Students should be able to live the full “college experience” of living both on and off campus. On-campus housing includes dorms, both doubles and suites, and The Village, which is reserved for upperclassmen. Going off campus, there are private landlords who rent out houses and there are different communities such as Lakeside Commons or Premier Living Suites.

No matter where a student decides to live, every option helps a student to become more independent.

The dorms, for example, are perfect for a student who is new to school. This living option presents the typical “college life” of living in dorms that are all part of a larger building. The dorms can help students adjust to college life and feel like they are part of a community. They present opportunities for students to maintain responsibility for a smaller space while, for the most part, not having to worry about making their own food.

When students feel they are ready to make a jump and experience more growth, then they can, at least at Oswego State, move to The Village, which is a larger space with a little more responsibility, such as cooking meals or maintaining bathrooms. Or students can even go off campus to a house owned by a landlord or another off-campus community.

The houses present a sense of “growing up.” With students living off campus, they have to plan for the commute to class, similar to the commute to work, making their own meals and maintaining the cleanliness and safety of the house they live in. A lot of the time, students must also purchase their own furniture and utilities, such as silverware or bathroom necessities, which might help post-graduation in their own houses or apartments, giving students a jump-start on some furniture purchases.

Some students might complain about high costs of living off campus, or how cramped a dorm can be after living 6 feet apart from a roommate, but each living situation gives students the chance to find growth and a sense of responsibility as they get older and ready to head off into the “real world” after graduation.