To think the student housing system would be much better if you didn’t have to decide who to live with until the end of the first year

[Ihaveseenitallbefore]

The current system (especially in certain cities such as York, Manchester, Durham) requires 18 year olds living away from home for the first time to decide who they want to live with within only a few weeks/months of knowing them. Oftentimes the early stages of uni are a time of desperation with friendships where people won’t necessarily be being their authentic selves. It seems silly that in some cities students sign up in early November with a deposit and contact and then have to wait the entire rest of the academic year to see a different side/the true colours of their housemates. Obviously the situation is different for second years and/or in the rare situation where DC knew people from before uni to live with. Ainu to think it’s silly how early ‘housing season’ comes and that the system would be far better if it wasn’t until the end of the first year that deposits were put down on houses?

I don't think they do feel obliged to look for houses for their entire hall flatmates!

It’s all wrong. My daughter got into Cambridge and has accommodation for all 3 years and we have to pay for only 30 weeks.
I obviously wanted her to get in but a lot of my reasoning was this security.

Well most cannot get the security so well done your DS for acing it. It pays to be extra smart in more ways than one.

In the meantime, the 1/4 million who don’t get to Oxbridge struggle on. I do know how difficult it is for many. We have to acknowledge wealthy unis have the endowments and substantial
income streams to provide accommodation BUT have continued to limit their intake to remain highly elite. It’s no coincidence numbers remain static so accommodation is available. Unfortunately most students don’t hit the jackpot and never get a chance of cheap halls for three years - however much we implore our dc to get it. To those that have the most brains, even more gets given it seems.

I can't imagine someone being so opposed to the room sharing even applying, true.

But for those who are motivated to apply but have misgivings about sharing, I wonder what they think of it all and how the process of getting used to it plays out. Bearing in mind that bathrooms are usually communal, with curtained shower cubicles - one per floor - and very few dorm rooms have an en suite.

Surely this is way out of date? Maybe 20 years ago, like we had more sharing then too.

Plenty of students in the UK share bathrooms too so I doubt that would be a problem. Very few UK students go to US univerities anyway. Those that do may well have gone to boarding schools so are used to room sharing.

I never got a place in halls and shared with strangers straight away.

Does that mean they have to leave during holiday periods? My Dds love their rented accommodation as they don't have to come home for all of the holidays, they are out at parties for Xmas, new year etc, so come home for a few days, but still have their shared house.

You are not being unreasonable in that the first term is way to early.

I am a student landlord and over the past ten years the date students have been looking or accommodation has moved from late January to November in my city. This is despite the Uni running a campaign for students urging them to wait until the second semester before signing up for a house as there are plenty available.

I think it is a combination of factors driving it though. There is a big discrepancy in the standard of houses available and second year students who may have ended up in a house they aren't happy with are determined to find a better one for their third year, so start looking earlier. This creates a ripple effect and everyone starts looking earlier and earlier.

Some landlords would always jump the gun and start advertising early to get their houses let, which didn't help.

Last year I started getting enquiries in November, I thought this was way too early and also had other obligations to attend to during December, so stuck to my guns and waited until January to start advertising. When previously I would have been swamped with enquiries I got hardly any as most groups had already signed up for a house. When the uni online housing portal opened and I normally would have had 50 phone calls in a day, I had none for three days. All this is a long way of saying, that you can't entirely blame the landlords, it's a two way street.

I would be much happier if letting season happened in the summer term when students are more certain of their plans, even January as it was previously would be better. How to make this happen I don't know as the uni campaigns seem to fall of deaf ears.