Independent college living, where you don’t have to cook meals, don’t have to worry about monthly rent, get free wi-fi and a (seemingly) free newspaper in the morning. Where the food at Bob’s is always plentiful, the Information Technology Services office is always ready to help and getting a job is as simple as walking into the employment office.Students can take advantage of the counseling center, the rec center, tutoring services, the health clinic, the writing center, live entertainment, the Women’s Center, national newspapers, the Career Center or talk to a resident assistant about any problem one is experiencing. All a student has to do is walk into the department and ask for help.
It is not just the laundry list of resources the university has to offer, but also the social security of knowing there are literally hundreds of clubs, rec groups and organizations to be a part of while one attending school.
Now, can we stop pretending that the college lifestyle is “independent?” Or that we are surviving out in the “real” world all by ourselves, far removed from the security of our hometowns?
Universities and colleges across the nation have set up this dependent lifestyle on purpose because it offers college students — particularly underclassmen — a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to remove themselves from the everyday responsibilities of adult life and focus on themselves and their education. This lifestyle the Greek system and University Housing sets up is positive because it allows students to get involved in multiple interests, figure out a possible career path, perfect a craft and ultimately determine the type of adult the student wants to be without the stress of wondering if you took out the chicken to defrost for dinner.
Can moving out from your parents’ house to live in a new community be a struggle? You bet. But can we please get rid of the ridiculous notion that we are somehow living alone, without any resources to guide us along. This is a limited amount of time we have here because the music stops when you are handed your degree and end up where most of us will within six months of commencement — back at home with mom and dad.
Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]