Living alone or w/ roommates during Vet school

Started by flipflopper
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flipflopper

flipflopper

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Hey I was wondering what everyone's opinions are about having roommates in vet school. Any current students on here that can offer advice? Do you regret having a roommate? Wish you lived alone? Do you think living alone would inhibit your ability to meet people and make friends? thoughts please
 
ive asked every vet student i met about this!! because i really dont want to have a roomie (unless its my bf) since i have had bad experiences in the past. so anyway, ive been asking:

"do you think there are disadvantages to living alone as opposed to people who live with other vet students?" Everyone has answered there are no disadvantages. they said that even though they live with vet students that they always study separately. also, that it is really easy to get together with other students if you have questions.

For this reason, i am planning on living alone. i get stressed really easily and i dont want to have a chance of any problems during the school year because of my living situation.
 
Personally, I would get lonely living alone. I did for a few months a few years ago and didn't like it, so I'll definitely live with other people in vet school. That being said, I've definitely had bad roommates, so I will try to be careful with who I do live with.

If you already know you like living alone, then do it. I highly doubt your living habits/likes/dislikes will change just because you're in vet school.
 
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BlacKAT33 said:
"do you think there are disadvantages to living alone as opposed to people who live with other vet students?"
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There definitely is. And its on the order of $300-500 a month depending on where you are living and what type of place you want to live in. The $100 a month cable/internet package is a whole lot cheaper when its split 4 ways.

It makes a HUGE difference when your figuring out your budget. Thats a lot less you could be taking out in loans or putting towards hobbies/recreational stuff.

And having roommates doesn't prevent you from doing your own thing. Its still easy enough to hang out with other friends.

My current roommates are a fair bit messier than I prefer, so I not planning on living with them next year. But I will definitely be looking for other OSU people to live with. The money saved is huge along with having a decent size house, a big back yard, a garage, our own washer/dryer. The only "cons" are sharing a living room, bathroom and kitchen which really isn't bad in my mind.
 
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david594 said:
There definitely is. And its on the order of $300-500 a month depending on where you are living and what type of place you want to live in. The $100 a month cable/internet package is a whole lot cheaper when its split 4 ways.

It makes a HUGE difference when your figuring out your budget. Thats a lot less you could be taking out in loans or putting towards hobbies/recreational stuff.
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yes this is the one disadvantage. i guess i REALLY value my alone time lol id rather pay more than have to worry about living with others. i'm an only child so i really value my alone time. i love socializing and going out with friends, but when im home...i like to be alone or i will go crazy without some "me time". i'll have the company of my cat 😀 and if im lucky my bf too.
 
BlacKAT33 said:
yes this is the one disadvantage. i guess i REALLY value my alone time lol id rather pay more than have to worry about living with others. i'm an only child so i really value my alone time. i love socializing and going out with friends, but when im home...i like to be alone or i will go crazy without some "me time". i'll have the company of my cat 😀 and if im lucky my bf too.
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BlacKAt33 -

I think i recall you saying you are going to Penn. I was an undergrad there and lived off campus 2 out of 3 years. It is very different from having a roommate in a dorm. You will basically have your own room in an old victorian 3 story house. I used just close my door and could tune out all the others living in the house when necessary.

There really aren't any reasonable options to live alone at Penn unless you get a single in one of the dorms which I highly discourage.

I am not 100% decided but pretty sure I am leaning to Penn right now although I am married so have my own roommate already!

Hope that helps.
 
I am an introvert, however I'm going to make myself live with roommates. As long as I have my own bedroom to retreat to, I'll be fine. All vet students are going to have to study a lot, and as long as my roommates are respectful of my sleep and my stuff, then I don't see any disadvantage to living with someone. Plus they can help out with pets if you have to stay late, or carpool and save gas money. And I'm really looking forward to making some friends and just being able to veg out in front of the TV with some classmates every once in a while. I know if I lived alone I would probably stay too introverted and not meet enough people or have regrets about vet school, so I want to push myself a little and live with people!
 
BlacKAT33 said:
yes this is the one disadvantage. i guess i REALLY value my alone time lol id rather pay more than have to worry about living with others. i'm an only child so i really value my alone time. i love socializing and going out with friends, but when im home...i like to be alone or i will go crazy without some "me time". i'll have the company of my cat 😀 and if im lucky my bf too.
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i'm the exact same way when it comes to my alone time...
 
david594 said:
There definitely is. And its on the order of $300-500 a month depending on where you are living and what type of place you want to live in. The $100 a month cable/internet package is a whole lot cheaper when its split 4 ways.
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A fee I would gladly pay to save my sanity. Everyone is different, so it's hard to say without knowing you personally. I greatly value my personal space and time to myself. I would absolutely hate living with other people, and I would especially loathe living with other vet students.

For me, I want to leave school at school and have my home be MY home. I'd absolutely prefer to keep my school life and home life completely seperate. I'm at school 40 hours a week and studying plenty, I don't need to have it at home with me too.

I feel living alone is very feasible in my area, I have a small budget and it works great. I save money compared to some people living in a house with others.

I have had no difficulty finding people to hang out with. I've made friends and meet new people - I also work part time and that's nice for meeting non-vet school peoples.

But that's just me. I know my studying/living habits really well and that's what works best in my case 🙂
 
BlacKAT33 said:
yes this is the one disadvantage. i guess i REALLY value my alone time lol id rather pay more than have to worry about living with others. i'm an only child so i really value my alone time. i love socializing and going out with friends, but when im home...i like to be alone or i will go crazy without some "me time". i'll have the company of my cat 😀 and if im lucky my bf too.
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It is possible to have the best of both worlds. find a place that is easy to split in half and share minimal space (ie kitchen/laundry room.) The house I am in would be easy to divide in 1/2 or even 1/3, with 2 living room, and bed rooms seperated.

You won't miss social oppurtunities living on your own, but living with a Y2 or Y3 has some advantages.
 
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Still thinking about it. It would be nice after living with people for the last four years to finally get some personal space, but that can be easily rectified just by getting a larger place (my apartment in Boston is...cozy, to say the least). I'm sure it would also cost less and would force me to be less of an introvert. Just got to find that/those roommate(s) first!
 
Getting a house and splitting rent while having your own bedroom means having a decent amount of alone time, at least to me. One option if you want to keep school and home as separate as possible is to live with a graduate student or younger professional type who is also busy and understands your need for alone time to study, but isn't in the same exact world as you.
 
flipflopper said:
Hey I was wondering what everyone's opinions are about having roommates in vet school. Any current students on here that can offer advice? Do you regret having a roommate? Wish you lived alone? Do you think living alone would inhibit your ability to meet people and make friends? thoughts please
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I've had some horrible roommate experiences in college. My roommate from freshman year actually had sex in my bed! :wtf: I lived by myself for my junior and senior year and it definitely turned me into a hermit. :whoa:

I now live with my boyfriend so I think it will be lonely living by myself again. I'm planning to find a house with some other vet students. That way, we won't really get in each other's way.
 
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I'm planning on living by my self for at least the first year since I won't know anyone well enough to decide if I want to live with them. After that, who knows? I certainly won't be annoyed at living by myself, that's for sure.
 
StartingoverVet said:
BlacKAt33 -

I think i recall you saying you are going to Penn. I was an undergrad there and lived off campus 2 out of 3 years. It is very different from having a roommate in a dorm. You will basically have your own room in an old victorian 3 story house. I used just close my door and could tune out all the others living in the house when necessary.

There really aren't any reasonable options to live alone at Penn unless you get a single in one of the dorms which I highly discourage.

I am not 100% decided but pretty sure I am leaning to Penn right now although I am married so have my own roommate already!

Hope that helps.
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that does help! but trust me, i will find SOMETHING and if there is literally nothing out there, then ok i will get a roomie lol i live by DC so im pretty used to the high rent prices. i have seen some 1 bedroom places for 1200 and that is cheaper than what i payed for my 1bedroom where i live now so i think it is doable. but yes, i will have to sacrifice more $.
 
I currently live alone. I'm not a vet student, but I'm a first year grad student and living alone has been a huuuuuge blessing. This is probably because my first semester of grad school, I was living with last semester seniors of undergrad and our priorities were just not in line.

I think, if/when I get accepted, I will want to live alone, but possibly with others who are also in vet school... DEFINITELY NOT anyone who is not on the same level academically because priorities are way different on varying academic levels.
 
Crazy Hippos said:
I've had some horrible roommate experiences in college. My roommate from freshman year actually had sex in my bed! :wtf: I lived by myself for my junior and senior year and it definitely turned me into a hermit. :whoa:

I now live with my boyfriend now so I think it will be lonely living alone again. I'm planning to find a house with some other vet students. That way, we won't really get in each other's way.
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I think you and I could trade some AWESOME roomie stories - I spent a summer as an intern in Lexington living with 3 sorority girls who didn't have jobs. Like the time one of their friends tried to sit down and pee in a box on my floor at 6am. 👎

I also live with my boyfriend, and he will most likely come with me. Unless I don't get accepted in the US and move to Scotland in which case I've got waaaaaaay bigger problems to worry about! :laugh:
 
I wouldn't say that I'm a hermit...but I lived alone for the past 3 1/2 years and absolutely loved it. In vet school...who knows...cost is realllly something that I'm starting to consider though!
 
I think it depends on a person by person basis. I liked the freedom of living alone, but I like having people around to talk to as well. So living where I have my own (huge) room and have some roommates I can talk to when I want to works for me. Plus, the cheaper rent is a huge lifesaver for me!
 
I like having a roommate that I can boss around. 😀 Much easier than the normal sort, like the one that leaves their crap all over the floor. Or the one that ignores you like you have the plague (to the point of awkwardness). Nope, I like the one I just sent to buy me a chicken sandwich much better. 🙂
 
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I feel for the roommate issues-my first year at college (on campus) I was in the room when my roommate lost her virginity. And she would steal my car to teach others how to drive a stickshift. And copious amounts of other horrible/annoying/distracting things but I'm on a tangent.

Personally, I've only had a roommate for 1 semester ever. I am an extremely outgoing/social person, and living with awesome people to talk to would be a huge distraction-and living with people I don't want to talk with would suck.

One apprehension I have about living with other vet students is that you have the same schedule. which means the house will be empty or you'll all be there at once. And I feel it would be hard to escape any drama from school to home and vice versa, even if you aren't involved.

I'm up in the air at this point as to where I live and if I'll share that with another person (if I get in!) My only 100% true fact is that it MUST be walking distance to campus. And that's my personal take. The end.
 
Is anyone's decision based on whether or not they have pets? I'd prefer to live with someone else but am always worried they wouldn't be as understanding about my dog and cat. Not that they are problem animals, but I know shedding hair and stuff like that can bother people and my dog sheds way faster than I can possibly clean it all!
 
August24 said:
One apprehension I have about living with other vet students is that you have the same schedule. which means the house will be empty or you'll all be there at once. And I feel it would be hard to escape any drama from school to home and vice versa, even if you aren't involved.

I'm up in the air at this point as to where I live and if I'll share that with another person (if I get in!) My only 100% true fact is that it MUST be walking distance to campus. And that's my personal take. The end.
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Anyone taking my car ever without permission would have faced charges for auto theft. And I am not even slightly joking. And anyone having intercourse with an SO when I am in the room will need to deal with me using the video to fund my tuition.

As for drama, I wouldn't have a housemate from my class. Currently, I have transient renters who have rotations here. Works great; I learn alot, & make connections, & their time here is limited.
 
Whyevernot55 said:
I think you and I could trade some AWESOME roomie stories - I spent a summer as an intern in Lexington living with 3 sorority girls who didn't have jobs. Like the time one of their friends tried to sit down and pee in a box on my floor at 6am.
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Whaaaat? Was this due to some heavy alcohol consumption or just because she was too lazy to walk down the hall? That's pretty gross.

I used to have a roommate who was a sleepwalker/talker. She would wake me up in the middle of the night and say weird things like, "Do you know where my tennis shoes with the zippers are?" Then, she would go back to bed. :shrug:
 
When I was living in the dorms at college, I had a few lovely roommates. First, I lived with 3 other girls in a lounge because they ran out of rooms. Two of the girls had boyfriends and would have them come sleep over. I would have to put in ear plugs because of the making-out in surround sound. One of those girls would also talk to her boyfriend on the phone at 3am when everyone else was asleep. She woud just lay in bed and talk at a normal volume. All three of us just laid there staring at the ceiling for the hour she would be on the phone. Not to mention the time I had to call the cops because her ex was at my door trying to find her. The next roommate's boyfriend was in my room more than my roommate was. It was obnoxious because he wouldn't speak to me but would just be sitting in my room when I came back from class. He spent the night every night. I fixed it after about a month and then lived pretty much by myself, it was great.

I did have a couple of awesome roommates as well though, so not all of them are bad. I just don't want to risk it again.
 
david594 said:
There definitely is. And its on the order of $300-500 a month depending on where you are living and what type of place you want to live in. The $100 a month cable/internet package is a whole lot cheaper when its split 4 ways.

It makes a HUGE difference when your figuring out your budget. Thats a lot less you could be taking out in loans.
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I agree 100% with david594. Rent and utilities will be your biggest expenses besides tuition. Living alone is just like flushing a LOT of money down the toilet every month. Say you spend an extra $300-500/month on rent and utilities in order to live on your own -- that's $14,000-24,000 more in loans by the end of vet school.

Even if you share a house, you will not share a bedroom, so you'll have your own private space either way. Plus, you're more likely to have amenities that come with living in a bigger place, such as a washer/dryer and yard.

I currently share a 3BR/1BA house with 3 other people, 1 dog and 1 cat. It may be a little chaotic sometimes, but generally we enjoy each other's company. My monthly share of rent+utilities runs NZ$465 (US$325). If I lived alone, it would probably cost me NZ$1050/month (US$735).

(I wish I could say my situation is extreme, but it is really common here to have 5-6 students to a house -- and all these houses have 1 bathroom, that's what kills me. The NZ student allowance is $150/week, so many students try to keep their expenses at or below that, whatever it takes.)
 
Crazy Hippos said:
Whaaaat? Was this due to some heavy alcohol consumption or just because she was too lazy to walk down the hall? That's pretty gross.

I used to have a roommate who was a sleepwalker/talker. She would wake me up in the middle of the night and say weird things like, "Do you know where my tennis shoes with the zippers are?" Then, she would go back to bed. :shrug:
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I can only assume she was still hung over. She was sleeping on the couch in our living room and my door is the closest one!
Then there was the time I found one roommate passed on her floor in her underwear, her boyfriend passed out in the OTHER girl's bed (fully clothed, including shoes), and the other girl sleeping upstairs with our 3rd roomie. And everyone's alarm clocks were going off.


Also, yes, I have 4 cats and that affects my decision! My 9mo old is deaf, and he is the loudest effing creature I have ever met in my entire life. I don't think anyone but me and my boyfriend would put up with living with him. I also had problems in the past with cats escaping due to careless roommates, and it drives me bat**** crazy.
 
I can say that after being able to live with my husband to going to Iraq and having to live in a 10'x25' metal building in Iraq with another female, I will definately be living alone. Unfortunately, my husband will not be able to make the move with me, so he is not an option for a "roommate". It will just be me and the dogs!
 
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I would pay almost any price to keep my sanity... I lived alone during my sophomore year and it was pretty awesome. At the time I had a SO and I was spending most of my free time with him, so when things started going not so well it did get lonely because I had been neglecting my relationships with my friends. It was totally dumb and I have definitely learned a lot from that experience. With that said, I would still prefer living alone hands down. I have lived with roommates before and since then and I hate it. I can admit that I am quite stubborn... I like things to be quiet when I want them to be quiet, I want to be alone when I feel like being alone, I want to decorate how I want to decorate, I want to only clean my own messes and not be someone's live-in maid, I want to decide what's on the TV and when to turn it off, I want to be able to walk around naked if the mood strikes... 😛 As for now, my current roommates are my parents and I can do almost none of the above things but it's a pretty sweet deal to be as spoiled as I am. I get laundry done for me, I don't have to worry about bills and my animals are here! 😀

Whyevernot55 said:
My 9mo old is deaf, and he is the loudest effing creature I have ever met in my entire life. I don't think anyone but me and my boyfriend would put up with living with him. I also had problems in the past with cats escaping due to careless roommates, and it drives me bat**** crazy.
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I have a deaf kitty! He's super loud but we're used to it now (he's almost 10!). It is a huge worry of mine to have careless roommates who would let a cat escape, especially a deaf cat since I can't imagine it would make it long out on its own. 🙁
 
I live alone right now in a 3 bedroom/2 bathroom duplex, and nothing in this world brings me more bliss. It hasn't turned me into a hermit, as being away from people is how I decompress and is what makes me happy to see my friends again. I actually spend less each month than each of the friends I know who live with roommates because they spend so much time and money trying to get away from their housemates at lunch, at dinner, over the weekends, at night, during the day... While I do pay more in rent and utilities, they throw their money down the drain on eating out and going out as often as possible because they don't have their own sanctuary, even though they do have their own room. It only takes one roommate to disrespect the fact that a closed door means "no company, please" to ruin the feeling that, in a shared house, you do have your own personal space. And this has happened to each one of those aforementioned friends and is one of my worst nightmares, as I am very big on personal space (did living alone in a 3 b/ 2 b duplex give that away? lol).

Anyway, in the end, it's easier to start in a place without a roommate and then add a roommate on at a later date if you either need or want to save more money than it is to move in with roommates and then pay 3x your rent to break your lease because you find that you can't stand it. But that's just my opinion.
 
I room with another SDN member (both first years) and it's worked out pretty well. We purposefully didn't really interact with each other during orientation, so we both got into different social circles, which helped a LOT - we don't see each other that often outside of class (but do get along really well).

Plus it's kinda nice to be able to cross the hall, see their light on at midnight, and ask a last-minute question about a topic you're both studying for. Or when you go through mad bouts of insomnia and stress, hit the 'extreme exhaustion from sleep deprivation' stage, and your alarm clock stops working, they can be very nice and wake you up in time to get to an exam if they notice you're not up and about 😉

Then again, I am quite a social creature and I think living alone would be more of a drain on my emotional state, even though we don't spend all our time together just having someone else in the house is really nice.
 
DVMorBust said:
...I think living alone would be more of a drain on my emotional state...
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It would be the opposite for me--I enjoy interacting with people but when push comes to shove I'm an introvert and I need my own space to decompress. So I live alone, and it's worth the extra utilities/etc.

And, like others have said, living alone doesn't mean isolating yourself socially.
 
Just some food for thought here - this isn't directed at anyone in particular.
I am a pretty extroverted person. I hate being alone and having no-one to talk to as a general rule. I had 2+ roommates throughout college and vet school, and can't imagine living alone. However, now I'm working as a veterinarian I find I get way too much interaction with people. You spend every day talking and talking and talking and explaining and talking some more. At the end of the day, I'm exhausted and don't want to talk to anybody else. I have never been like this before.
My point? For those people who claim to be an introvert...please understand that this profession will involve a ton of interaction and talking. It seems obvious but until you do it, its hard to comprehend.
Like I say, just some food for thought. 🙂
 
I'm usually all for cheap-ing out on things, but this is one of the few things I think is important - being as comfortable as possible wherever you go home at night.

I live a few blocks from Penn, and while there are a lot of huge houses around here, there are plenty of one bedroom apartments too. And while the rental prices shocked me when I got here, you do not have to spend $1500 a month for a one bedroom apartment by any means.

Any future Penn people feel free to PM me as far as good/bad places to live.
 
My first year I had a 3rd year vet student as my roommate and it didn't work out. I don't think I would have minded living with someone, but she turned out to be crazy - like would yell at me through the walls while I was on the phone or would change the lease/roommate agreement without telling me. Also accused me of being antisocial though I would greet her everyday and ask how she was and engage in conversation with her. I think it was the fact that I would go to my own room to study. She told me that I chased her out of her own condo by doing that (still a little confused by that). She also threatened to call the cops on me when she wanted to argue about something and I didn't want anything to do with it. This was after she pounded on my door for the better part of a half hour yelling at me. Not gonna go into the whole thing, but my guess is that she was a lot more of an extrovert than I am. It made my life very difficult when I had to move in to a new apartment right after finals (which meant apartment hunting during finals). And there were several other students in my class who had similar issues with not getting along with their roommates. Just something to keep in mind.

Also, on the rent and utilities, it really depends on where you live. You can pretty much get by these days without cable/satellite (or with a very basic package) by just having internet. And at least in Knoxville, trash and water tend to be included in the apartment rental fees. Also, very reasonable cost of living here. Once I was living alone, my stress levels decreased significantly (and it was reflected in my grades). I was also free to make my own decisions about how I wanted to live. Energy is cheap here, luckily, but its nice to be able to make decisions about what temperature the apartment should be or how often the dishes need to be washed.
 
I've been going back and forth on this issue ever since I got accepted. I've worked as an RA throughout my undergrad so I'm used to living in a residence hall with a ton of other girls, but I do have my own room and haven't had a roommate for years. Now that I'm finally going to be living off campus as a vet student, the idea of having my own space is very appealing as that's something that's definitely lacking in my current set up. Still, I've crunched the numbers and over the four years I think I could conceivably save 10-15K having a roommate. There's a lot I could do with that money once I'm out of school!! Not sure what I'll end up doing, but for now I'm leaning towards having a roommate. I don't think I personally can justify that much extra money in loans.
 
frozen_canadian said:
Just some food for thought here - this isn't directed at anyone in particular.
I am a pretty extroverted person. I hate being alone and having no-one to talk to as a general rule. I had 2+ roommates throughout college and vet school, and can't imagine living alone. However, now I'm working as a veterinarian I find I get way too much interaction with people. You spend every day talking and talking and talking and explaining and talking some more. At the end of the day, I'm exhausted and don't want to talk to anybody else. I have never been like this before.
My point? For those people who claim to be an introvert...please understand that this profession will involve a ton of interaction and talking. It seems obvious but until you do it, its hard to comprehend.
Like I say, just some food for thought. 🙂
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I definitely consider myself an introvert. I can talk, talk, talk all day long, deal with crazy people, deal with strange phone calls, and chit-chatty clients. I go out with my friends, and out to dinner, and have conversations with the guy who makes my coffee at Dunkin Donuts.

But, at the end of the day, when all that is over, that's when I like to have the peace and quiet of my own space to relax.
Wanting to live alone has nothing to do with wanting to avoid people, with being anti-social, or anything like that. For me, being introvert means I need my space to relax and rest, and NOT have to talk to anyone after talking all day, and I can't do that as well with roommates. Personally, I think intro/extrovert has nothing to do with daylight hours--its just a matter of how you wind down at the end of the day!
 
One compromise that might work for some of you would be to find a commuter student (like I will probably end up being, so I clearly have an ulterior motive here 😀 ) who really only wants a room a few nights a week or when weather is bad or there is a test or something. You only have to share one room occasionally but you still get a bit of a break financially. Not as much as if you'd have a full roommate, but maybe not as much hassle either. 🙂

cowgirla said:
I definitely consider myself an introvert. I can talk, talk, talk all day long, deal with crazy people, deal with strange phone calls, and chit-chatty clients. I go out with my friends, and out to dinner, and have conversations with the guy who makes my coffee at Dunkin Donuts.

But, at the end of the day, when all that is over, that's when I like to have the peace and quiet of my own space to relax.
Wanting to live alone has nothing to do with wanting to avoid people, with being anti-social, or anything like that. For me, being introvert means I need my space to relax and rest, and NOT have to talk to anyone after talking all day, and I can't do that as well with roommates. Personally, I think intro/extrovert has nothing to do with daylight hours--its just a matter of how you wind down at the end of the day!
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I'm the same way. Most people don't think of me as an introvert because I seem really outgoing, but I absolutely need to decompress in my own haven at the end of the day.
 
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CSU said:
ckd816 said:
I would pay almost any price to keep my sanity...

ditto
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Agreed. I had a horrible, HORRIBLE experience in college (I almost dropped out because of it), and really don't ever want another roommate again. I'll accept a couple of furry critters and my boyfriend, but that's about it. I'm a really nice person and easy to get along with, but at the end of a long day..I need my space and my things exactly how I left it/them.
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Allthingsequine said:
Still, I've crunched the numbers and over the four years I think I could conceivably save 10-15K having a roommate. There's a lot I could do with that money once I'm out of school!! Not sure what I'll end up doing, but for now I'm leaning towards having a roommate. I don't think I personally can justify that much extra money in loans.
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Have you considered getting a trailer? Many, many people do that here. There are some super cheap ones ($3500) nice ones ($45,000+) and everything in between. Most parks allow dogs. Just something to think about. It's worked out well for me and helped cut costs.
 
Crazy Hippos said:
I now live with my boyfriend now so I think it will be lonely living alone again. I'm planning to find a house with some other vet students. That way, we won't really get in each other's way.
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I also currently live with my bf and 2 of our good friends... I've had roommates since entering college and while all of them haven't been great, I can't imagine coming home to an empty house...
With that being said, I think I'm leaning towards living alone... but I still have no idea yet...
 
As a person (undergrad) that is in a not-so-nice roommate situation (1yr lease on a house), I am currently in the process of looking for a new place to live. Most leases here are may to may leases and my lease is up in July, so I'll be paying double rent for several months. On one hand, most places the college students rent are secured by mid March, but the few places on craigslist want you to move in within 2 weeks. Very frustrating.

The cost of living alone vs. living with 1+ people are pretty different. Around here a 1 bedroom runs about $700, but a 2 bedroom runs about $850. Big difference between splitting costs and not. Unfortunately, I just started at this University this past semester, so I haven't really met anyone, and I have a dog and a cat, so that makes things trickier. (And everyone that's wanting a pet-friendly roommate already has pets, and I've determined that more than 3 animals in one places is too much to handle). So I think the biggest thing is to determine financially which is most suitable. Next, it's up to your needs and personality.

I've had multiple bad experiences with roommates (one was an anti-social girl that never responded when I said hello or asked how things were going... and she talked to her rice-cooker. Another was a 'best-friend' that went ballistic and convinced every person I knew that I was guilty of some crime that I had evidence against and she had no evidence for. That situation was particularly bad and I ended up leaving the school all together. Now I'm in an awesome situation - married couple that aren't students and argue daily, they'll probably be divorced within the next 9 months as they threaten each other all the time, they have a cat and 2 dogs which makes it a total of 5 animals. They don't take care of their animals, the wife is the laziest person I've ever met and extremely rude, they're very untidy, don't pay bills on time... the list goes on and on. Thanks to them, I have $5 for food for the rest of this month because I had to pay all the bills in full because they had lied and told me they paid it in full last month and had truly only paid the bare minimum.)
Anyways, I will be looking for a roommate, but I'm trying to be especially picky this time and find someone who is responsible, doesn't pile the dishes in the sink and all over the counters, doesn't leave their dirty undies and clothes EVERYWHERE, and can watch TV without making the entire neighborhood hear it, lol. If I could, I'd rent a place by myself, but I get my rent from funds that are for school and I need to be frugal now so I can have less debt later.

If you are going to get a roommate, make sure to make a list of what you want/don't want in a roommate and make sure they're okay with establishing a list of chores/bills/responsibilities (so you don't end up financially and physically caring for 5 animals when you only have 2, lol)
 
SaintSamson said:
Thanks to them, I have $5 for food for the rest of this month because I had to pay all the bills in full because they had lied and told me they paid it in full last month and had truly only paid the bare minimum.)
Click to expand...

Ouch, that sucks. I had one good idea that worked pretty well regarding utilities. When we moved in I told everyone I would take care of all the bills, but they all had to give me a $100 deposit each off the bat, and would each have to pay their share at the end of the month.

So as the bills came in I wasn't out of pocket any money for the utilities and I could be sure they were being paid in full and on time. When we all move out, and the final bills are paid, they will all get their deposits back.
 
SaintSamson, I am soooo sorry! You live far away from me, and I don't even know you, but I want to swoop you up out of your crappy roommate situation. I hope you find the best roomie ever, you totally deserve it!
 
Thanks david and GSDgirl 🙂
I'm feeling better now that I know I will be leaving the situation soon, that alone lifted a lot of stress.
Now all I have to do is find suitable housing or a roommate that has normal behavior, haha
In the mean time, my dog, school, agility, horseback riding, and looking for internships are keeping me busy 🙂
 
Allthingsequine said:
I've been going back and forth on this issue ever since I got accepted. I've worked as an RA throughout my undergrad so I'm used to living in a residence hall with a ton of other girls, but I do have my own room and haven't had a roommate for years. Now that I'm finally going to be living off campus as a vet student, the idea of having my own space is very appealing as that's something that's definitely lacking in my current set up. Still, I've crunched the numbers and over the four years I think I could conceivably save 10-15K having a roommate. There's a lot I could do with that money once I'm out of school!! Not sure what I'll end up doing, but for now I'm leaning towards having a roommate. I don't think I personally can justify that much extra money in loans.
Click to expand...

Also, realize there is a HUGE difference between a roommate and a housemate. There is the potential to have seperate bedrooms/bathrooms/livng spaces. here there are even apartments set up with 4 large bedroms with 4 private bathroom, 1living room, 1 kithen. vet students seem happy with that arrangement.
 
The last two years, I had to deal with roomates who didn't make school their number one priority (throwing parties when they knew I had to get up at 8am to work/volunteer, being loud ALL the time, ect) and the roomates I had who made school their number one priority wouldn't stick up for themselves and tell the others to shut up. It got to the point where I almost punched out one of my roomies for screaming at me when I asked her if she could turn her music down so I could have a nap. I packed up my stuff and called my friend to come get me 😛

I figure that if you get roomates who are vet students, like you, you won't have to deal with much of that crap. You might have to deal with roomates not pulling their weight with chores/buying groceries/not cleaning up after themselves/ect. That may not bother some people but it bothers me.
 
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