<p>I just got off the phone with D1, a senior, who couldn't answer my question about choosing a roomate thru Facebook because, as she said, "you may find this hard to believe but we didn't have facebook when I started college". Pretty amazing that something so new is now considered commonplace.</p>
<p>Anyway, S came in today and said he wants to change his dorm request from the honors dorm to a random dorm so he can room with a guy who contacted him thru Facebook. Besides the fact I think the honors dorm would be the better place, changing his request makes him lose his guaranteed housing and potentially leaves him on the street. BUT the housing lady said there is another dorm where the two guys can both change to and still get in (the facebook guy is not in the honors college).</p>
<p>S says it's better to get someone you know thru facebook than a total stranger thru potluck. Does anyone have any experience with this thru their kids? D2 took potluck and did fine. I'd like S to get the complete honors experience, but he says this guy likes the same books, movies, music, went to an academic magnet, is in the choir (as is S), drama club. Unless he's lying, I guess it might be better than potluck.</p>
<p>I found my roommate through Facebook. We met up in the beginning of the summer--went out to dinner if I remember correctly--and hit it off really well. We decided to go ahead and live together and I can honestly say it was one of the best things I chose to do!</p>
<p>I don't see any problem with it. It's worked well for me and my friends and in my opinion worked better than potluck. By meeting her through Facebook, I knew a little bit about Erin before I got to school which was great. We weren't friends or anything, so we still got to experience the "brand new EVERYTHING including person I share my personal space with" situation together. Wouldn't trade it for the world.</p>
<p>(As an aside, though, she and I are having major friendship issues right now...however I do not attribute any of the problems we've faced to the fact that we met through Facebook instead of completely randomly.)</p>
<p>Go for it! Your son will be a lot less stressed out if he knows a little bit about his new roomie than having to figure everything out once he gets there.</p>
<p>Thanks, Kristin. One thing D1 told me is the alternate dorm the housing lady suggested is actually a better bldg than the one S put first on his list. And that is a good suggestion about meeting over the summer. The facebook guy lives about 2 hours away from us, so it wouldn't be impossible for them to get together prior to move-in. Thanks for the tip!</p>
<p>Per all the schools my daughter applied to -- she was able to amend her application by adding a roommate and that roommate's ID number without losing her place in the queue. That is, it wasn't like she was withdrawing her app and placing a new one. As long as both boys add each other, they should both be placed as soon as the first boy's turn to get housing comes up. So I'm not sure why you think he would lose guaranteed housing. Did the other boy not get anything in at all before this, and your son was only signed up for the honors dorm?
As for some of your other questions, my daughter has found a roommate on facebook as well. She was excited for college before, but now she is even more excited and feels like her last worry is gone. She and this girl have spent a lot of time IMing and are planning to get together this summer and do some shopping for the room. I think this is becoming more and more common.
I too thought an honors dorm would be the best place for my daughter, and she wanted none of it. She said she wanted to be in the main freshman dorm where people are supposed to be very social. She seems to believe (I'm not saying I agree) that people who would choose to "self-segregate" in an honors dorm might not be outgoing.<br>
My take on this was to let my daughter go with her own inclinations.</p>
<p>I would like to add a word of caution about rooming with someone met through facebook: your son may have false expectations about this kid based on his facebook profile. Profiles are very deceiving and show very little about personality or friendliness. I may be overly sensitive to "creepers," but I'd be wary of someone who was trying to find a roommate through facebook and I'd be especially wary if they chose me based on the fact that we liked the same books/movies, whatever. That's really not enough to base a friendship on, and your son might have enthusiasm that translates to disappointment later.</p>
<p>Usually "honors dorm kids" work well together, and I don't know if I'd risk giving up that experience to room with some random kid. That's just my advice.</p>
<p>breadandbutter -- one of the primary functions of facebook groups for incoming college classes is to find roommates and friends. Kids on facebook are not creepers looking for roommates; that's a gross misrepresentation. I am not saying facebook is for everyone or that honors dorms aren't wonderful; they are. But this is becoming a very common practice; there is nothing suspicious or funny about it.
Hopefully the two kids will spend some time IMing or getting together, so they can feel comfortable together.<br>
Roommates are always a gamble -- whether pre-arranged or random. Best friends who room together can grow apart in college; a random roommate can be a best friend or a disaster; a facebook friend the same. I know it eased my child's anxiety to "meet" her roommate beforehand. Apparently, once the room assignments are out, kids from the same floor connect on facebook as well. It's hardly sinister.</p>