Campus Connect Engagement Contest Week 4 - My Views And Experience Of Campus Hostels And Lodges Around

Gaining admission into any institution of higher learning is always delightful and sometimes can come with some elements of surprise. I will write about my general experience a first-year student on campus.

• Which did you do when you gained admission on campus, did you reside in the school hostel or not?

When I got admission to the university I was presented with the choice of staying off-campus and of staying in the hostel. I decided to stay in the hostel- not because I enjoyed it but because of the twisted rules that sort to keep newbies in check.
I lived in a hostel that had provision for four students per room with one bathroom and for wardrobes, no kitchen was present, and we weren't getting a steady supply of necessary amenities like water and electricity.

• What is the reason behind your choices ( why and why not did you pick the school hostel)

I decided to live in the hostel-not because I enjoyed it but because it was necessary for the registration process for new students. When a student gets admission, they are required to proceed to pay their acceptance fee and after that pay their school fees. But there is a tricky rule in my school that mandates the students to pay for a hostel. We have a school portal where all school activities are carried out, we pay all our fees. Things have a particular order they follow; this means that the link that leads to a portal for paying school fees can only be opened after the accommodation fee is paid. This means that we are almost forced to do their bidding. Some people can decide not to pay for accommodation but the disadvantage is that they would have to wait for about 4 months after resumption for a bypass portal to be opened for them to continue the registration process. The University system in Nigeria is very stressful and that means that while you are waiting for the bypass portal to be opened, your other colleagues must have completed their registration. The main incentive for accommodation and school fees is that students are assigned their matriculation numbers immediately. While other students are waiting, assignments and tests will be going on and without a matric number, there are high chances of not having any assessment scores in many courses. That is to say that many people do not willingly move into the school hostels.

• What are your experiences in the school hostel and in wherever you decided to stay (positive and otherwise)

The university is a neutral environment where people from all works of life with different traditions and backgrounds converge to exchange ideas. As a freshman living in the hostel, I had both good and bad experiences and learned from them. I lived in a room with 3 other people: two were my level mates and one was a final-year electrical engineering student. As young freshmen, we respected our senior colleagues but a point came when we revolted. The final year student invited his friend into the room at will and they were free to do whatever they pleased. As roommates, we were supposed to share the cleaning chores amongst ourselves but the senior decided to make a schedule for us to follow. We followed the schedule for about a week and decided it was stupid. Although the senior was way older than us, that didn't give him the right to treat us like second-class citizens; after all, it wasn't our fault that he gained admission late. There were also the good times when we played games and cooked together. We met friends in the hostel and some of us are still in touch today. What we gained most from the senior colleague was an academic experience. He gave us words of advice that helped us navigate the harsh university environment.

• Did you enjoy your stay there and why

Although I didn't want to live in the hostel initially, I did it anyway and I do not regret the action. I got to meet new people and exchange ideas with them and that is part of personal development. I built a strong reading habit because most of the people I associated with in the hostel were like that. Seriously, I don't know where I would have been academically today without my hostel experience.

• What do you think needs improvement

Life in hostel can be very frustrating especially when there is no light and water. Sometimes we spent weeks without water and electricity which meant we had to travel long distances just to wash our clothes. There is a local river near the hostel, we normally went there to fetch water for laundry and cooking in times of scarcity.
There were so many solar pannels on the roof but they were not supplying any electricity. We basically had the infrastructure of our dreams but they were just not working.

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of living on-campus

Advantages

• Getting to meet new people
• Being able to attend lectures early without wasting money on transport
• Being free from cult activities
• Being able to save money based on the fact that many amenities are provided by the school
• Not getting influenced by attending unnecessary parties

Disadvantages

• Not being properly exposed to the university environment
• Not knowing the environment outside the school
• Not being very independent and making misguided decisions
• Being extravagant because you haven't understood what life is all about
• Any mistake made while living on campus will affect you throughout your stay in the university

Conclusion

Generally speaking my school life as a first year student was really enjoyable. Although many students would like to live off campus in their first year, I really do not support it. I would like to invite @noskiart and @alphafx to join this contest.