As the fall semester came to a close, many students continued their search for their home in Auburn for the next year. Whether a freshman is deciding to live on or off-campus for their sophomore year or a junior is making their final housing choice of their college career, the time to decide has arrived.
For Katie Bibbee, senior in political science, the decision to live on campus hasn’t been a tough one, “I lived on campus since my freshman year," Bibbee said. "[I] lived in the Hill my freshman year and lived in the village ever since.”
Bibbee has lived on campus all four years of her college career.
For Bibbee the decision was easy, “My dad went here and he lived on campus his freshman year so there wasn’t an option in my family," Bibbee said. "It was one of those things like you’re going to live on campus and get involved. After that, I just liked it so much that I decided to stay.”
Living on-campus can has been said to provide advantages and disadvantages. While rent for on-campus living is considered to be one of the highest in Auburn, it is often forgotten that a $1,000 meal plan is included in the on-campus housing.
“Just the practicality of it," Bibbee said. "I wake up 10 minutes before class and I’m there on time and I don’t have to worry about parking on gamedays."
Bibbee said it is these considerations that made the decision easy for her.
“Breaking it down cost wise, it is expensive when you look at it by semester basis but when you break it down month by month like how you pay rent it's really more comparable to other options,” Bibbee said.
On-campus living provides students a resident assistant, a student who lives in the dormitories, who is available whenever student housing is open and aimed to help students with whatever they need.
Sophomore resident assistant Lily Lemond enjoys the benefits of living on-campus as both an RA and a student.
“I think it’s really cool because you get to know for sure people that go to Auburn," Lemond said. "I think it’s a really cool experience living on campus for community building."
Unlike many of their classmates, Bibbee and Lemond have has little frustration concerning on-campus parking for class and on gamedays.
“I don’t have to worry about getting on or off campus, I don’t have to worry about parking,” Bibbee said. “I live in the village, so I’m five minutes from the student section and then five minutes back [to where I live]." Not worrying about having to park for class is a big one.”
Bibbee said not having to worry about parking for class was a big factor for her.
On-campus housing also keeps students more involved Bibbe said. “It’s a lot harder to justify not going to a club meeting when it’s a five-minute walk versus when you have to come back to campus and park," Bibbee said.
The decision to live on-campus for the first time or to continue living there is one that has different aspects for each student. There are many factors in the decision and each housing type provides its own unique experience leading students to live in the variety of housing opportunities that they do.
Lemonds said she believes all students should live on campus at least once during their college career.
“Once you learn a little bit more about yourself and the university and how it works, it’s up to you what you want to do," Lemonds said.
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