Pros and Cons of Living in a Student Accommodation

The decision to join university may have implications of leaving your home town. It may be difficult and, at times, impossible to continue living at home. For accommodation, including Alma Student Residence, you may have options like living off-campus or living in a campus residence. Either of the options comes with pros and cons.

Common Concerns for University Students in Canada Regarding their Accommodation

You may wonder, is it better to live on campus or off campus in Canada? Many factors inform your answer to this question. You may want to explore the benefits of living on campus or even the pros of living off campus. Aside from these, you may want to know the disadvantages of either choice. Remember that you are now an independent young adult, and it is only fair that your concerns are addressed by your accommodation choice.

You need to be able to enjoy life at campus and make the entire education experience fun and worthwhile. Some concerns you might need to be addressed by your accommodation include the following.

• More independence - As a young Canadian adult or even an international student that’s exiting the exploration stage of adolescence, you may want to be able to take charge of buying your own groceries and cooking your food, choosing where to live depending on your lifestyle, whom to pick as your roommate and also your living arrangements. You should choose an accommodation option that guarantees this kind of independence.
• Privacy - University life can be noisy and chaotic. On the other hand, you may love quiet, controlled environments where you can interact with peers and friends and freely engage in fun activities without the intrusion of other students or parents and neighbors.
• Freedom - You may be looking to enjoy the fun around Canada with your peers and friends, choose where to go for recreation, and experience the real world and more without feeling restricted.
• Space - You may be the type that gets inspired to study and be more creative when in roomy places.
• Convenience - You may want an accommodation that guarantees ease in accessing resources like university classes, the library, the gym, etc.
• Cost - You want to save money, pay university tuition and start life after your degree.

Living Off-Campus (In a Student Accommodation)

You can choose to live in an apartment alone or share it with your friends/peers.

Pros of Living Off-Campus

The question of whether living off campus is cheaper in Canada is primary to choosing your accommodation. When you have studio or suite options that you can occupy alone or share rent with others, living off-campus becomes cheaper than living in the university. Shared rent reduces expenses drastically, especially if your apartment is near the university.

Living outside the university allows you to experience the real world. You can access facilities at the university and those in the apartment area. You also live with different people under different rules from the university rules, making it easy for you to transition to the world of work.

Your studio or suite enables you to enjoy higher levels of freedom and privacy. You get to enjoy your private bathroom and bedroom, and it offers the serenity required for better study.

Living in an apartment or studio enables you to take charge of your routines, like eating, socializing, and studying. You get to choose your roommates, and the rules by landlords help control the noise and chaos that are characteristic of university residences.

If the accommodation is near the university, you enjoy convenient access to the university classes, library, and other resources important for your study. It gives you an opportunity to experience the best of both worlds sufficiently.

Cons of Living Off Campus

Living off-campus in Canada has its downsides. You may need to take care of your commuting to campus. This has financial implications that may require budgeting and balancing.

Extra responsibilities like shopping for house supplies, preparing meals, cleaning, and commuting to and fro use up the time you could have spent studying or even socializing with friends.

Living On Campus

The majority of university students in Canada live in campus dorms. This is common with first-year students. When you live in campus dormitories, you are open to enjoying some benefits as well as dealing with some disadvantages.

Benefits of Living on Campus

On campus, you are able to meet many students and get to know each other. You may enjoy living with each other creating real bonds that may last a lifetime.

At the university, your socialization skills increase your ability to deal with students from different backgrounds and with varying interests, thus fostering your mental and social maturity.

When you live in the dorm, you can choose between cooking meals and eating at the residence. You will be closer to your classes and the library, among other resources.

Disadvantages of Living On Campus

Freedom comes with responsibilities. Living an independent lifestyle demands discipline in order to manage yourself during and after university. Breaking away from safe, controlled home environments into new ones that are sometimes chaotic and noisy may increase your anxiety as a student and affect your study.

At the university dorms, you may be at liberty to choose your roommate but not your floor-mate. This implies less freedom and privacy as compared to off-campus living.

Dormitories may be expensive in some universities as they are charged twice the price of apartments. Therefore, living in a dorm may not be cost-effective for you.

In conclusion

If you are studying at the University of Guelph, you may want affordable accommodation that assures you of convenience, independence, and privacy. Alma Student Housing is located a 5-minute drive away from campus.

The studios are well furnished with a private bathroom. We also have fully furnished 2-bedroom suites you can share with a friend. Our rooms have a double bed, a couch, a desk, a chair, a microwave, a fridge, a TV, and a dry bar. Some also have balconies with furniture for comfort. Our facilities, like the fitness center, commercial-grade kitchen, games room, study places, and arcade, are well-designed to give you a real-world experience and allow you to vent your campus stress. Call us today to make your booking.