<p>Hi Guys,</p>
<p>The main forum had a "roomie-to-be" posting, which sparked a question in my mind....I wonder why Stanford doesn't allow future roommates to correspond before orientation? </p>
<p>It seems like most schools encourage roomies to meet either online or even face-to-face....I wonder if anyone knows the "why's and wherefores" of Stanford's "meet your roommate on the first day of orientation" policy? </p>
<p>Any current/former students have any scoop?</p>
<p>Just wondering...</p>
<p>They said in one of the mailings that they don’t want us to form preconceived notions of our roommate (basically go on facebook and judge them from there). I frankly don’t think this is a good policy, at nearly all other schools people know their roommate beforehand and it’s not like we aren’t gonna check our roommate’s facebook when we find out who he/she is…so I don’t know what they are playing at. Though they did say that their method has been working for years and that they like it. Maybe they are on to something I don’t know.</p>
<p>I think it’s so that you have plenty to talk about when you finally do meet–otherwise, you’ll talk before you meet, and then have nothing to say when you do, and things will seem awkward. :)</p>
<p>I think the policy was established to prevent a multitude of premature requests (by students and anxious parents) for changes. Too many requests would result in a major headache for the administration when housing is already tight.</p>
<p>Way back in the 60’s, no one knew their roommates ahead of time, unless you were able to request that a friend room with you. We met our roomies on move-in day and went from there. Luckily I had only good experiences with this. Nowadays, most kids who know their roommates names will contact them and start communicating via the internet. </p>
<p>As zannerina said, these contacts may cause students to believe that they won’t like their prospective roommate, or that they won’t be able to get along with him/her, prompting anxiety or requests for changes before even meeting face-to-face.</p>
<p>I kind of like that my S won’t know who he will room with until he gets there. There is no chance for negative preconceived notions or disappointment ahead of time.</p>
<p>I think that discovering his roommate on move-in day will definitely make the day more exciting for my son. Still, from a planning perspective it would be nice if they could communicate a bit about furnishings like fridges, microwaves, etc.</p>
<p>I have to admit that initially before move in day I was a big sceptic of this policy and I really thought that it would have been better if I knew my roommate beforehand but now looking back 2 years later I have to say that I think its a great idea. People really do sound different over the internet or the phone than in person and its a lot easier for misconceptions to form over these less than perfect means.</p>