<p>I have a few questions regarding the roommate situation.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Is it better to go random or find a roommate on a social networking site (Facebook)?</p></li>
<li><p>Can you request a roommate after SOAR or does it have to be in by the May 1st deadline? It would seem to me like it would make sense to actually meet the person before I decide to room with them but I'm not sure if that is allowed.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Any other insights on roommates are much appreciated.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I’ve known one person to find a roommate via Facebook. It ending in disaster by the end of the first semester and they switched roommates. I’m not saying it can’t work but I’m saying it might be just as likely to “work out” between you and your roommate if it was completely random.</p></li>
<li><p>To my knowledge, you can’t request a roommate after SOAR because by the end of May/beginning of June you are getting who you are rooming with in the mail.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Part of the fun or not so fun of college is meeting new people, one of those being your roommate. A lot of cases have it when you end up hating each other but other cases you turn out to be good friends.</p>
<p>I found mine on Facebook. I can’t say it’ll turn out well, but she seems really cool and from where I see it this gives me a <em>slight</em> edge in the hopefully-she-won’t-be-a-psycho category. In the end, it could be just as bad or good as a random, but I figured at least this way I have a little say in who I’ll be living with for a year.</p>
<p>I met my room mate at orientation, I guess we were both scared of getting someone creepy and we decided to room together after a night together and a few conversations. By the end of it a bunch of my stuff went missing and I moved out, I now live with a I girl I never met who’s room mate transferred so they had a spare room and it’s horrible, we have horribly clashing personalities. I strongly recommend living with a friend, I’ve heard bad stories but I’ve personally only seen good outcomes. But thats just me.</p>
<p>So it is possible to request a roommate after orientation?</p>
<p>That’s probably the best a idea. I can’t tell if it’s better to meet someone on Facebook to have a slightly better chance of not having someone creepy or just go random and meet someone that I would never think of rooming with.</p>
<p>Also the person I’m thinking about rooming with seems normal but it’s not like a match made in heaven so I feel like it’s a gamble. Should I room with this person or wait it out?</p>
<p>If you are referring to living in the UW Madison dorms, it is difficult to be paired with a specifically requested roommate unless you both pick Sellery or Witte as your first choice, OR you are in the same learning community, receive access to Rooms-Online and coordinate together which room to select.</p>
<p>Who your roommate is is not a huge deal. You may be friends, you may not. They don’t have to be perfect, it really won’t have much of an impact on your life.</p>
<p>They may have some bad habits you hate or may be borderline crazy - a random roommate could be this, or someone you meet on Facebook. You can’t possibly learn someone you’ve just met’s habits until you live with them, and if they’re secretly crazy that won’t show up till later either.</p>
<p>All in all, meeting someone on Facebook or at orientation is pretty similar to going random except you already know their name and face.</p>
<p>It’s not like you’re marrying this person, you just have to coexist for a year. Even if you hate them, trust me. It’s not that bad.</p>
<p>Also don’t forget or discount how much of an influence new found college freedom can have on an individuals personal habits…your current habits/beliefs/hobbies/likes/dislikes will most likely be different by the end of your first year. Based on this in addition to other comments made, I would stay away from the Facebook/Orientation match ups. Or, if you do go into them, realize that they really aren’t an improvement over a random match.</p>