Living off Campus and whether it is right for you
University is a major life transition, and it is prefaced with many questions. One of the big decisions you need to make is where you will live during your university career. The default options are on campus accommodation however this option in limited given how quickly rooms run out additionally there are many advantages to living off campus. Whether living in a student commune, flat or in a family home there are many options available.
Off Campus Independence
Living by yourself gives you autonomy and freedom. You’ll have control over your living space, schedule and how you prioritise your responsibilities. This helps you develop critical life skills, like budgeting, cooking, cleaning and studying and how to manage your time to be able to complete all these tasks.
Admittedly this can be a big undertaking amidst an equally as big transition but the skills you will build during this time are lifelong. These are skills that you will use for the rest of your life and if you don’t learn them now, you will be forced to learn them sooner or later anyways.
Space and Privacy
Most university accommodation consists of sharing a room in some capacity if you are not sharing a room with one or several people then you will likely still be sharing a bathroom and/or kitchen. Many off campus student accommodation options allow the choice of having space to yourself.
At KCI you can either pick a roommate that you know you will get along with and it’ll be the two of you and a shared living room, kitchen and bathroom or you can opt to stay in a bachelor unit. This would become you own space that you can decorate how you like and keep to yourself. All of it is yours. You don’t have to share a single thing.
Lower cost
Depending on where you choose to live, living off campus can work out to be cheaper. At KCI our units are priced lower than the on-campus accommodation. Atonally, given that we are located on the IIE MSA doorstep, there is no need to drive and so you won’t be spending any money on fuel or transport costs.
Additionally, we also take bursary students which means the financial aid received can stretch a little further than it might have if you were staying at a more expensive area. That means NSFAS and other independent bursary schemes as well. If you are staying in a share house, you can choose your roommates and split the rent to make it more affordable.
On campus student accommodation usually come with rules surrounding curfew and mandatory quiet hours. At KCI and at The Village as a whole, we also have some rules that you would need to follow but they aren’t as strict as what you might find at a university campus res. For example, we do not have mandatory quiet hours but there is a restriction on how much noise is allowed. There is also no curfew, so you are free to come and go whenever you want.
Real world experience when off campus
We touched on this topic when we talked about independence. However, there is so much more to it. While you may not be paying your rent you will need to use your allowance to buy groceries, pay for transport, and pay for your utilities. This will teach you the importance of budgeting which is a very important life skill to have.
In learning to budget you’ll also learn the value of sacrifice and delayed gratification. It may be easier to order food every day, but it will very quickly become very expensive. You may find that you need to sacrifice ordering out in favour of meal prepping and cooking and then you can reward yourself at the end of the week or after a tough test or exam with a meal out.
When you live by yourself, you’ll find that you need to find a way to solve problems when dealing with your landlord or agent or if you have an issue in your room/apartment that you need to try and solve. These are essential skills in the world of adults. You’ll find that although it may be tough at the time you will leave your off-campus student accommodation more prepared for independent adult life than your counter parts.
Location flexibility
Living off-campus means you get to choose where you live and ensure that it is suited to you. It is all a matter of what you find more important. You can choose to live close to amenities like the gym and a shopping centre for easy access to groceries.
If you’re studying medicine or something similar you can choose to live close to your teaching hospital over being close to campus. If you know that you have a heavy reliance on public transport you can choose to live in an area that as bus stops or taxi ranks in close enough proximity. It is all up to what you want out of the place you are going to live and what you find most important.
Read More: Affordable Accommodation in Ruimsig
Be careful & Cautious when off campus
Naturally, living off campus will also come with its challenges. It’s important that in your search for off-campus living you make sure that the place you are going to stay is first and foremost safe. If you don’t have a car then you need to think about accessibility to public transport and if you do have a car you need to think about what traffic looks like when you need to go to class and how much fuel is going cost.
There is also the real possibility of isolation so make sure that you make friends with neighbours, try to live in place with other students or join a social club on campus. It is important to build and keep relationships. Being alone all the time is not good for anybody.
Final thoughts
Living off campus is a big decision and there is a lot to consider when making your choice. However, for the right person, off-campus student accommodation could be the exact right choice. It can work out to be cheaper, more freeing and better for your personal growth.
Living alone requires discipline, responsibility, and some street smarts. You’d develop these skills eventually because as you transition into adulthood, moving out and living independently becomes necessary. Consider the factors before deciding if living off-campus is the right choice for you. Living off-campus requires discipline, responsibility, and some street smarts.
You’d develop these skills eventually because as you transition into adulthood, moving out and living independently becomes necessary. Consider the factors before deciding if living off-campus is the right choice for you.
All we are offering at KCI or at any other off campus student accommodation, is the opportunity to learn these skills in a somewhat controlled environment so you can go into the world of work already prepared for what it might look like. Contact us today and organise viewing
