Amherst CollegeOff-Campus Housing Summary

Written by Lem Atanga McCormick

Lem Atanga McCormick

Hometown

Chicago, IL

Major

Pre-Med (Biology and French)

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Amherst students love their dorms. Hardly anyone lives off campus, and there isn’t even an organized bulletin board at the College of available apartments for rent. Although living in your own apartment offers a sense of independence to most college students, Amherst kids seem content with letting the College take care of them, even as they slowly turn into mature men and women. Dorm residents have respect for their neighbors and common dorm property, so hardly any students get the “God, I gotta get out of this hell-hole” feeling that is present at so many other universities. Furthermore, the College, with its dorms and quads, is a magnet for partiers from the five schools in the area. Living off campus would just entail lots of shuffling to and from the dorms on weekends.

Those who do opt to live off campus will find a respectable variety of houses and apartments at reasonable prices. Students do have to seek special permission from the College to live off campus, and freshmen are required to live on campus. College administrators feel that living off campus will damage the liberal arts educational process, an important part of which is the social life. Most students conclude by themselves that it is simply not worth it to miss out on the social events here. This perhaps sums up Amherst housing in a nutshell. It’s always nice to see most of the people you go to school with, not only in class, but also out and about on Friday nights.