Getting to Know Your Future Roommate With Social Media
Moving out of the house for the first time can be a daunting task. Questions suddenly pop up everywhere: What do you bring? What is the room going to be like? What exactly is a Twin Extra Long-sized bed sheet? And of course, what is your roommate going to be like? If you are not one of the few lucky people who have the luxury of moving in with someone you know, then chances are you have been paired up with a complete stranger to live with for an entire year. However, thanks to the explosion of social media websites like Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace, many new college students now have the opportunity to "meet" their future roommates before moving in.
Most schools will e-mail students the contact information for their future roommates. This includes the roommate’s full name and address, as well as his or her school or personal e-mail. Students now often log in to their Facebook pages soon after receiving this information and look up the profiles of their future roommates. This is possible because many Facebook users use their full name on the website, unlike sites like Twitter or MySpace on which users make up their own username or handle. Students can almost instantly find their new roommates’ profile page and put a face to the name. You can browse through your roommate’s photographs to get an idea of your roommate’s personality, as well as read all about his or her favorite movies, books, television shows, likes and dislikes. Though you have not technically met your roomie yet, you at least now know more about him or her than you did before.
Social media can also help roommates get a dialogue going before meeting face-to-face. Roommates can discuss move-in times and dates, class schedules, backgrounds, and much more. This dialogue can also make furnishing the dorm easier, as you can discuss who will bring what so that you don’t end up with two ironing boards and two televisions in the already too-cramped space.
However, you should also take what you see on your roommate’s profile page with a proverbial grain of salt. Not everyone’s social media profiles are actually representative of who they are. Some who have massive quantities of party photographs may actually be homebodies, and some who seem distant in their descriptions of themselves may be warm and friendly in person. Social media can help you get to know your roommates before moving in, but you shouldn’t base your entire perception of your future roomies on a few scant words and photographs shoved onto a single Facebook page.
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