Universities offer tests to find perfect roommate
Making the college transition easier
Allison Rivers
Issue date: 11/3/08 Section: News
Many colleges and universities with on-campus residence take careful measures to ensure that students moving into dorms for the first time get along well with their new roommate.
Some schools use a detailed questionnaire to match students together, asking such things as their pastimes, major and sleeping habits.
Personality questionnaires can help universities get a detailed analysis of their incoming students and make the transition to college life an easy and exciting one.
Many universities like the University of Richmond have used detailed questionnaires to match their students since the 1970s.
Michael Gaynor, a senior at the university, was matched with his long-time roommate using this method as an incoming freshman.
He and his roommate discovered they shared several of the same interests, including their love for Saturday Night Live and many of the same CDs.
"That was a great match," Gaynor said. "Who ever did it that year did a really good job."
Students at the University of Houston are given the option to inc-lude a specific person for their roommate if they will be living in the same facilities.
These students are usually matched up first, followed by those without a specific request.
Lupe Trevino, the housing manager of the university's main campus, said there are about 2,300 students that take advantage of student housing. Students are matched up according to their major and classification.
"At this time we do not use a personality questionnaire," Trevino said. "We have less than one percent of residents who request roommate changes."
Abbey White, who applied for on-campus housing, her freshman year at UH, was part of that one percent. White's interests include indie artists and wine tasting, and she thinks that a detailed questionnaire would have made her experience living in a dorm much more enjoyable.
"It was horrible," White recalled. "My roommate hated me; we couldn't have been less compatible. I walked in the room with my huge sunglasses and roller suitcase and was greeted by a mocking smirk and less-than-friendly eye rolling. I knew something was wrong when I walked in and she was listening to South Park Mexican."
Although White's experience was a rare one, many universities are considering revising their roommate matching process.
Gaynor said having a great experience with his roommate was one of the reasons he chose to work for the office of undergraduate housing over the summer at his school.
"When you're going to college, your first time really away from home, the last thing you want is a roommate who's your complete polar opposite," Gaynor said. "A student's room should be their little haven after a long day of class."
Some schools use a detailed questionnaire to match students together, asking such things as their pastimes, major and sleeping habits.
Personality questionnaires can help universities get a detailed analysis of their incoming students and make the transition to college life an easy and exciting one.
Many universities like the University of Richmond have used detailed questionnaires to match their students since the 1970s.
Michael Gaynor, a senior at the university, was matched with his long-time roommate using this method as an incoming freshman.
He and his roommate discovered they shared several of the same interests, including their love for Saturday Night Live and many of the same CDs.
"That was a great match," Gaynor said. "Who ever did it that year did a really good job."
Students at the University of Houston are given the option to inc-lude a specific person for their roommate if they will be living in the same facilities.
These students are usually matched up first, followed by those without a specific request.
Lupe Trevino, the housing manager of the university's main campus, said there are about 2,300 students that take advantage of student housing. Students are matched up according to their major and classification.
"At this time we do not use a personality questionnaire," Trevino said. "We have less than one percent of residents who request roommate changes."
Abbey White, who applied for on-campus housing, her freshman year at UH, was part of that one percent. White's interests include indie artists and wine tasting, and she thinks that a detailed questionnaire would have made her experience living in a dorm much more enjoyable.
"It was horrible," White recalled. "My roommate hated me; we couldn't have been less compatible. I walked in the room with my huge sunglasses and roller suitcase and was greeted by a mocking smirk and less-than-friendly eye rolling. I knew something was wrong when I walked in and she was listening to South Park Mexican."
Although White's experience was a rare one, many universities are considering revising their roommate matching process.
Gaynor said having a great experience with his roommate was one of the reasons he chose to work for the office of undergraduate housing over the summer at his school.
"When you're going to college, your first time really away from home, the last thing you want is a roommate who's your complete polar opposite," Gaynor said. "A student's room should be their little haven after a long day of class."
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