Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 12, 1999)
Editor in chief: Laura Cadiz Editorial Editors: Bret Jacobson, Laura Lucas Newsroom: (541) 346-5511 Room 300, Erb Memorial Union P.O.Box3159,Eugene,OR 97403 E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu On-line edition: www.dailyemerald.com Living on campus can be beneficial to freshmen who are still familiarizing themselves with the University, but living off campus offers students a better taste of the real world Beata Mosiafavi Having had almost a full term of living in residence halls, freshmen should be starting to get the feel of what dorm life is like. Here’s a time to maybe think about next year’s living op tions, to weigh the pros and cons and to start deciding whether to stay put or to say goodbye to the dorm world for good. It’s the only place where you can wake up five minutes before classes and still make it, traffic is rarely an issue, and dinner is al ways prepared. Sound familiar? Almost every University student has at some point had the some times infamous, sometimes il lustrious dorm experience. Some of us still do. But as much convenience as this life offers, after a couple of years in the dorms, stu dents should step out of the campus bubble and into the real world of living on their own. As sophomore Kevin Stolle de scribes it. living in the residence halls was a good experience be cause of the social aspect that al lowed him to meet people he wouldn’t have otherwise. But now that he lives in an apartment, he said of the dorm experience was “bittersweet to leave, but one year was definitely enough.” Not surprisingly, the largest resi dence hall population is the fresh man class. Approximately 63 per cent of these newcomers choose to start off college in a dorm room, which is a vital part of the college experience. Every freshman bene fits from choosing this route. While not many meet friends in crowded lower division class lec ture halls, dorms make it nearly impossible not to. With neighbors at arm-lengths away —literally — group activities and communal bathrooms, the dorms form their own communities and perfect net works for meeting new people in a close-knit atmospheres must for first-year students. Then there’s the non-frosh cate gory who still live in University Housing. Almost 14 percent of sophomores, 5 percent of juniors and 2 percent of seniors still call the dorms home. Who can blame them? Convenience is a hard thing to giVh up once you’re used to it. “I’m really close to my ar chitecture stu dio where I spend all my time,” said sophomore Anna deAnguera, now in her sec ond year of liv ing in the resi dence halls. “If I was off campus I’d probably have to bike at night. Also I’d never cook if I was on my own.” Living in the dorms definitely has its advantages. So what if Car son’s meals sometimes taste like airplane food? At least someone else has to cook it. And maybe dorm room space seems to be the equivalent of a shoe box, but it’s a small price for being five minutes away from the library, EMU and almost all classrooms. Not to men tion the skipped hassles most oth er living arrangements require such as buying furnishings, mak ing grocery runs, doing dishes and cleaning bathrooms. But such responsibilities should be ducked for only so long because we can’t always count on living conveniently. I hate to say it, but unless we plan on moving into nursing homes straight out of col lege, living on campus isn’t much practice for the world ahead. Those who make the move from dorms to a place of their own off campus, however, often find it’s a more enjoyable way to live. “I like this better,” Stolle said. “I feel like I’m on my own more be cause I have more responsibilities and I’m not so spoon-fed. I miss the convenience, but this is worth it.” Students who are already look ing into next year’s housing op tions should definitely consider all factors involved. It’s especially a huge change going from dorm life convenience to off campus chaos. But many actually find it a better way to live. Just think. No more resident assistants knocking at your door at odd hours of the day. No more praying Carso’n is serving grilled cheese tonight — you can make it yourself. And how great it is to be able to get away from campus as opposed to it being your permanent neigh borhood. Plus you’ll finally get to take advantage of those bus rides student incidental fees pay for. So while underclassmen may find it extremely beneficial and convenient to live on campus, af ter they’ve had the experience they should move off and get a better taste of the real world. Beata Mostafavi is a columnist for the Emerald. Her views do not necessarily represent those of the pa per. She can be reached via e-mail at bmostata@gladstone.uoregon.edu. line. UioisLp y f*oR. Bryan Dixon Emerald Thumbs To a little pill with a lot ot power According to a study, ramipril, a drug marketed for a decade as a mea sure to fight high blood pressure, could help at least 10 million Ameri cans substantially reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and bypass surgery. To police sensitivity Eugene police will not use racial pro filing, according Eugene Police Chief Jim Hill. A pledge signed Tuesday by multi ple officials reas sure local residents that the police will not identify sus pects based solely on their race. Toroofies During the last two weeks there have been three sepa rate reports of sex ual assault. Each case involved Ro hypnol, commonly known as the “date rape drug.” To a portend of evil things to come Dozens of young sters skipped school Wednesday to watch imported kiddie craze “Poke mon: The First Movie.” The Pok6 mon juggernaut is a $6 billion busi ness. CORRECTION The story “Sena tors ordered to re turn some of sum . mer stipends," (ODE Nov. 10) should have read, “After waiting a week, the senate did confirm Daniel Vergaminitothe open ASUO Consti tution Court seat.” The Emerald re grets this error.