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The Minnesota Daily

Serving the UMN community since 1900

The Minnesota Daily

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The Minnesota Daily

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Students vacate dorms for freedom, privacy, more space

Many students also said they feel the cost of living in residence halls is too high.

Although many students said they understand living on campus is a great way to connect to the University, some grow tired of living in residence halls and move out to acquire freedom.

Baillie Miller, a sophomore transfer student from California State University, Long Beach, said she lived in residence halls for the experience of being on campus.

“Living in the dorms was a good experience. It’s a good way to meet new people and get involved in activities when you first enter college,” she said.

Miller said she moved out of residence halls because she wanted more freedom and privacy, and she needed a bigger space to live.

“I wanted to be able to close my room door and not be bothered by anyone,” she said.

The cafeteria at her residence hall also presented Miller a problem, because its hours didn’t work with her schedule, she said.

“Having the ability to cook whenever I wanted freed up more of my time,” Miller said.

Mannix Clark, University of Minnesota Housing and Residential Life associate department director, said convenience is a big factor for students.

“The University offers traditional housing for students, and the standard living arrangements in residence halls are two bedrooms with a public bathroom,” he said.

Clark said the amenities off-campus housing offers to students make the complexes marketable.

“After one or two years, students leave, because they want more space, they want to cook their own food, they want to live with friends or they want apartment-style housing,” he said.

Some first-year students living in Comstock Hall said that next year, they intend to live in Bierman Place, an off-campus apartment complex in the Marcy-Holmes neighborhood.

They said they enjoy living in the residence hall because they are able to meet new people, and the diversity of the students living there helps them grow as people.

One of the students, Yezi Xue, said she chose to live in Comstock Hall because of the global studies living and learning community.

“I wanted to be able to talk with people who had different perspectives about the world,” she said.

Pui Choi said living in a residence hall is convenient because she can wake up and get something to eat without cooking.

But despite the convenience Comstock Hall offers, they said, they were sold on the idea of moving out next year to have more space and privacy.

Hajime Miyauchi said there are many activities going on that he finds fun, but they can sometimes be distracting. He also said he intended to move out because it was less expensive.

“I won’t have to pay for a meal plan that I don’t use all the time,” he said.

Solomon Atta, a sophomore living in Centennial Hall, said he doesn’t intend on leaving the residence hall, but he does feel the cost of living is a little too expensive.

Atta agreed with the residence halls being a convenience but said meeting new people is not a concern of his.

“Meeting people is not really an issue, because you could stay in your room,” he said. “I have friends that commute who still meet a lot of people.”

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