I’ve heard the patio app is popular at many schools.
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My kid just went with a random roommates (in a quad) - figuring that she’d get along with at least one of them. (Worked out fairly well - one wasn’t a great match but the other three got along.)
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Yes. That would be a question you could have your student ask admissions at each school.
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This has been a big consideration for my son, so he has asked extensive questions about it at every school he has toured. Most schools say that, after you have committed, residential life will send out a questionnaire about your habits and preferences for roommates. Schools varied n how extensive that questionnaire was, how many people used it, and how useful students thought it was. Most schools also had some sort of way for students to “meet“ each other online, either through their own platform or through a private Facebook group, and students could choose to find a roommate that way.
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It depends on the school. Some send out surveys and match students, some let students match each other via patio, Instagram and other apps not connected to the school. Others simply assign at random.
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Yes, I agree. I think outcomes are far better for students and families when the parents figure out what they are comfortable with financially before their students starts researching and selecting colleges. It’s a lot easier to talk about a target number at the beginning of the search, rather than having students fall in love with (or apply) to schools that will never work for their family.
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My daughter went “random” as a freshman. The school matched roommates based on survey results. She had a good experience.
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Same with S22. He went with the “surprise me” option and he has been pleasantly surprised with his two roommates.
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D21’scollege assigns roommates based on a survey: they aren’t allowed to self-select. It works out well most of the time!
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Be careful about FB and IG as most of the pages are run by third party entities that aren’t affiliated with the school. They create accounts that say “official” but they aren’t. Most of the members are not college students.
Patio seems to be a new, safer way to connect with potential roommates.
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Thank you all on the roommate information! Very helpful. Happy Thanksgiving 
I would suggest that the “alumni network” of particular colleges is largely illusory, and actually a function of inputs (read: family and neighborhood connections) more than a function of the college. (And do people really gravitate toward hiring alumni of the college they went to? I mean, maybe when How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying—which used the idea for laughs—was first produced, but not so much now, I don’t think.)
And even to the extent that the networks are a function of a college, if those networks exist in higher-paying areas, remember that those higher-paying cities are also higher-cost of living areas—as for me, I’d rather earn $50 with $40k in expenses than $100k with $110k in expenses.
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I went to a small LAC (St. Lawrence University) - with a tremendous alumni network that has helped me (and my husband who did not attend) several times. It’s not just about being directly offered a job by alumni - it’s the networking, mentoring, and introductions to their connections. For a small, generally considered safety school - there are a lot of successful people who have been very giving with their time and experience. But you have to take advantage of it/work it.
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Enjoy family and loved ones today!
Cast list for the school musical came out last night. Not totally shocked but still shaking my head. S23 got a decent part so not totally complaining.
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oh good god. that’d be awful - thinking you were talking to potential roomates, but ended up talking to scammers. thank you so much for that advice; i’ll share with my daughter
so - happy thanksgiving all!
read through these posts talking about costs/choices etc.
we are a middle income/middle of the country family here, merit seeking, cost-conscious - and have identified 4 colleges of interest for our D23, our youngest and last to go to college.
One thing i’ve not seen mentioned - and wondered if any of you are feeling this - is the sense of loss, or not wanting your last kid to go far away. I can’t express how much i will miss her; and i think that is why i’m trying to encourage her to stay nearby.
there’s a new scholarship program for engineers at our state school that looks amazing. She put full-force energy into applying; and i appreciate that. she’s not trying to sabotage the process. just knowing that makes me slightly better that she’s giving our state a fair chance when i know she wants to leave. lots to think about. 
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Such a good point to view alum network in relation to the careers and income. I’ll mention this to 23.
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My kiddo will be applying there! It is one of her TE possibilities. An academic safety, but would need the TE scholarship. It looks like a great little school and her college advisor at her top boarding school suggested she apply.
Most colleges have “free and for sale” or apartment rental FB pages. There are lots of scams on those pages as well. Be careful when sharing your address, when you will be in/out of town, valuables, etc. on social media.
If you search for a college name and 2027, you’ll will see that FB groups were set up a long time ago. For example, UC applications aren’t due until the end of November. Admissions won’t be released until March, yet a UCLA Class of 2027 (Official) was set up 34 weeks ago. It is run by “College Daily.” The url is UCLA 2027parents. The FB history says it was originally called UCLA Class of 2026 - Girls Group and was changed to UCLA Class of 2027 (Official) on 9/19/22.
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Same here, husband and I both got our first jobs through our alumni network (Washington and Lee) and then years later my husband was hired by another alum.