Community Standards
Good Ideas
Please contribute to the quality of life in your community.
- Complete the Shared Space agreement with your roommate, so you come to clear understandings about the best way to share your space.
- Hallways, bathrooms and lounges are quiet areas after 10 p.m. and before 8 a.m.
- Keep entrances clean. Use outside receptacles to dispose of cigarette butts.
- Don't prop outside doors open for strangers to get in.
- Always lock your door when you leave your room.
- When conflicts arise, try to resolve them by talking with people, not about them.
Policies
For security, legal and social reasons, there are time-proven community standards for you and your guests (for whom you are responsible). Violations of these standards can result in disciplinary action and forfeiture of your housing assignment.
- Don't drink or possess alcoholic beverages if you're underage.
- Don't drink alcoholic beverages in any public area on campus.
- Don't smoke on campus.
- Room visitation of the opposite sex is allowed, but cohabitation is not.
- All visitors must be escorted in the houses during posted times and after 9 p.m. (when outside doors are locked).
House Agreement
At the beginning of the semester you and your neighbors will work together to agree on community standards, in addition to the university policies listed here. Be sure to get involved in these conversations to assure that you have some say in the climate of your house.
Shared Space Agreement
Before you arrive, you and your roommate will need to talk over who is bringing what, so you can reduce the number of space-taking things (such as TVs, carpet, fans) you can share. Their phone number will be in your assignment letter. After you get to UNI, you will also need to talk together about the similarities and differences in your preferences for sharing your space together. This includes things like study habits, frequency of friends in the room and room cleanliness.
Because sorting out preferences between roommates is so important, your RA will arrange with both of you a time to share what you have worked out as your agreement for living together. That agreement - "Shared Space" - will be in writing. Each of you and the RA will keep a copy, in case it's necessary to refer back to in the months ahead. The process of identifying and agreeing on ways to live together will be the most important part of your roommate agreement.
Homesickness
Three keys to coping with homesickness are understanding, involvement and patience. First, understand that change is almost always difficult and that you are going through a huge change. Second, get involved. Engagement in the social and academic parts of your life is essential to making the adjustment. You have a lot to offer, but you need to expose yourself to different arenas in which you can make contributions. Third, be patient with yourself, people here, people at home and this new place. Pay attention to these three things and you'll eventually have two places - here and home - where you feel like you belong.
Also, remember that you can talk about how things are going - confidentially - with your RA. Sometimes, it just helps to have someone else to listen and provide some advice.
Room Changes
The most frequent reason for room change requests are initial feelings of incompatibility with a roommate. These usually disappear when at least one roommate makes efforts to communicate and negotiate such things as when guests can be in the room, cleanliness, bed times and sharing/borrowing possessions. Take the initiative to talk about these things with your roommate, early on. Almost all roommate relationships can be successful, but only with genuine effort. If you'd like help with this, ask your RA for ideas. But, most of all, be the roommate who tries to communicate caringly and honestly, as early in the relationship as possible. Remember, your roommate is probably new to having a roommate, too. So, be patient with both of you.
You may request a room change through your RA or Residence Life Coordinator, once you have arrived. Changes depend on availability of rooms. Most will not happen until after the first two weeks of classes.