38 THE QUEENS COURIER • COLLEGE GUIDE • OCTOBER 18, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
college guide
5 tips for being a good roommate
BY JOSH TOWNER
Having a roommate can be fun and
exciting, but it can also be a huge source
of stress. Some of us will have the same
roommate for four years, creating a genuine
friendship that even lasts a lifetime.
But not everyone is that lucky, and sharing
a living space oft en ends with an
uncomfortable breakup of sorts. While
you can’t control how your roommate
behaves, here are a few things you can
do to create the best possible shared living
experience.
Be respectful
Th e most important tip can be summed
up with the golden rule: treat others in
the way you want to be treated. You can’t
expect your roommate to respect you
if you don’t respect them. Respect their
space, their stuff and their sanity. Don’t
move their things without asking for permission.
Don’t move your things to their
side of the room. If they need some personal
time, get out of the room for a little
while. Th e more respectful you are,
the more likely they are to be respectful
of you.
Keep your space clean
No one likes to see dirty clothes everywhere,
an overfl owing garbage can or
crumbs on the couch. Having a clean living
area is scientifi cally linked to better
health. Keeping your space clean isn’t diffi
cult, you just have to stay on top of it.
As long as you don’t let the messiness
build up, you’re never more than a minute
away from having a clean room. Plus,
if you keep things clean it’s easier to ask
your roommate to do the same.
Keep the noise down
Few things are more frustrating than
when you are having trouble sleeping.
Maybe it’s your roommate loudly getting
ready for their 8 a.m. class when you don’t
have class until aft er lunch. Or maybe you
have an early start but your roommate is
up late watching TV. Either way, no one
likes being short on sleep, so be quiet and
respectful when your roommate is trying
to sleep.
Additionally, it can be diffi cult to focus
when you roommate is blasting music.
Wear headphones if your roommate is
around, and ask them to wear headphones
if you don’t want to hear what
they’re listening to.
Try to make a connection
It might seem like you and your roommate
have nothing in common, and
maybe you don’t. Sometimes things just
don’t work out. Even so, your roommate
might surprise you. It could be something
as small as you both liking Th e Offi ce,
because, let’s be real, who doesn’t like Th e
Offi ce? Even a tiny shared interest can
make both of you more comfortable with
your living situation. Th e more you and
your roommate talk, the better you’ll get
to know each other, and the easier it will
be to get along.
Communicate with each other
Communication is crucial in having
a healthy roommate experience. Talk
about ground rules for having people
over or whether or not it’s okay to play
music out loud. Talk about things they
do that make you mad. It can be uncomfortable
and scary to bring up something
serious, but talking it out is far
better than letting it bottle up. Aft er all,
your roommate might not even know
you’re unhappy with them. You can’t
expect anyone to change if they don’t
know they’re doing something wrong.
At the very least, expressing your feelings
means your roommate is aware of
the situation. If things get too hot, it’s
okay to get some outside help from an
RA or student life.