Home Away from Home: The Off campus Living Experience

Living off-campus as a student is a blend of independence, excitement and responsibility. It serves as the first real taste of adulthood where you step outside the controlled environment of campus life and begin to navigate a world that is a little less sheltered. While on-campus living offers you convenience, affordability and a sense of community, off-campus living provides you with the flexibility to make your house feel like a home away from home. 

In this blog post, we’ll explore the off-campus world to help you understand the living experience, whether you are a student considering your options or a parent looking for insight.

Freedom to Personalize Your Space

One of the beautiful things about living off-campus is that you have the freedom to create a space that feels like yours. You no longer have to share tiny rooms with dilapidated furniture or shared toilets and bathrooms with thirty other students. Now you can choose your furniture, arrange your kitchen and decorate your bedroom. Your off-campus apartment can become a reflection of your style and preferences. 

Independence

The greatest advantage that an off-campus apartment provides is independence. Unlike hostel life, where there are numerous restrictive rules, staying off-campus means you get to set your own rules. You have the freedom to curate your schedule, cook your meals, entertain friends freely, take a walk around without being restricted by curfews, or campus policies and set your own rules. 

This independence and freedom helps your personal growth and allows you to develop a sense of responsibility that will help you in other areas of your life. Without the constant buzz of campus life, you learn to be comfortable in your own company and discover routines and hobbies that will bring you peace. You’ll also realize that living alone or with a roommate does not mean loneliness but learning to enjoy your own space and company.

Real-world Experience

Living off-campus comes with a set of responsibilities that require you to learn to manage your finances.

Responsibilities like rent, utilities (electricity and water), and groceries serve as a wakeup call which prepares you for life after graduation. It serves as an opportunity to learn essential life skills like budgeting, bill payments and shopping. The value of money is also learnt as you are forced to prioritize your spending on rent, food and other important expenses. Expenses will test you but only God can test you, right?

Off-campus experience also teaches time management as you balance household chores with academic obligations. All of a sudden, you’re juggling cooking, cleaning, laundry and making sure you have enough food available for the week all these while trying to finish an assignment, or a project and preparing for a test. You have our permission to panic!

It is a lot to handle, but with time, you can begin to find a rhythm that works for you. 

Building a Community Outside Campus

Living off-campus does not mean you have to miss out on student life, you get to build your community outside the university bubble. You can do this by befriending neighbours who have aligned principles with you, joining a local gym, joining a local religious center or attending meaningful events in your area. This way, you start to integrate into the broader community and create a new network of support. 

According to unverified research, relationships formed off-campus feel deeper and more meaningful due to the fact that they are not formed because of the shared experience of being students.

Cons of Living Off-campus

There have been subtle cons of living off-campus all over this post, but we are just going to spell it out in case you did not catch them. 

In Nigerian federal universities, the cost of living off campus is way higher than the cost of living on campus so you just want to be sure that you do the necessary research to know which one is higher. And we know you love your comfort and space, but your space of living cannot be high while the cost of living is choking you. But if you can afford it then by all means.

Off-campus areas are also likely to have higher crime rates and less security than on-campus, so you have to always be on your ten toes. In addition to this, off-campus residents are responsible for maintenance and repairs which can be time-consuming and costly.

Transportation is also a very big con when you decide to live off campus as there is no access to campus transportation and you will need to rely on personal vehicle or public transportation.

All in all, to have the best off-campus experience, you must carefully select a safe and convenient location, considering factors like proximity to campus, public transportation and local amenities. You should also create a budget and prioritize expenses to ensure affordability and choose your roommates wisely. With these, you can create a home away from home that supports your academic success, personal growth and independence.