It’s Time to Think About Housing for the 24-25 Academic Year!

Fall quarter is behind us and it feels like June will be here before we know it! Winter quarter is the time that students need to begin to think about where they will live next year. They need to begin conversations with current roommates, talk to friends that they want to have as a roommate, think about a budget, and many other factors that go into deciding where it is best for them to live next year. Of course, we are biased and think students should consider living on campus for another year (and I’ll share some reasons why), but here are the major considerations to talk over with your student when they make their decision:

• Will you have roommates or live alone? Your student may have had a wonderful experience with a roommate this year…or they may not have. If their experience was great, they may consider living with that person again, even if they have a friend they think they might want to live with more. A great roommate experience has a lot more to do with open communication and respect than being friends that want to hang out all the time. If they did not have a great experience with a roommate, that doesn’t mean all roommates are a problem, it means they lived with someone they had a hard time communicating and compromising with. When deciding whether to live with someone or alone it is important to consider impacts to academic success, social life, mental health and budget?
• What is your budget? Calculate all the expenses. A perk of living on campus is that you know the price from the day you sign up. Costs do not fluctuate with the seasons, we don’t change prices mid-year and you know its all included. If your student is thinking about living off campus make sure they consider the following:
  • Rent
  • Utilities – water, sewer, garbage, electricity (sometimes these are included in rent, so ask!). It is also important to remember to budget more for heat in the Winter months
  • Internet
  • Parking
  • Food – no one actually eats only ramen and chicken breast, but everyone thinks they could. Remember that eating out is a lot more expensive, are they prepared to cook?
  • Gas – will your student be driving to campus every day, or multiple times a day, for class?
  • Incidentals – things like cleaning supplies, toilet paper, trash bags, etc. that were all provided for them while they were living on campus
• How do you plan to navigate difficult conversations with roommates, neighbors, landlords, etc.?  Managing these conversations can be very challenging. It is really important to advocate for yourself in effective and respectful ways. Living on campus, the resources are a little more obvious because you have someone living in your community that is there to help. Make sure your student understands who their resources are for help on or off campus!
• What will taking care of yourself and your space look like?  On campus your bathroom gets cleaned for you, the kitchen gets managed by custodial, sidewalks are cleared of snow, the lawn is maintained, etc. Make a plan with any roommates about how cleaning will work. Talk to landlords about what the responsibilities of the tenant is vs. the landlord, etc.

We are excited to support you whatever your next steps as an Eagle look like. There are resources in Housing and Residential Life, as well as across campus, that are here to support you through whatever challenges you may face in your living experience!

Students choosing to live on campus again will get to reapply starting on Tuesday, January 30^th! At that time students will log in to their housing portal (housing.ewu.edu), go through the application process (they do not have to pay the application fee again!), decide if they want a meal plan (they are not required to have one as returning students), and ultimately they will be able to choose their specific room online!

As always, if you have any questions about how to have these conversations and support your student please do not hesitate to reach out to the Housing and Residential Life office!

E: housing@ewu.edu
P: 509.359.2451
F: 509.359.6528