Do you plan on living alone in med school, or with roommates?

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

Will you live alone or with roommates?

  • Alone

    Votes: 90 46.4%

  • Roommates

    Votes: 67 34.5%

  • Significant other

    Votes: 37 19.1%
  • Total voters
    194
Lannister

Lannister

Full Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
May 21, 2013
Messages
5,411
Reaction score
7,831
Members don't see this ad.
I've started to think about my housing situation next year, and I really have no idea whether I want to live alone or with roommates. I do think it would be kind of nice to live alone, I wouldn't have to worry about stupid stuff like getting into passive aggressive wars over the thermostat or dirty dishes. But at the same time, it's definitely cheaper to live with roommates, and I'm afraid if I live alone I might get lonely (I have a tendency to isolate myself, something I'm trying to work on).

So I thought I'd see what other future med students are planning on doing next year. Will you probably be living alone, or with roommates?

And if you will live with roommates, how will you find people to live with?
 
I prefer roommates I think (assuming you have separate actual rooms), as it gives you an instant study buddy. There are often google docs prior to the year where everyone figures which roommates to stay with.
 
On the issue of money...I will probably end up going to a school that is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper (like $200k cheaper) than I anticipated. So at this point I've started to think that maybe since I'll be spending less on tuition, I might want to spend a little bit more to live in a nicer apartment (say, $700-$800 a month including utilities). Do you guys think that's a bad idea?
 
I've lived with roomates my entire undergrad like most people. I sort of want to live alone for at least first year, until I get to know classmates and maybe for second year onward I would live with people
But it all depends on the financial situation of school/location
 
Lannister said:
On the issue of money...I will probably end up going to a school that is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper (like $200k cheaper) than I anticipated. So at this point I've started to think that maybe since I'll be spending less on tuition, I might want to spend a little bit more to live in a nicer apartment (say, $700-$800 a month including utilities). Do you guys think that's a bad idea?
Click to expand...

700-800 with utilities does sound reasonable. But it honestly comes down to a personal preference. Some people absolutely must live alone and choose to spend a little extra for that. Other people, on the other hand, don't mind living with roommates and can reap the benefit of possibly cheaper rent. The choice is yours; medschool is hard in itself..make yourself as comfortable as possible. I would personally choose to live alone unless I find someone who I REALLY click with.
 
Lannister said:
On the issue of money...I will probably end up going to a school that is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper (like $200k cheaper) than I anticipated. So at this point I've started to think that maybe since I'll be spending less on tuition, I might want to spend a little bit more to live in a nicer apartment (say, $700-$800 a month including utilities). Do you guys think that's a bad idea?
Click to expand...
Personally, if I were you, I would look for amenities in an apartment that make your life easier... for example, washer/dryer IN UNIT, dish washer, responsive maintenance staff, etc.
It is much easier to start a load of laundry and leave it versus worrying about turd stealing your clothes.
🙂
 
frosted_flake said:
Personally, if I were you, I would look for amenities in an apartment that make your life easier... for example, washer/dryer IN UNIT, dish washer, responsive maintenance staff, etc.
It is much easier to start a load of laundry and leave it versus worrying about turd stealing your clothes.
🙂
Click to expand...

Yeah the places I'm looking at have an in-unit dish washer and washer/dryer (which is good because until a few weeks ago I didn't even know what a laundromat was, I thought it was the same thing as a dry cleaner), a fitness center, cable is included...
My only issue right now is that I am not from this city and have absolutely no idea what the good and bad parts are. I have an aunt and uncle who live there but they are extremely wealthy and consider 99% of America to be "the ghetto" LOL.
 
Lannister said:
Yeah the places I'm looking at have an in-unit dish washer and washer/dryer (which is good because until a few weeks ago I didn't even know what a laundromat was, I thought it was the same thing as a dry cleaner), a fitness center, cable is included...
My only issue right now is that I am not from this city and have absolutely no idea what the good and bad parts are. I have an aunt and uncle who live there but they are extremely wealthy and consider 99% of America to be "the ghetto" LOL.
Click to expand...
Regarding this, your best bet is to get in contact with current students and see where most of them live.

Living with roommates or not comes down to personal preference. There are obviously lots of people doing both, and you have to figure out what is important to you (saving money vs. privacy, peace and quiet vs. isolation, etc.)
 
Lannister said:
Yeah the places I'm looking at have an in-unit dish washer and washer/dryer (which is good because until a few weeks ago I didn't even know what a laundromat was, I thought it was the same thing as a dry cleaner), a fitness center, cable is included...
My only issue right now is that I am not from this city and have absolutely no idea what the good and bad parts are. I have an aunt and uncle who live there but they are extremely wealthy and consider 99% of America to be "the ghetto" LOL.
Click to expand...

Don't you just hate the communities that are not gated. haha
 
I would say by yourself. Granted i live by myself now so of course thats my preference. My gf plans on moving with me when it comes time to move for med school. But if she wasn't then I would live alone
 
Glandzburg said:
Regarding this, your best bet is to get in contact with current students and see where most of them live.

Living with roommates or not comes down to personal preference. There are obviously lots of people doing both, and you have to figure out what is important to you (saving money vs. privacy, peace and quiet vs. isolation, etc.)
Click to expand...

Yeah I'm waiting for people to start posting on the Facebook group so I can find people who live there and can tell me where the safe parts are!

704 said:
Don't you just hate the communities that are not gated. haha
Click to expand...

Hahaha it's so funny talking to them. They're really great people, just very spoiled 😛 When I stayed with them for my interview, we pulled up to their mansion in my aunt's Benz in one of the nicest parts of the city, and my aunt said, "Sorry, we live in the ghetto."
What's funny is, she's my father's sister and they grew up quite poor on the south side of Chicago.
 
Roommates, weekly house cleaner, preferably other med or grad students or CROSSFITTERS.
 
If you can afford it, i.e. you're made of money, then live alone.

If you're screwed, like the rest of us, get like minded roommates and make transparent rules and expectations. Having the best of both worlds, in my experience, is having a roommate who's also a medical student who doesn't go to your program — when you're missing, physically or mentally, from stretches of time they naturally understand.
 
I'll be living with my wife and son.
If I was single and not a parent I'd most likely live on my own at least for the first year.

After that, I might be open to a roommate if I met someone I felt that I wouldn't wanna kill every third day
 
I lived alone during undergrad. It's nice to have a space that is totally yours. It was convenient and easy. I never had any issues about cleaning schedules, unwanted guests, etc. .... while many of my friends did. However it wasn't always nice to come home to an empty apartment. There are pros and cons to every situation.
I personally would like to have my own apartment as a med student but I think it would be nice to live in a building with other students (my apartment building in undergrad was filled with much older people).
 
ruedjgtc said:
If you can afford it, i.e. you're made of money, then live alone.

If you're screwed, like the rest of us, get like minded roommates and make transparent rules and expectations. Having the best of both worlds, in my experience, is having a roommate who's also a medical student who doesn't go to your program — when you're missing, physically or mentally, from stretches of time they naturally understand.
Click to expand...
The bolded statement is a ridiculous assumption. Especially when you don't live in a city like Boston that has an asinine cost of living, and when you pay <$25k/year for tuition. 😉

OP is attending a cheaper school, so more money can be allocated towards housing.
 
Glandzburg said:
The bolded statement is a ridiculous assumption. Especially when you don't live in a city like Boston that has an asinine cost of living, and when you pay <$25k/year for tuition. 😉

OP is attending a cheaper school, so more money can be allocated towards housing.
Click to expand...

Yeah Cincinnati is probably not as expensive as Boston and the like haha. First year tuition will be $24,000, next three years will be $15,000. And I've got ~60k in funds to pay for some of tuition.
 
Hahah the hot tub comment got me thinking about weather, and I got excited thinking that maybe since Cincinnati is like way more south than I've ever lived, it might be warmer there. But nope, it's not.
 
I'm going to live alone for first year and then move in with someone the following year should I change my mind. I lived with many different people during undergrad, it was not a pleasant experience.
 
Most likely I'll live alone...

But I recently had this half baked idea: Get 4-5 classmates together and rent a 5 bedroom house. Where I'm going to school (in all likelihood) it could be done for like $700 a person, which is cheap compared to surrounding apartments

It'd be like some kind of med school frat house!
 
The Knife & Gun Club said:
Most likely I'll live alone...

But I recently had this half baked idea: Get 4-5 classmates together and rent a 5 bedroom house. Where I'm going to school (in all likelihood) it could be done for like $700 a person, which is cheap compared to surrounding apartments

It'd be like some kind of med school frat house!
Click to expand...

Alpha Omega Alpha
 
I've yet to live without a roommate, almost always 1, 2 max. I can easily afford a 1-bedroom place, but I rather save that $.
I think I'm fairly easy going and have a relatively high "mess tolerance". Even then, I can't imagine being in a house with 4-5 other people unless we all get our separate bathrooms and kitchens or something 😕
 
I feel that once you have more than 3 people living together, the passive aggressive drama starts (unless everyone has a high tolerance for annoying habits)
 
BluMist said:
I've yet to live without a roommate, almost always 1, 2 max. I can easily afford a 1-bedroom place, but I rather save that $.
I think I'm fairly easy going and have a relatively high "mess tolerance". Even then, I can't imagine being in a house with 4-5 other people unless we all get our separate bathrooms and kitchens or something 😕
Click to expand...

Lol a house with 4-5 kitchens sounds nice...
 
Glazedonutlove said:
I feel that once you have more than 3 people living together, the passive aggressive drama starts (unless everyone has a high tolerance for annoying habits)
Click to expand...

You know actually, I've found that it's the opposite. The more people I live with, the less passive aggressive drama. Maybe that's just cuz if you live with more people, even if you don't like one of them, you can just hang out with the others.
 
My house in undergrad was a 25 bed/13 bath and had 40 people there. It was awesome, but certainly not easy to get work done...
 
After living in a sorority for all these years I think it would be hard to live alone. I expect living with a roommate will bridge a gap from chaos to living independently. I also think I might be able to find a nicer place at an affordable price with someone else.
 
Glandzburg said:
The bolded statement is a ridiculous assumption. Especially when you don't live in a city like Boston that has an asinine cost of living, and when you pay <$25k/year for tuition. 😉

OP is attending a cheaper school, so more money can be allocated towards housing.
Click to expand...

You can read as [too] far into it as you'd like, there's a reason why there's a word "if".
 
I've lived with some med students before. Most students I know at the University of Rochester just rent out 3-5 bedroom houses nearby the campus and pay like ~$350-600 a month each. It's a pretty good deal to live in a cheap city.

Edit: If you can deal with small cities and snow from Nov-April
 
Probably with my SO. I don't think I'd make a great roommate, I had a single all throughout undergrad except for freshman year, and I've lived w/ my SO for 3 years. Otherwise, alone. Of course, if I were living in a prohibitively expensive place like NYC then I'd concede to having a similar-to-me roommate.
 
XxThaDoggxX said:
I would shoot myself in the face if I lived with a cross-fitter. The last thing I want to hear about at the end of a long day is what WOD you plan on doing

Alone for sure.
Click to expand...
+1 alone is better. We gotta get into med school first though XD
 
Okay, after listening to one suitemate get it on with her boyfriend early today, and now my other suitemate getting it on with her boyfriend at this very moment, I'm starting to see the benefits of living alone.
 
Lannister said:
Okay, after listening to one suitemate get it on with her boyfriend early today, and now my other suitemate getting it on with her boyfriend at this very moment, I'm starting to see the benefits of living alone.
Click to expand...

One of the reasons I am getting my own place...School is stressful, I wanna be able to get it on with who I want, where I want at any time of the day and not see the glaring looks of disapproval from roomies after doing so :laugh:
 
XxThaDoggxX said:
One of the reasons I am getting my own place...School is stressful, I wanna be able to get it on with who I want, where I want at any time of the day :laugh:👍
Click to expand...

Haha I'm more concerned about hearing it, since I'm #foreveralone. Especially since these people are, ah, not exactly the kind of people you want to think about being sexual.
But don't worry, I've found a solution: blasting the most annoying One Direction songs I can find and singing along at the top of my lungs.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

T
  • Question Question
Realistic Med School Timeline with Weak ECs?
Replies
2
Views
555
C17H21NO4
C17H21NO4
P
What to do with interest in rural medicine?
Replies
17
Views
1K
lizard17
lizard17
M
Non-Trad applying to Med School. Help with LOR list
Replies
1
Views
6K
Pile O' Nephritis
Pile O' Nephritis
eyeeye_captain
Medical School Debt Experiment - Living Like a Resident
Replies
1
Views
822
anon2
A
H
do i include excuses in secondaries? or is it best to leave it alone?
Replies
16
Views
1K
pablo213
pablo213
Top