October 4, 2017, by Lucy
Living in a Student House
When you reach second year, it is normal to move out of halls and into a student house. At Nottingham, most people tend to occupy the student area of Lenton, although Beeston is becoming an increasingly popular student area. Despite having only lived in my student house for a few weeks, the differences between halls are blatantly apparent and my university experience this year is completely opposite to this time last year so I may as well divulge this information further.
The Social Side
Obviously, you aren’t going to be living in a house with hundreds of other students, meaning that house life is inevitably less social in terms of numbers. However, as years of education and rambling teachers have taught you, quantity doesn’t necessarily mean quantity. Rather than being surrounded by numbers of people you a) either don’t know or b) you know only as acquaintances, being in a house means that you’ve more than likely chosen to be with your housemates. No longer do you have to leave passive aggressive notes around the kitchen sink or make awkward small talk with a vaguely familiar face in the laundrette, for you can wander around your house in your dressing gown and a face lathered in sudocreme because your friends are supposed to see you at your worst, aren’t they?!
The Atmosphere
If you hadn’t noticed, houses tend to contain more than one room. Crazy, I know, but modern architecture is a wonderful thing. Compared to halls, being in a house is like running through a meadow full of wild flowers with the wind blowing through your hair. It is utter freedom. If, like me, your room in halls sometimes felt like a prison cell (something which the lack of light and the bars on the windows didn’t help), then boy will you be over the moon when you move into a house. Even if you want to feel free without going outside the opportunity for adventure is vast: do I stay in my room? Do I venture to the kitchen? Do I lounge in the living room? The options are (nearly) endless, be free my little student, be free.
The Independence
Now, a downside of moving into a house is that you will probably be in charge of paying for things such as the internet and electricity independent of your rent. However, if the thought of being too adulty makes you age 50 years automatically, then some landlords do offer packages where bills are included in the rent. Nonetheless, it is still important to keep a check on how much you are using to make sure your expenditure is actually covered by what you are paying. Besides from payment, being in a house grants you with the independence of being any other homeowner. Indeed, no matter how much cotton wool you try to cover smother yourself with, crime is a real thing. This means that you have to take extra precaution when it comes to locking doors and putting valuables away because, unlike halls, residential areas don’t have in house security or key carded entry systems.
The Conclusion
So far, living in a house triumphs over being in halls. Although this may be due to the fact that I am no longer a fresher, being in a house has a homelier feel (duh, Lucy, you idiot). If you are a more social person, then maybe halls are the place for you, but if you crave comfort and independence then go for a house ftw.
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