O is for On or Off campus Living

Students wait to board a Mass Transit District bus off campus. Whether student live on- or off-campus, MTD buses are a public transportation that bring students around campus and the Champaign-Urbana area.
Ned Mulka The Daily Illini

When people are looking for somewhere to live, one of the top things on their minds is location. Location, location, location. By now, I’ve heard almost all of the arguments on whether to live on or off campus. While there are benefits and setbacks to each, I always decided to live on campus, and here are the three main reasons why:

To get more sleeping time

Every semester, I’ve always managed to get an early class. While I don’t mind getting up at 7 a.m. to catch a bus to bring me into campus, I would prefer to sleep until 7:40 a.m. before heading to my 8 a.m. class. It’s only 40 more minutes of sleeping, but to me, it’s worth it.

To stop home more (or have the opportunity to do so)

I spend a lot of my time on campus, whether it is at work, classes or Green Street restaurants. I like the luxury of being able to run home really quickly, in case I forget something, which tends to happen more than I would prefer, or in case I want to grab lunch between classes. That’s not to say that people who live off campus can’t stop back home during the day, but I like not having to wait for a bus to take me back.

To avoid the weather

Champaign-Urbana gets every type of weather, from cold wind that somehow manages to blow through all your layers to pouring rain that blows in every direction so an umbrella is pointless. Although I enjoy the warm sunny days we get at the beginning and end of the year, some of weather conditions are just not fun to walk in.

Living on campus allows me to be close enough to my classes or work that I don’t have to spend more than 10 minutes trudging through the weather beaten streets. We do have a great bus system that gives people off campus a chance to stay out of the weather, but I would prefer to walk 10 minutes than have to wait for a bus.

Marguerite Day is a senior in Media