The College Dorm Survival Guide: How to Survive and Thrive in Your New Home Away from Home

by Julia DeVillers

The Ultimate Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Dorm

Dorm life offers you a great chance to meet new people and try new things. But leaving the comforts of home for the first time to enter the roommate-having, small-room-sharing, possibly-coed-bathroom-using world of the dorms can be overwhelming and intimidating.

The College Dorm Survival Guide offers expert advice and the inside scoop

• Choosing the right residence hall for you

• Getting along with your roommate (and handling conflict)

• Bathroom, laundry, and dining hall survival

• Dealing with stress, depression, and safety issues

From avoiding the dreaded Freshman 15 to decorating your space, this informative and funny guide gives experts' advice on everything you need to know to enjoy dorm living to the fullest.

Genres: Nonfiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published May 23, 2006

Reviews

[Rebecca Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The College Dorm Survival Guide by Julia Devillers is an informative book about dorm life. It contains answers to many common questions about dorm life and helpful advice about how to deal with problems. The College Dorm Survival Guide gives decorating advice and how to deal with conflict. There is several real life examples scattered throughout the book that will help ease worries many college freshmen have. I liked that this book included how to have fun in the dorms, how to stay safe in the dorms, how to deal with roommates, and how to become a part of your new community.
I received College Dorm Survival Guide as a graduation gift and was reluctant to read it but I am glad I did as it prepares you for college and dorm life. I would recommend The College Dorm Survival Guide to student planning to attend college and live in the dorms.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

breezy advice, replete with checklists, sidebars and quotes, regarding seemingly every possible issue that might arise living in a dorm. Published in 2006, and the age shows in some cases (e.g., "other online services that campus residents are using include the facebook.com, a website that features photos and short bios of students on some campuses used for networking and making friends" p. 53).

Very earnest, and i'm not sure how well some of this would go down with one's colleagues (do actual students make "roommate contracts" or is that more something that Student Life staff members just recommend? Does anybody react to hearing something interesting about a fellow dorm member by "stopping gossip when it begins by saying something gentle but firm, like, 'eh let's just let him tell us what happened when he's ready'" (p. 182).

but all told, solid advice on what to bring, how to manage the lack of structure and its potential consequences for eating and sleeping habits, whether to date people on same floor, and lots more.

[Kathrynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought this was an excellent, short book about college dorm life! Granted, a lot of common sense to me, but I was able to pull a few useful ideas from the chapters. I think, first time college dorm residents would benefit from spending a little time reading this easy to read book.

[Rhea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly thorought. What job! Wish this book had been around when I was a freshman.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Skimmed through it. Good book for someone who hadn't done any research about their university's housing policies or for someone who is assigned a random roommate.