Roommate 101: How to deal

Roommate horror stories are a part of college. Experiences range from roommates who party too much, leave passive-aggressive notes about chores and yell when the heat stays on for an hour.

The living situation with roommates really depends on how well you get along, and how well your lifestyles coexist. Sophomore Erin McKeighan experienced problems when some of her off-campus housemates’ personalities did not match up well.

Her housemates tried to solve problems with everything from developing chores lists and house meetings to less friendly measures. McKeighan eventually found it was easier to deal with the bigger problems, and let slide issues like whose turn it was to do the dishes.

“I think one thing that has worked is just trying not to sweat the small stuff that bugs you, trying to ignore the little things and trying to be respectful of other people’s belongings and being respectful of each other,” McKeighan said.

Respect is also a key issue in roommate relationships. Sophomore Laura Cook pointed out that small spaces force roommates to treat each other as they wish to be treated in order to avoid conflict. She has found this particularly helpful in her experiences of living in the residence halls and now in a sorority.

“Living in the small space requires you to learn a great deal of respect and trust for one another, which I feel is crucial to a good relationship,” Cook said.

Sophomore Alex Cutler, Resident Hall Student Association president, believes that being honest about issues makes it much easier to deal with roommate problems and move on.

“We are generally just up-front about something if it bothers us,” Cutler said. This strategy has helped him avoid conflict.

One of the biggest myths is that great friends don’t often translate into great roommates, especially in smaller, shared spaces like the residence halls or the Greek community.

McKeighan concedes that small spaces can exacerbate problems, but she said that problems could just be the people, not necessarily the area. She had fewer problems in the residence halls than she has had living off campus.

On the other hand, Cutler roomed with his best friend from high school as a freshman in the residence halls. By getting involved in different activities and socializing with different groups of people, he didn’t get burnt out by living with such a close friend.

“I think that is the key. You can room with a friend — you just don’t have to revolve your lives around each other,” Cutler said.

Sophomore Charles Atkinson also rooms with a good friend but has found the way to get along is to room with someone similar.

“Compatibility is more important than friendship in a good roommate situation, especially in music taste and in sharing of responsibilities and resources.”