Nervous about living with a total stranger? If so, you're not alone. We interviewed students at Simpson University in Redding, California, about their experiences and thoughts on building a good relationship with your roommate.

My roommate would sometimes eat my snack food without asking. That bothered me, especially since I use my own money to pay for snacks. After this happened a few times, we decided to set some boundaries on what food we would share with each other. That worked out really well. Through this experience, I discovered that it's really important to talk things through with your roommate. If you approach him in the right way, he'll probably be willing to work things out with you. Mine was. By the end of the year, we were sharing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and chips with each other and other guys whenever we got the late-night munchies.
David Hubbard, sophomore

When I came to college, I was really worried that I wouldn't have anything in common with my roommate and that our personalities would be too different. But my roommate and I got to know each other and discovered that we enjoyed intramural soccer and the same books and music. That experience reminded me that I can get comfortable in new situations by just being myself and finding common interests with others.
Isaac Stahly, junior

My roommate had a morning class and would move around the room getting ready when I didn't have to be awake yet. Then when it was time for him to go to bed at night, I was awake and making noise. We talked about what was bothering us and even scheduled some times when each of us would get to have the room to ourselves. Being a roommate is like being in a partnership. You need to consider your roommate's needs and their space. But you need to take care of yourself, too.
Kevin Hood, senior

Along with finding a roommate who would be serious about her studies, I also wanted a roommate who cared about trying to build a good friendship. But I was worried that we wouldn't be close because I am not a super social person. I like to have my own space and not have people in our room all the time. My roommate was willing to make these sacrifices, but it was when I got sick for a little while that I realized how much she did care about me. She would check in on me during the day and see if I needed anything. I realized that my worrying wasn't that big a deal. My roommate and God took care of me.
Meridith Johnson, junior

My roommate started getting calls early in the morning and would talk in bed while I was trying to sleep. Since I'm a shy person, I was worried about confronting her about it. Even though it was hard, I finally did talk to her. To my surprise and relief, she agreed to have her early morning calls out in the lobby. I learned that it's really important to talk to people about things that are bothering you.
Rachel Wilson, sophomore

Most colleges have resident students fill out personality and preference applications. When you're filling these out, take them seriously and think about what your preferences are. That way, you have a good chance of being matched with a roommate you'll be able to live well with. Although I still ended up with a few occasional issues to work out with my roommate, I think filling those forms out completely and honestly helped me find someone who was easy to live with because we had several similarities.
Andrew Irwin, sophomore

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