<p>Is that a really bad idea? I plan on doing this because then I wouldn't have to take out about 6k in loans. Or is that amount normal for people? I still have the option of getting dorms at Warren college though.</p>
<p>Let me know, what you think.
FYI: I plan on joining clubs and working on campus, so life isn't so boring. The apartment is only a mile away or something, ucsd bus stop is right across the street.
Side note: I also have done a year and half of community college so I won't be taking almost any freshmen course except warren writing.</p>
<p>Living off campus as a freshman is not a bad idea. I lived off-campus my first year, as did several other people I know. It’s not impossible to have a social life if you live off campus. You have the right idea: join clubs, work on campus, make and hang out with friends.</p>
<p>Just don’t let people that bag on off-campus housing get you down.</p>
<p>If you can make it happen, you’ll have a blast. And you know what else? You can invite a lot of people over to your apartment to hang out, sleep over, and have fun. You have a lot more freedom with how you want your apartment to look, as well. It’s really a fun experience and I was glad to have the opportunity to do so earlier than my dorm-friends.</p>
<p>plz live on campus. Honestly? in the long run 6k isn’t that much. </p>
<p>*I will admit that your on campus experience dependents heavily upon you’re roommates, but I think it’s worth it. Even if you get lame roomies, the experience of college isn’t complete w/o living on campus.</p>
<p>The cramped living space DOES have a slight edge over the communal bathrooms, simply because you lose the privilege of navigating over the clothes pile, the six textbooks on the ground coupled with papers, and the keyboard piano your roommate forgot to put away - OH WAIT, it’s just like that in the minuscule apartment you live in off-campus too, except I can go through this and have fun with the 27 other friends I live with!</p>
<p>Hahahaha. I loved living on campus. There were DEF negative aspects to it - crazy suitemates and sharing a bathroom sucked, but I loved being able to meet tons of people so easily, waking up 10 minutes before class started, late night OVT runs (avoid those - freshie 15!), etc. Good times</p>
<p>living on campus is worth it because it is a lot easier to make friends</p>
<p>i lived on campus my first year . i worked on campus and played on the ultimate team. the most important part is to get out there and join clubs and be social / outgoing. when you live off campus early on its up to you to make friends, friends wont just be made because they are your suit mates</p>
<p>I am having mixed feelings. I am sure there are a lot more people who have housed on-campus first year, and I’d like to have social life. Hopefully, I hear from more people who have housed on-campus, so I can make a final decision.</p>
<p>Umm… no it’s not. I think many people have misconceptions about living off-campus that unfortunately lead to insulting and incorrect assumptions.<br>
…The first one is the above-mentioned. I’ve yet to see any apartment as cramped as a dorm, especially those near the UCSD shuttle lines. How does 1000 - 1300 sq.ft. compare to that? Sure, that’s the total space of the apartment, but even a room is much bigger than a dorm.
…The second is concerning how easy it is to make friends. If you want to make friends, you are going to make friends, there is no doubt about it. And especially when you actively talk with others and, as the OP said, you join clubs. Working on campus is a plus, as well. Sure, it’s easy to know who people in your dorms are, but is that really making “friends”? You gain acquaintances, I’ll give you that, and they won’t be “friends” if you stay stuck inside and make no effort to socialize. Same with living off-campus. You won’t make “friends” if you stay stuck inside and make no effort to socialize.
…Also, there is a difference between having a social life and making friends. You make the same effort to have a social life living on campus that you would make were you to live off campus. You don’t need to be “friends” with everyone on your floor, etc., to have a social life.
…Living off campus is not for everyone. If you want to have a social life, but you don’t have that much energy to make a small effort to have a social life, it will be difficult for you to have a social life. If you want to have a social life, but you are extremely shy and have problems socializing with others, it will be difficult to go out and make thousands and thousands of friends. My point here is, if you want to have a social life, you will have one regardless of where you live, as long as you try.</p>
<p>Please, don’t bag on something you haven’t experienced. If we want to help the OP make an informed decision, we should present facts we know, experiences we and friends have had, and opinions about what we have experienced. We shouldn’t give negative opinions about the other side when we’ve yet to experience it.</p>
<p>Having said that, I appreciate that most members gave their opinion about living on campus without bagging on living off campus.</p>
<p>ericsson, i’m sorry if my comment came off blunt. I’m not trying to bag off-campus housing. *And i’m not trying to offend your input about off-campus housing, this is just my advice and what I’d say to asyman if I actually knew him.</p>
<p>asyman, you can always live off-campus. That’s what 3rd and 4th year (possibly 5th year) are for. What about living on-campus though? That’s a once in a life time experience. </p>
<p>When I think of college: living off campus isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. I think of getting to know random roommates, talking with them till 5 in the morning, boozing way too hard, studying till god-awful late in the morning, waking up 5 minutes before class, chilling with girls in my room, getting in trouble by Residential Security Officers (RSOs), hiding inside of a shower with 3 other people trying to avoid the RSOs, etc. </p>
<p>*I’m only going to UCSD b/c of full financial aid and I know that the experiences I’ve had on-campus aren’t something I would easily give up. Whatever you decide is best for you, however, just do it with NO regrets. Study like a rock-star, and party like a rock-star.</p>