Some students view moving off campus as a rite of passage after living in the residence halls.
However, other students choose to continue living on campus for a variety of reasons.
Non-commuter students are required to live on campus for their freshmen and sophomore year.
Junior Chad Brown said among the things he misses most about living on campus is having a meal plan, and being close to events on campus.
“You hear a lot more of what’s going on,” he said. “[Events] are promoted more throughout the residence halls.”
There are approximately 700 upperclassmen living on campus who are not required to be, including resident advisors, said Sarah Waters, the director of Residence Life.
The number of students who reside on campus that are not required stays near the same number each year, Waters said.
“There are between 500 and 800 depending on how many Greeks we have on campus,” she said.
Even with the demolition of the current Greek village being planned for the near future, Waters said she thinks the number of Greek upperclassmen will only decrease a small amount because of the lower “bed cap.”
“The fraternities and sororities will have dedicated space inside the traditional residence halls,” she said. “They have certain bed caps they need to meet.”
Waters said some of the sororities are going from a 36 bed cap to an 18 bed cap.
The upperclassmen who still live on campus often look toward the residence halls that offer more privacy or amenities they did not have their first year.
Waters said that two popular buildings for upperclassmen are Founders Hall and Falcon Heights.
Some students stay for the financial aid and awards that can only be claimed when living on campus, Waters said.
The flexibility of leasing space on campus also exceeds that of leasing a space off campus, Waters said.
“Off-campus leases don’t care if you’re going to be student teaching in the spring or you’ve got an internship aligned,” Waters said. “You can’t easily break your off campus lease.”
Some students may choose to stay on campus because of the benefits it can offer.
Assistant Dean of Students Deborah Novak said the close proximity to their classes is one of the benefits for students that live on campus.
Novak said one thing she hears students say they miss is having a meal plan.
“They miss not having the convenience of some place to go quickly for a meal outside of fast food,” she said.
