Ok, so a lot of accepted students of the class of 2017 have been asking on Facebook about ROOMMATES. It’s kind of a scary topic, especially when you are not used to living with anyone, let alone sharing a room and all of your space with them. I grew up always having my own room and my family would always space out, so the idea of having to share a tight space with others was not very appealing. HOWEVER, when I arrived at Hope, I was in for a huge surprise.

Meet the two most important and amazing people in my life.

Shannon (Left) and Morgan (Right) were my freshman roommates. We had a triple room, that fit three people, in Dykstra Hall.

I only knew a few people going into Hope and no girls my age, so I decided I would go in blind, not knowing who I would live with. I couldn’t suggest it more. The Hope housing staff do an AMAZING job of matching roommates, and if there are problems, they accommodate you very quickly.

I filled out a short questionnaire in late May about what my study habits were, what my ideas on alcohol and smoking were, my music preferences, how organized I am, and when I like to go to bed. Two months later, I got a letter from Hope. Nervously, I opened it. The header: 2011-2012 School Year Housing Arrangements. I expected seeing one name, but when I saw TWO, I really freaked out.

I HAVE NEVER LIVED WITH ANYONE AT ALL. I am NOT good at sharing. I DONT like to share food and MOST OF ALL: I NEED MY SPACE. I gulped and tried to grasp the concept of sharing a room with two other people for about a week, until I got a friend request on Facebook. Hope provides the home address and phone number of your prospective roommate, but my roomies quickly found me online. 

All summer, we coordinated how we would fill our room. Who would bring the mirror? Should we have a fridge? A TV? Do we want lighting? We made a Google Doc and exchanged what supplies we already had and decided who could bring what.

We talked about personalities. What major did we anticipate studying? Were there any clubs we wanted to join? What was going on in our lives? We figured we probably should get along at least a little and know a bit about each other if we were about to embark on a year together. I do know quite a few people that never talked to their roommate until they got to Hope, and they did just fine too. We just felt like we had a little step up. 

When we arrived at Hope on move-in day, I will admit, it was a little awkward. We had all our families, all our stuff, and we were hot, tired, and stressed out. But after about a week, we were like three peas in a pod. We ate together, we worked out together, and at the end of the day we came home to our beautiful room to discuss our collegiate activities. 

I wouldn’t say we are necessarily all alike, but we really get along. We are all relatively low maintenance (in most things), and have learned to communicate with each other about problems and issues we have. We don’t always get along. But 99.89% of the time, we are happily together.

Shannon is a sing-songy, energetic (most of the time), hilarious, intelligent, beautiful woman who never fails to keep us laughing. She always has something insightful to add to the conversation and she brightens the room when she arrives. She is a nursing major and with her amazing people skills, I know she’s going to be an incredible nurse.

Morgan is quiet at first, but after you get her talking, she can go for hours! She is very fashion-forward, bright, chipper, beautiful, and adds her own flavor of humor that I can’t really explain. She keeps you on your toes because she is kind of unpredictable, but in a hilarious way. As a secondary English education major, she is going to rock the schoolhouse, as she is great teaching and VERY smart in many subjects.

This year, we are in a suite together. Shannon and I are still roommates, and a bathroom connects our room to Morgan and Betsy’s. We’re still VERY close, and I couldn’t imagine my life at Hope without them.

Please don’t stress about your roommate. Hope will really figure it out for you. And I really recommend going in blind to meet new people. You will always have your old friends that come along with you to Hope. College is the time for new beginnings, new friendships, new relationships, new experiences.

If you have any questions about the roommate process, shoot me an email at amanda.porter@hope.edu or tweet me @hopeamanda15

xoxox

A