The University offers a charcuterie board of housing options for freshmen and transfer students. Residence halls, certified housing, fraternity houses, off-campus living and co-ops are just a sliver of the options available on campus.

Each option comes with its own benefits and compromises. We asked the class of 2026 about the factors behind their housing decisions for the upcoming school year.

Kaitlyn Tuvilleja, freshman in Engineering living at Busey-Evans Hall, decided an apartment would be the best step for next year.

“I think the dorm halls are just kind of bad to live in,” Tuvilleja said. “There’s a lot of people that just won’t respect your boundaries, plus communal showers are kind of gross.”

Tuvilleja also noted that some of the freedoms she’s looking forward to center around having a kitchen.

“I miss cooking a lot,” Tuvilleja said. “I used to cook a lot at home, so just having good food for a good price is something I’m excited about.”

Garan Tantasirikorn, a freshman in Engineering, said he’s concerned about proximity to his classes. Like Tuvilleja, Tantasirikorn is choosing to live in an apartment next year.

“I wanted to be close to Green Street and the Engineering Quad since that’s where I spend all my time anyways,” Tantasirikorn said. “I spend too much time catching buses, and I don’t care for the dining hall food — it didn’t make sense for me to dorm another year.”

However, an apartment isn’t the only option for students that no longer wish to house with the school. 

Alex Engel, freshman in Engineering, joined Delta Kappa Epsilon in August and made the decision to live at the fraternity’s house.

“I had originally thought about getting an apartment with a few other people,” Engel said. “But then they told us there’s a one-year living requirement for the fraternity, so I decided to get that out of the way so later on I have other options.”

Engel added that he looks forward to the community of living in a house with his frat brothers.

“I think having a house is nice because it’s more of a homey feel versus an apartment where you kind of have your bedroom and a living space that you share with three other people, and that’s kind of it,” Engel said. “But the house is like, you have this whole building.”

[email protected]