Anonymous wrote:Never thought to ask this question, but it is sooooooo important to ask. I cannot stress this enough. We are about to pay $2K/month for an office campus apartment because DS's school only can accommodate freshman class and about 1/2 of the sophomore class.

where is this?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MY DC (HS JUNIOR) HAS DISCOVERED CENTRE COLLEGE IN KENTUCKY. THEY SEEM TO GUARANTEE HOUSING FOR 4 YEARS. SENIORS LIVE IN TOWNHOUSES THAT ARE SHARED BY 3 OR 4 STUDENTS. SEEMS LIKE THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS.

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I see what you did there

Anonymous wrote:MY DC (HS JUNIOR) HAS DISCOVERED CENTRE COLLEGE IN KENTUCKY. THEY SEEM TO GUARANTEE HOUSING FOR 4 YEARS. SENIORS LIVE IN TOWNHOUSES THAT ARE SHARED BY 3 OR 4 STUDENTS. SEEMS LIKE THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS.

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I lived on campus at a SLAC for 4 years. By year 4, I thought I wanted off campus, but my roommate didn't have a car so we ended up staying on campus. That last year on campus ended up being the most fun by far. We had the nicer senior housing and, as a class, we all ended up bonding so much. Downside was that graduation was tough because we had such a tight community on campus and it was hard to leave. My DC now is trying to decide between a SLAC in a remote area where everyone lives on campus 4 years, and an urban school where students generally move into apartments after Freshman year. There is definitely an upside to being in a major city, but I will kind of feel sad if my kid doesn't get the full residential campus experience. I have to remember it is their choice, though, and that they know what they want.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:University of Richmond. Freshmen and sophomores are in typical dorms while junior and seniors are eligible to room in the on campus townhouse village (2 story, 2 bedroom apartments, 4 students per apartment). They’re pretty nice. Almost everyone lives on campus.

I don't care how nice the apartments are, sharing a bedroom when you're 21 or 22 would blow nuts.

So I read this as two story townhouse with two bedroom apartments on each floor. Maybe wrong.

Anonymous wrote:University of Richmond. Freshmen and sophomores are in typical dorms while junior and seniors are eligible to room in the on campus townhouse village (2 story, 2 bedroom apartments, 4 students per apartment). They’re pretty nice. Almost everyone lives on campus.

I don't care how nice the apartments are, sharing a bedroom when you're 21 or 22 would blow nuts.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like arrested development if a substantial portion of juniors and seniors don't move on.

We get it, you're a narrow-minded shitty tailgate state alum. Now buzz off.

LOL I was thinking something along those lines.

University of Richmond. Freshmen and sophomores are in typical dorms while junior and seniors are eligible to room in the on campus townhouse village (2 story, 2 bedroom apartments, 4 students per apartment). They’re pretty nice. Almost everyone lives on campus.

Dickinson requires living on campus all 4 years.

Vanderbilt. A small %of seniors live off campus but most stay on campus all 4 years…

MY DC (HS JUNIOR) HAS DISCOVERED CENTRE COLLEGE IN KENTUCKY. THEY SEEM TO GUARANTEE HOUSING FOR 4 YEARS. SENIORS LIVE IN TOWNHOUSES THAT ARE SHARED BY 3 OR 4 STUDENTS. SEEMS LIKE THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS.

Ugh...dealing with this now. Spouse and I graduated from a small private 4 year college, staying in dorms all 4 years. It was easy.

DC is now at JMU first year and this has been tough. Making friends takes time (for him) and this has been a challenge. But there are so many groups that help with roommate matching, just like with roommate selection first year. FB parents off-campus housing posts a lot, as do certain student-only apartment complexes, and JMU itself has a matching page. The thing is, like everything, you have to just put it out there and look for roommates. The one mistake we see over and over is kids being pushed to sign leases in October with 3 people they just met. Don't fall for that!

So yes, dorms are easier to figure out. Less stress. But our quiet musical really really is over sharing a dorm room and ready to have more space to himself.

So yes, definitely pros and cons of each.
Pro's on small campus/dorm: being close, hallmates, not having to sign leases, not having to have a car
Con's: Having roommates, dining halls (though some have apartment-like housing now)
Pro's of larger, off campus: Feels more like 'real life', can get away from noise/partying (our dc's tipping point).
Con's of larger/off campus: push to figure it out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never thought to ask this question, but it is sooooooo important to ask. I cannot stress this enough. We are about to pay $2K/month for an office campus apartment because DS's school only can accommodate freshman class and about 1/2 of the sophomore class.

Yes but costs will vary greatly by school/city the school is in. For some schools it’s far cheaper to live off campus and schools have to require freshmen to live on campus. $2k a month is expensive! Is that for a private room in an apartment shared with other students?

Being off the meal plan is usually a huge savings too.

West Point, Annapolis, Air Force Academy, . . .

Anonymous wrote:Never thought to ask this question, but it is sooooooo important to ask. I cannot stress this enough. We are about to pay $2K/month for an office campus apartment because DS's school only can accommodate freshman class and about 1/2 of the sophomore class.

Yes but costs will vary greatly by school/city the school is in. For some schools it’s far cheaper to live off campus and schools have to require freshmen to live on campus. $2k a month is expensive! Is that for a private room in an apartment shared with other students?