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Come this fall, will you be a dorm devotee, or will you be keeping your distance by living off-campus? Everybody's different when it comes to housing preferences, and for all the people who can't seem to pry themselves away from the on-campus food court or dorm lounge, there are just as many who value the choice to keep campus shenanigans at arm's length.

On-Campus Convenience
"It's nice to be closer to the campus and to be more involved," says Kelly Pearson, a senior journalism major at the University of Minnesota (St. Paul, MN), "I don't have to pay for parking or commute every day."

Rhiannon Screeder, a sophomore communication disorders major at the college of Saint Rose (Albany, NY), agrees. "It's easier for me to live on campus because I don't have a car," she says.

Indeed, there are a lot of benefits to living on campus aside from the transportation issues, says Bonnie Solt-Prunty, director of residential life and judicial affairs at Ithaca College (Ithaca, NY). At Ithaca, Solt-Prunty points out the benefits of "close proximity to classes, 24-hour staffing and emergency maintenance response, housekeeping, and 24-hour patrolling by the Office of Public Safety."

Sometimes, the college lifestyle you want to lead will dictate your best bet for residency. "It would be very hard to drive back and forth all the time [after practice]," explains student-athlete Emily Albright, a sophomore natural resources major at Paul Smith's College (Paul Smith's, NY).

It also depends on your priorities -- do you need to get to the campus weight room every day, or utilize the tutoring center? "Living on campus [affords] you the ability to be closer to school while having your friends and more facilities accessible," says Justin Miller, a sophomore international business major at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT, Rochester, NY).

Simply stated, adds Jody Marie Woodman, a senior news and editorial journalism major at the University of Colorado (Boulder, CO): "It's worth it to be able to walk to class."

Friends... and Rules
If socializing is your style and mingling your M.O., you'll thrive while living on campus. "You're always a stone's throw away from your friends," says Ryan Miller, a recent international business graduate of Ithaca College.

Emily looks at living on campus as a bonding experience. "Everything you need is here. It's easier to become more social [since] you're closer to everyone," she says. Or, as senior philosophy and history of science major Josh Goldman at the University of Wisconsin (Madison, WI) put it, "It's a good time."

Of course, Campus life is synonymous for roommate life, so you must also consider the privacy issues (or lack thereof) in the dorm. Your sleeping habits may be subject to the whim of the stranger with whom you share a room, which doesn't always make for a good study routine or regular sleep patterns.

You're also subject to the rules and regulations of the university: No parties, no unregistered guests, no candles, no hot plates, and the constant watchful eye of the R.A. The school tells you where you can park, when you can eat, and once one person gets a cold, it's all over for the building.

Free as a Bird
(Or at least free enough to own one!) That brings us to off- 

campus living

  -- a ton of freedom, but more responsibility. Justin sees it as a doable trade-off. "You definitely have a lot more responsibilities, but you also have the chance to grow more as a person off campus."

To many students, unsupervised living means the freedom to choose where you live, how much you spend, and when you move in and out of your apartment. You can also decide who you live with and maintain more privacy, something not to be overlooked when you're trying to sleep or study and your roommate is playing music or talking on AIM.

That was a big selling point for Ryan, who lived on campus for two years and off campus for two. "I wanted to get away from some of the college's regulations and live more independently," he says.

In the case of Victor Kuzmovich, a senior Double major in business management and legal studies at the University of Miami (Miami, Florida), he craved that independence, but didn't necessarily want to be alone. The first thing he did was get a dog, which was prohibited in the dorms.

Plenty of Price Tags
Pet or no pet, you're in control of much more as an off-campus resident. Then again, Ryan points out that the spending and expenses aspect can be perceived as both a freedom and a responsibility. You and your roommates must decide how you will divide expenses such as rent, cable, Internet, a shared phone, or shared food. You may also have to pay for gas for your car to get to and from school. Ryan's rent didn't include water, utilities, cable, phone, or Internet; all of it had to be worked out between him and his five housemates.

Get Control of Your Cash
"For me, living off campus was actually cheaper than living on campus," says Ryan. That helped another Ryan -- Ryan Sarsany, a senior computer engineering major at the University of Texas (Austin, TX) -- make his on- or off-decision. "It was about $100 to $200 more expensive for me to live on campus," he says.

The bottom line also rang true for Justin. "I pay about $300 per month living off campus, while living in the dorms cost me about $400 per month," he says.

Living off campus doesn't always guarantee cheaper expenses, especially when it comes to your stomach. "[When] you're not on a meal plan, the perception is you'll save money," says Craig Neal, director of RIT's residential food service. It's not always so. "You may spend more because of your freedom and not realize it."

Whatever type of digs you decide upon, answering the on-or off-campus question is one only you can resolve. Sometimes it takes experience with both spectrums and, like these students explained, finding the home sweet home that's sweetest for you.

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