There are few things more quintessential to the college experience than living in dorms.
Students living away from home for the first time often cannot afford the cost of an apartment (even with roommates) and parents are understandably worried about the safety of kids that are living on their own for the first time, in a strange place, no less.
Campus housing takes care of both issues by providing for low-cost lodgings and a supervised living environment (generally monitored by a staff of older students, or resident advisors - RAs - as well as facilities managers).
Another very important function is that they provide students with the opportunity to meet their peers in a social setting rather than just in class.
Living in your parent's house throughout childhood can be very comfortable, and many kids don't realize how easy they have it. Going straight from high school into the workforce and moving into your own place can come as a huge reality shock, and very overwhelming. Living in college dorms is the perfect way to buffer the shock and ease your way into independence. Sharing small living quarters with strangers can help kids learn humility and become more understanding of others, necessary traits for anyone who wants to be a functioning member of society. You will be forced to do things for yourself that if you're like many kids, your parents took care of for you your whole life, like cleaning parts of the house you didn't know exist. Dorming gives you the chance to take on more responsibilities without being totally alone- and it's very fun to have so many friends in one building, or on one floor.
There's no denying the benefits of dorm living to the maturing college student.
Sadly, community college students have to miss out on this experience until transferring from community college to university.
Or do they?
Are There Community Colleges With On Campus Housing?
Traditionally, community colleges are set up to cater to students within the community, meaning that the majority of attendees already have permanent living situations near campus.
For this reason, most of these institutions find it unnecessary to offer on-campus housing.
However, with enrollment rates on the rise at community colleges and students coming from other cities, states, and even countries to take classes, some with the hopes of eventually transferring from community college to Ivy League, many schools have seen the need for community college on campus housing go up.
And more and more community colleges are starting to buy nearby structures to turn into dorms or are even building their own campus facilities. But how can you find out which schools provide such living opportunities?
Where To Find Community Colleges With Housing
Aside from calling up all the campuses you're interested in to ask if they provide for living situations, you might be surprised to learn that you can get a quick listing of community colleges with housing by using Wikipedia.
If you search for "list of community colleges with campus housing" on Wikipedia you will find a frequently updated list that will tell you the names of such schools, the city and state they're located in, and even additional information like links to the schools' websites or other notes (if the dorms are located off campus, for example, or if there are certain requirements associated with student housing).
Of course, you can't trust everything you read on Wikipedia, so the trick is to use the information you find there as a starting point. Expand your research by searching several other sources, and see what consistent information you find.f
The Number of Community Colleges With On Campus Housing
That said, the number of institutions offering this service is still relatively small (less than a hundred out of the thousands of community colleges that crisscross our nation).
So you can't rely on the campus of your choice providing dorms.
But whether you choose a community college because it's close to family or you think it will help you get into desired environmental masters programs at a nearby universities, it couldn't hurt to ask if on-campus living is a possibility.
You just might get lucky.
And the more students show interest in such accommodations, the more schools are likely to start including them.
