you are looking for and what you are ready to do.

I feel as if dorm living is a stepping stone. One from the dependency on your parents’ home to living completely on your own in an apartment. Dorms take the sting off the real world and act as a transitional barrier for college freshmen. You don’t have to cook or clean for yourself, and someone is at the door checking you in after midnight. And when I chose to live in the dorms again this year, I wasn’t ready to forgo this cushion.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have many complaints when it comes to the residence halls — besides the cockroach part. But again, two years has been enough, and I think I am finally ready to “LiveOFF.”