One American university rite of passage is moving off campus, whether that is into an apartment or a house, and often involves living with roommates and/or close friends. It is common for students to move off campus starting their second year, taking another step closer to adulthood.
Searching for an apartment is a seemingly simple task, yet full of challenges for an 18 year old. There are many factors to consider besides monthly rent including location, safety, and amenities. Young people have the additional challenge of needing to sign leases that contain a lot of legal terms that are confusing even for native speakers of English. For international students, the challenges may be even greater as they tend to lack financial credit and social security numbers, which may require them to put additional money down as a deposit. Securing shelter, once a basic need that students may have not given much thought to, may now become a task filled with uncertainty. With understanding of these challenges, UPP advisors created a fun and educational experience where students had the opportunity to tour three off-campus apartment complexes for the 2022-2023 school year.
Students considered apartment complexes that had bus stops or shuttle buses convenient to campus, resident parking, or were within walking distance of the university.
Apartments were also selected for the amenities that would be appealing such as swimming pools or basketball courts, but also had costs of living that were within reason, appropriate for a typical college student’s budget. Students paid close attention to the swimming pools, lounges, and game rooms. Game rooms with ping pong tables and pool tables were especially popular among the students, and they definitely had the opportunity to give them a try!
As for the apartments themselves, single units, fully-furnished units, and units with individual bathrooms greatly appealed to our students. Many students expressed the preference of having their own space.
You could hear students talking excitedly to each other about what they liked about the apartments as we looked at different model units as well as which ones they might want to live in. Each student asked the apartment tour guides questions to learn more about what their rent money would and would not cover such as utilities, internet, cable TV, and more. Many students were surprised that some apartments did not automatically include utilities and other fees into their rental price and mentioned that this seemed unique to the US housing market when compared to China.
Over the course of visiting various apartment complexes, the students learned more about themselves and what was important to them. They learned to distinguish between what they simply preferred and what was a “must-have.” They also learned the importance of asking specific questions to ensure that they understood what they would be getting for their rent money. As students continue through their educational journey in the US, they will develop and learn additional skills that will help them succeed and become more comfortable living in a new environment. Looking for housing is only one of those many skills, but it is a major step towards adulthood as well.
