<p>I'm going to be attending a UC in fall of this year as a freshman. I'm extremely independent (buy my own groceries, cook for myself, etc.) and cannot stand the thought of living in a dorm with NO kitchen (no stove!!!). However, my parents said that they would not pay for my college if I didn't live in dorms the first year. Now..I have become open to the idea that for just one year I can manage, but then I realized that I will not be able to cook for myself. Other factors play into the mix (I'd be living with my boyfriend and they probably fear I won't get involved in campus life) but I would really, really prefer to cook for myself.</p>
<p>Is anyone familiar with this situation? Is there anything I can do regarding the kitchen situation? Is there anything that will convince my parents of the benefits of living off campus?</p>
<p>Seriously, live in the dorms. Every year on this site, there's always someone who is SO amazingly independent or who lives "really" close to campus that they can't fathom living in the dorms...and then school starts and they wish they had lived in the dorms.</p>
<p>If your boyfriend is going to be living off campus why can't you just go there to hang out and cook the occasional, or even most of your meals? I mean if that is really the case, you could obviously be one of those people who rarely ever spend time in the dorms. I mean that happens normally - whether it's a girl who's boyfriend is in a fraternity and she ends up sleeping there every night (one of my pledge brothers had his freshman gf over 95% of the time), or a person ends up "moving in" to someone else's dorm room (one of my best friends did this, same dorm building - different floor, the couple is getting married this spring 6 years later), there are plenty of people who end up having a room in the dorms but rarely using it. Considering that your parents want to pay for you live in the dorms, why not just let them?</p>
<p>I would probably suggest that you live in the dorms. If you live within close proximity of the school, you could perhaps return maybe every few weeks or something to enjoy some home cooked meals. It's nice to live in the dorms and not worry about cooking as honestly it takes more time to prepare a meal than you think.</p>
<p>Obviously maybe the food might get a bit tiring after a while, but there are also other advantages of living on campus as well. You get to make new friends. You also do not really have to worry about commuting every single day. I'm sure for most UC schools, there will be a small kitchen that you can use to cook some meals. Also, keep in mind that preparing a sandwich really doesn't require the use of a kitchen so maybe you can eat at the dining commons a lot less.</p>
<p>The plus side of living in the dorms is having a place to sleep between classes; just a place to work and such between those days where it's not economical to return home. If your parents are going to be paying for it, just think about the other benefits of campus living instead of worrying about food.</p>
<p>I regret two things from my college days: 1) not changing majors when I realized I wasn't cut out for what I was in (due to my own problems with the "must see it thru til the end" OC mentality) and 2) not living in the dorms for my first two years of college (due to circumstances beyond my/parents' control). I do not think I formed the lifelong bonds with friends that I saw others have, and no matter how much I tried, I was never really as involved as the dorm kids. So, my two cents, give it a try; you can always move off campus next year, but once housing is filled, it is difficult to get into.</p>
<p>I am also very independent, and I ended up living in dorms only my freshman year, then moving off campus. Even though I do enjoy being off campus, and would not ever want to live in dorms again... it was a really good thing for me freshman year. </p>
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<li>It's a huge bonding experience, you'll meet so many more people through dorms than through classes.</li>
<li>There isn't always time for cooking in college...esp freshman year is an adjustment period and you might want to leave yourself as much free time for homework/studying and trying things on campus. Cooking takes up a lot of time as does worrying about setting up an apartment/paying bills. It's not impossible, but it could be good to have yourself free of these responsibilities while you're adjusting to college.</li>
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<p>So it might be good to live in the dorms for your freshman year, and you can always visit your boyfriend's apartment and cook there when you have time.</p>