Needless to say, living in an eight-person house is chaotic. Here’s my experience of doing so at university.
My Experience
Student living is an experience of its own. You likely won’t ever live in a situation quite like it. If you’re a student, you’ll know what I mean.
Your housemates inevitably form a huge part of your student experience. Luckily, I get on swimmingly with my housemates, and always have since my first year. Much to my surprise, other university students don’t always have such close bonds with their housemates from their first year when they lived in uni halls.
That’s not to say we never get on each other’s nerves. Of course we do. But that’s natural and will happen in all friendships.
Living in an eight-person household brings with it new experiences that living in smaller groups may not. I’ll begin with the positives.
The Pros
1. Constant Company
By living with so many people, it’s nearly impossible to feel lonely. This is an aspect I’ve especially loved, given that being away from home can often be lonely. Whenever I fancy a chat there’s someone around, if I want company for my weekly shop someone will join; there’s always someone there.
2. A Friend For Each Occassion
In such a large friendship group there is bound to be a diversity of interests, likes and dislikes. This has worked perfectly for me. As someone with a range of interests I find that I always have someone that I could have join me for a range of things.
For example, I have housemates who would happily join me for a Hip-Hop/R&B club event and others who would enjoy a board game café date. Two very different activities but because I live with so many people there is always someone to go with.
3. Perfect Number For Game Nights
Drinking games (and regular games too!) have never been more fun. Gone are the days of not being able to play certain games because there aren’t enough people to play them.
My housemates and I love to play Truth Bombs. Truth Bombs is a party game created by the iconic British duo Dan and Phil. The aim of the game is to be as brutal and honest about your friends as possible. Truthfully, it is one of the most entertaining games I’ve played. It causes just enough drama to add a bit of fun but not enough to cause an argument.
The Cons
1. Chaos
Its a given that living in an eight-person household will be chaotic. There is rarely a silent moment, which is sometimes fun and other times it is simply annoying. I come from a blended family of six, so silence and peace do not exist. In some ways I’m used to it, and it doesn’t bother me so much.
2. Endless Washing Up
Imagine eight plates, eight pots and eight sets of cutlery EVERY DAY… MULTIPLE TIMES A DAY. Its an eye-sore to say the least.
3. Clashing Personalities
As with any big group settings, personalities may clash. When this happens it can result in some awkwardness but thankfully this passes quickly in my house.
The Verdict
I have to be careful with my verdict as my housemates may read this article and have some grievances to raise with me. I don’t want any drama.
All jokes aside, I would say living in an eight-person student house is great! The pros listed massively outweigh the cons and, although we may wind each other up at times, deep down we love one another.