It happens every year; as high school seniors send in their college deposits they are inevitably faced with the same antagonizing choice: do you hand pick your future roommate from the random people you find on the class Facebook page, or do you put the fate of your future in the hands of the anonymous university housing.
Regardless of the choice made, the prospect of living with an unknown person is daunting and intimidating. For this reason, many incoming freshmen will jump at the chance to avoid being stuck with that creepy, self-proclaimed ventriloquist, and instead, will choose someone that appears to be normal enough. However tempting this option may be, choosing your roommate is the wrong choice; next fall, a random roommate is the way to go.
Even though being arbitrarily paired with some unknown individual is full of uncertainty, choosing a roommate can lead to many unseen predicaments. You may think you are making the right decision, and that you found the perfect match for the next year. However, first impressions are rarely accurate; especially if they come from a Facebook page. Nonetheless, many incoming freshmen will creep on their college’s Facebook page, find some random person that claims to have interests similar to their own, and will proceed to assume it’s a match made in heaven. But just how accurately can you judge a person based on a few posed profile pictures and a couple recited introductory sentences? The answer to this question is not very well.
“You can’t judge someone just based on Facebook pictures,” said senior Mike Stewart. And Stewart is right, because for all you know, those profile pictures could be photoshopped, distorted, or some kind of joke. Likewise, the introductory paragraph this person left in the Facebook group could be a made up description of the person’s character; like a glorified version of who they really are.
Another risk associated with choosing your own roommate is the forced relationship that might follow. Perhaps you do choose a roommate, someone you found on the group page or met at orientation. During the first week of school you will both be on your best behavior, hopeful that a lasting friendship will stem from the current housing situation. But a few weeks later, you both let your guard down, and the little annoying habits will start to shine through.
Additionally, since you are supposed to be best friends, the little respectful boundaries that would have existed had you gone random are not there, and you may find your roommate imposing on your personal space. This is when it may become apparent that you don’t like your roommate as much as you had planned, and now you’re stuck with them. Subsequently, those little, recurring arguments may begin to create a barrier between you, and the environment of the room will grow increasingly hostile. All of this, just because you judged someone based on a few short introductory posts or edited Facebook pictures.
On the contrary, there are positive aspects of going into a roommate situation blind. For example, the basic quizzes that colleges assign to incoming freshman are often an accurate test of how well people will be able to room together. These quizzes match people based on sleeping patterns, study habits, cleanliness, and whether they smoke or not. A few questions like this are really all colleges need to determine who will work best with who.
Finally, college is supposed to be a new and exciting chapter of life. It is a time to leave old comfort zones and experiment with new and, at times, scary or intimidating things. By choosing a roommate, you eliminate some of the authentic college experience and revert to old comforting practices. As senior Grady Comeau said, “It’s better to go in with an open mind and not judge the person you’re rooming with.” For who knows, maybe you’ll find a new friend in someone you never expected you could get along with.