Living off-campus is a great way to feel like an adult. In the first part of this blog series, we talked about the pros and cons of living on campus, and now we’ll look at the advantages and disadvantages of living off-campus. Living on campus is fun and teaches you a lot of things. College is one of the most formative years in your adult life, and take it from someone who just graduated from it; there is no place like college.

You will make friends for life there because you will go through the same situation that will bond you for life. However, the first thing that most people think of when they think about college is their living arrangement. I lived both on and off-campus. It is the first time that most of us have become independent, and we are left to fend for ourselves.

In my first two years of college, I lived on campus, and in the last year of my degree and for my master’s, I lived off-campus. So, I know what I am talking about when I say living on and off-campus has advantages and disadvantages. So without further ado, let’s learn more about the pros and cons of living off-campus.

The pros:

1. Independence

This is one of the main reasons why I decided to move for my third year of college. My partner and I got ourselves a one-bedroom apartment which was 30 minutes from our college. It can make you feel like a grown-up really quickly because you no longer have the comfort of a college dorm.

Unlike for a dorm, you won’t pay for all your stay in one go, it will be your first apartment, and you’ll pay rent at the end of each month. For me, this was a taste of adulthood, and it made me more dependent.

Living on campus means that you have less access to college resources, and you won’t be able to depend as much as when you used to live on campus. This means that you’ll have to manage things

on your owns

2. Space

Living off-campus means that you have the choice to live with who you want, and no one roommate will be imposed on you unless you are moving to a place that already has people living in it. I went off-campus with my college roommate because we hit it off there, and we decided to bunk and share the price of living for our last 2 years of higher education.

You have more freedom to do whatever you want, and you have the choice of your living space. Living off-campus also means that you aren’t shacked with anyone and that you can live with someone or alone, and this all depends on your budget and who you want to live with. You can go apartment hunting and get the apartment of your dreams and budget.

3. You can live where you want

Living off-campus also means that you aren’t shackled to stay within the confine of the college wall. You can live virtually anywhere you want. We don’t recommend living more than 30 minutes to an hour away from campus, though, because this won’t motivate you to attend classes regularly.

Even though you are free to choose where you are going to live, we recommend that this be fairly close to your campus as this will allow you easy access to classes and the library if you need it. Where you live will also depend on your priorities.

The cons:

1. Missed Opportunities

Living off-campus means that you will probably miss out on a lot of fun things like college and dorm parties. This is why we recommend people to live on campus at least for their first year of college. Then, they can move off campus if they want.

There is no place like college, and you need to enjoy it to the max because once you are done, you’ll be a full-fledged adult who’ll have a full-time job and responsibilities. This is why you need to think a lot before you decide where you want to live. This decision and make or break your college experience.

2. Increased responsibility

Living on campus means that you don’t have to worry about the little things, and you don’t have to pay for food and other bills like electricity and water. But, when you move off-campus, these are the thongs you need to be conscious of.

You need to have internet set up in your new place, because we all need internet to survive, especially if you are in college. You’ll have to think of the energy bills, water, and other bills that you’ll have to pay at the end of the month. This will be an added layer of responsibility.

3. Can be far from campus

To get an affordable and cheap apartment, you’ll have to search wide and far, and at times this means living quite a bit away from your college campus. In my experience, most affordable and cheap housing and apartment solution are usually relatively far from colleges. 

So, when you are deciding on a place, consider factoring in other things like time and cost of commuting. You can invest the cost you’ll pay on commuting to an apartment closer to campus. When choosing your place, also consider one that is close and has easy access to public transportation.

Sound off in the comments section below and tell us if you want to read part two of this blog series, where we’ll talk about the pros and cons of living off-campus.