Which colleges do random roommate selection?

[Anonymous]

What does Penn do now?

When I went 20 yrs ago you could choose but bc this was pre social media and a nationwide student body, almost no one did besides the small handful of ppl insisting on someone from their high school - which was very much discouraged. So it ended up being mandatory random. I feel like now it’s prob the social media selection frenzy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Davidson. School assigns based on an interesting questionnaire and MBTI. It’s a big part of campus culture, in a good way.

So ... basically random.

Yes. But I love that they dressed it up a bit so the kids get more engaged. The tour guide lit up when she talked about it. Shared cute examples and stories and school lore about where the biggest extroverts get placed on the floor (highest traffic areas?) Pseudo-science, sure. But more fun than speed-dating on Instagram, or worse, feeling left out when you try IG but don't get picked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Optional random is common, but it's not great for the kids. Mandatory random is really much better.

Can you explain why optional random is not a good option for girls?

Not the person who wrote this, but I imagine it's because there is a lot of stress over finding a roommate on your own through social media, etc. If you don't find one, then you arrive on campus already feeling like a loser. So if you are randomly assigned a roommate, there's a stigma -- "she couldn't find someone online."

I hate this and wish all schools did random (with questionnaires, sure) assignment of roommates. Who needs the pressure of matching up with someone on your own?

Or she's invested a lot in the IG matching effort and feels like a failure when it works out poorly becuase she thinks it's her fault for choosing the wrong person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Davidson. School assigns based on an interesting questionnaire and MBTI. It’s a big part of campus culture, in a good way.

So ... basically random.

Not random at all. Very detailed matching system that is super successful. Many students at Davidson have the same roommate all 4 years.

[Anonymous]

Mandatory random at Duke

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about Princeton?

Yes, Princeton does mandatory random roommate selection for the first year. After your first year, students have a choice. My current freshman and one of his current roommates did a room draw (room selection process) last month for their sophomore year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What does Penn do now?

When I went 20 yrs ago you could choose but bc this was pre social media and a nationwide student body, almost no one did besides the small handful of ppl insisting on someone from their high school - which was very much discouraged. So it ended up being mandatory random. I feel like now it’s prob the social media selection frenzy.

Penn does optional-random: you can pick but over 60% do random. Plus most programs have set dorms for freshmen (M&T, Viper , Huntsman, others) making all of those mandatory random.

[Anonymous]

Notre Dame: no questionnaires, no requests, no “are you a smoker or not,” “are you an early bird or a night owl,” nothing. Learning to live with whom you are assigned to is considered part of the Catholic character.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Notre Dame: no questionnaires, no requests, no “are you a smoker or not,” “are you an early bird or a night owl,” nothing. Learning to live with whom you are assigned to is considered part of the Catholic character.

first time I've heard that's part of the Catholic character.

[Anonymous]

Pretty sure it was mandatory random at Case Western for my kid last year. Maybe a questionnaire was involved.

[Anonymous]

Chicago was Mandatory random, but I think I heard that they were moving to optional random for next year. There is a questionnaire.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Notre Dame: no questionnaires, no requests, no “are you a smoker or not,” “are you an early bird or a night owl,” nothing. Learning to live with whom you are assigned to is considered part of the Catholic character.

first time I've heard that's part of the Catholic character.

You get what you get, and you don't get upset.

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure it says a lot about a school. It's a lot easier to match kids when your incoming class is 500 than 8,000.

I went random with a SLAC back in the mid-90s. We were paired with people in our freshman seminar. Except, I wasn't. There was an uneven number of females, so I was next to & on the same hall as my seminar classmates. My roommate and I had nothing in common and she was a much better fit for a girl down the hall. Instead of getting housing involved, one day, we just switched rooms and told the RA after. I wonder if kids could get away with that now.

[Anonymous]

I honestly think everyone random is a much better system. The data shows (we saw it presented at a tour) kids are happier and everyone is in the same boat. You dont get much from and IG post and it causes a lot of anxiety and stress. Davidson, for example, does an extensive questionaire and even incorporates Myers-Brigg questions that seem to really work. End of the day roommate doesn't need to be a best friend. Live well together by being kind and respectful. More on the next year if its not a great fit. Too much pressure (and really hard!) these days in my opinion. My kid just finished freshman year. Lived just fine with his (chose each other after a survey "match" in the school portal) but not good friends and both moving on amicably.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Notre Dame: no questionnaires, no requests, no “are you a smoker or not,” “are you an early bird or a night owl,” nothing. Learning to live with whom you are assigned to is considered part of the Catholic character.

Yup. Don't want those altar boys to get too picky about their priests.