<p>I'm currently deciding whether I want a double or a single. Why is having a single room good and why is it bad? How 'bout the doubles?</p>
<p>If you have a double, how did you approach your rommate about rules or setting up rules? I don't know how to set them without seeming to controlling or inconsiderate. (or a neat freak.)</p>
<p>Our college gave us (<a href=“http://www.wellesley.edu/ResLife/Attachments/roommatestarterkit.doc[/url]”>www.wellesley.edu/ResLife/Attachments/roommatestarterkit.doc</a>) which is a bit over the top, but kind of introduces stuff like living habits as a way to get to know each other. It’s easy to transition from describing how you’d like to sleep/study/etc to asking them to agree/collaborate on a system or some sort of rule.</p>
<p>Great…thanks…</p>
<p>I have two rules for my roommates; I tend to be private and you should ask me before you rummage through my stuff, and you WILL NEVER smoke a cigarette in the confines of the room. Everything else, I’m very flexible.</p>
<p>I have a single, and it’s the best decision I ever made. I have my own space…everything in the room is mine…I can go to bed when I want and all the lights are off/no ones typing away at a computer…I don’t have anyone coughing/sneezing/laying in bed all day when they’re sick…I don’t walk in my room after class and have to be quiet because my roommate’s taking a nap…I can watch TV/movies on a Tuesday night and no one cares…if I don’t want to go out I don’t have to…etc etc.</p>
<p>BUT if it’s your freshman year I’d go for a double. I’m a junior and spent 2 years in a double, and while it sucked sophomore year, freshman year I’m SO glad I had a roommate. Unless you’re a phenomenally outgoing person it’s easier to make friends when you’re adjusting to college life.</p>
<p>I have a single, and love it. I am very different than my flatmates, and if I had to share a room with one of two of them, I would rather shoot myself in the foot…the third, I could manage with, but still…we have different sleep schedules, different ideas of morals and ethics, different levels of cleanliness…</p>
<p>On the other hand, I know many people who live in doubles, and they all have more friends than I do, and get along well with their roommate. I think having a single in a community hall type place would be best. I’m in an apartment style dorm, so I never see anyone in my dorm. They know half of their floor…</p>
<p>I have a single now (as a freshman), and can’t really come up with a downside. I suppose there’s the loss of a potentially close friendship with a roommate, but just as often, those situations end in tension and animosity. As loveduke22 said, your own room means your own rules. Go to bed when you want, hit the snooze to your heart’s content, bring women back without an issue, and so forth.</p>
<p>bumpers…</p>
<p>I live in a double. I like having a roommate. In my opinion these are some of the situations when a roommate is a good asset:</p>
<p>-if you get locked out of your room
-if you suddenly need help for any reason (if you come home intoxicated, if you’re sick, if you’re worried or scared)
-if you need someone to talk to or bounce ideas off of
-if you need to borrow something
-if you don’t want to buy your own TV, fridge, furniture, etc.
-if you’ve never before had the learning experience of living with someone else in close quarters</p>
<p>I haven’t really had many problems with my roommate. We’re usually not in the room at the same time (half the time, even when it’s 5am, one of us is not there). Since we operate on such different schedules and tend to spend a lot of time out of the dorm, we’ve never had issues with alone time. That was my main concern when I was assigned a double, since I’m a private person and value my quiet time. But now I’m glad I didn’t get a single, even though that’s a private person’s dream come true. Having a roommate is fun and interesting. I learn and do things I wouldn’t have been exposed to before, because my roommate has a completely different cultural background and major. My roommate hangs out a different crowd than I do, and I’ve made some cool friends through her that I wouldn’t have known otherwise. My roomie is also a lot more motivated and focused than I am, and it’s had a good influence on me. I guess some of this is specific to my roommate in particular, but I think a lot of these benefits come with any roommate(s).</p>
<p>To respond to Dukie, </p>
<p>-at my college, there are RA’s on duty 24/7, and during the few hours they are on call, but are allowed to sleep, if you only need to be let in, there are special people on campus just to do that for you 
You can be let in several times before they charge you for it. Personally, I have found that we all trust each other enough to not lock our room doors, so if we call our flatmate to get in the apartment, we can get into our room, no need for a roommate
-It’s illegal for anyone under the age of 21 to consume alcohol, and other intoxicating substances are illegal for everyone. This should not be an issue As for getting sick, I got hit with some nice little food poisoning just before winter break, and I survived without a roommate. I know if I had a roomie puking everywhere, I would not be in amood to help But, I do see the validity behind this point, I just think that common friends can be just as useful as a roommate.
-As for buying a tv or a fridge, that’s great, unless your roommate didn’t want to buy one either Talking and whatnot, that’s actually very valid! I have found it very easy to get lonely. Solution: go hang out in other’s dorm rooms This is actually one of the bigger reasons I would suggest a double. </p>
<p>We all leave our doors open often, so we do chat and all, even though we don’t share a room. It works out well.</p>
<p>^Well yeah all that is true, obviously people in single rooms are not stranded alone! There are single rooms for a reason. But it is always marginally easier when you <em>do</em> have a roommate. I can always depend on my roommate…my RA on the other hand lives further down the hall and I don’t know her very well. It’s her job to get people in trouble…my roommate isn’t an authority figure. And I don’t like to hang out much with people in my dorm hallway (I barely know anyone, all of my friends are from other dorms) so having a roommate is helpful. For the record, I’ve never been locked out or written up or anything of the sort, but I’m just thankful I have a roommate. I started out wanting a single but I’m glad I don’t have one now.</p>
<p>bump…</p>
<p>Single >>> Double</p>
<p>depends on the circumstances. Double is probably better for freshman.</p>
<p>Meet people, etc…</p>
<p>I lived in a double this semester but I chose to be in a single next semester, because my sleeping habits didn’t match those of my roommate’s… and she was waking me up all the time.
She really was not the most sociable person and I was really upset the whole semester. She was also annoyed when I brought friends over, so yea, a single will be so much better.</p>
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<p>Don’t be so naive…</p>
<p>One important consideration: If you are the only one in a single on your floor/in your dorm, that might prevent you from making friends. But if many people are in singles, then I think you get all of the positives and none of the negatives.</p>
<p>Spitfire: where do you go to school?</p>
<p>I’m so glad I got a single.</p>
<p>I’m on a floor full of doubles and it hasn’t prevented me from “making friends” at all.</p>