Incompatible Roommates Essay

There are currently over 7,000 colleges and universities in the United States (Educational 1). Because young adults will be living there for the next four years, choosing a college or university is one of the most important decisions they must make. Once accepted into the college of their choice, one thing young adults rarely worry about is choosing a roommate. However, it can ruin a lot of young adults’ experiences at a college or university. Having an incompatible roommate can have many negative side effects, such as undue stress, arguments, and conflicts, which cause one or both parties to violate their roommate agreement. Fortunately, there are solutions that can fix many problems that exist between roommates, such as confronting the other person, setting up a meeting with the resident assistant, and revamping the roommate selection process. Across the United States, most colleges and universities …show more content…
Arguments over these things can ruin the relationship between roommates, and disrupt the atmosphere in the suite. Incompatible roommates often violate their roommate agreements. In the beginning of the semester, roommate agreements are signed, in which roommates agree on cleaning arrangements, usage of personal materials, study habits, etc. Many times agreements are signed, but roommates do not follow through with them. They refuse to clean when they need too, use materials without asking, or have guests over every night. One student from Towson was interviewed, and explained “my roommates are dirty, and I am not, so it is hard to live with people who don’t clean up after themselves, especially leaving dirty dishes in the sink and never cleaning them” (Yateem). Incompatible roommates can have a big effect on a young adults during their first year of college because it leads to undue stress, arguments, and violation of the roommate