How to Deal with the Roommate You Don't Get Along With

First things first, request a roommate if possible. Find someone on Facebook that is going to Penn State that you have similar interests with. Maybe someone going to WEPO, or someone who enjoys the same sports as you. Just find someone if you can.  

But let’s say you don’t request a roommate. Maybe you’ll get lucky and end up with a roommate who becomes your lifelong friend! Unfortunately, you might end up in the same boat as I did, with a roommate you don’t get along with.

If you do end up in my boat, don’t make the same mistakes I did. First of all, get your roommate’s phone number, whether you like them or not, and make sure you get it on the first day you move in! Take it from me, if you never end up getting your roommate’s number, you might end up in your hallway, in a towel, locked out of your room, chatting with the cleaning lady. By the way, the cleaning ladies do not have a master key, and they will try to make you walk down to the commons in your towel to go get a spare. (Fortunately my roommate showed up, and I did not have to do that.)

Second of all, make an effort. Try to get along at least! If your roommate does something you don’t like, speak up about it! The longer it takes you to start up a conversation with your roommate, the more awkward it gets. Believe me, if you don’t try to talk to each other within the first few weeks of living together, you never will. I’m sure you’ve all seen how small the dorms are in East Halls. Imagine how uncomfortable it is sitting 3 feet away from someone you never talk to for an entire school year!

Living with a roommate you don’t get along with can be unbearable, so make sure you make friends with people on your floor so you have somewhere to get away to when you need it! Three of the girls that lived down the hall from me during my freshman year are now my roomies at my apartment! So, maybe a few good things do come out of having a bad roommate experience freshman year.

If you really can’t deal with your roommate, you might have to put in for a transfer, but that doesn’t always work either. There may be too many freshman to make the transfer happen, or you might end up with somebody worse! Either way, always remember it’s only for a few months and you’ll get through it. Trust me, I did!

Randi Grim is a sophomore in Chemical Engineering, and she is a Rover for WEPO '14!