While completing your housing application, you’ll be asked a series of questions relating to living with a roommate. Your responses are used to help identify potential well-matched roommates. It’s very important to be honest when answering the questions…and be sure you as the student are responding, not your parent!
If you are an incoming freshman who has never had a roommate (at least one not related to you), then you may not have context for some of the questions. Please use the information and tips below to help you think more about how to most accurately respond to each question. Also keep in mind that your thoughts and/or habits may change once you arrive and adapt to the college setting and schedule, so the guide below can help you consider this while responding.
Please note Northern Arizona University is a tobacco- and smoke-free campus. Read the full policy.
While smoking is prohibited on campus, some students may be allergic or sensitive to smoke that other students may carry on their clothes after smoking off campus. While most people automatically think of cigarettes, please also consider other means of smoking such as hookahs, cigars, vaping, electronic cigarettes, etc., as you answer this question about how often you smoke:
This question asks you to rate how important keeping your room neat and clean is to you:
This question asks when you tend to go to sleep:
Since you may currently be in high school, you may have a much more structured sleep pattern and regular schedule now due to school starting at the same time each day. As an incoming college freshman, your sleep schedule will likely shift depending on your class schedule. You may want to think about what time you currently tend to go to sleep on the weekends, or when you do not have to wake up before 8 am. While you may go to sleep at different times, answer this question based on when you typically go to bed.
This question asks how you typically spend your free time:
All people will spend their free time in a variety of ways, sometimes alone and sometimes with others. However, for this question, think about how you mostly prefer to spend that time. Is it curled up reading a good book or taking a quiet walk on your own? Is it spent with your best friend getting coffee or seeing a movie? Is it hanging out with a large group of friends or getting to know a new group of people? How do you like to “re-energize” after a long day? With some “me time” or connecting with others?
How often do you typically study?
Studying can include homework, reading, preparing for quizzes or tests, writing papers, etc. Note that this may change as you transition from high school to college. Many of our students who are used to getting high grades without much effort typically find that they have to spend more time studying and doing homework for college-level courses.
This question refers to how loud the background noise can be in your room when you sleep:
Some people can only sleep when it is very quiet, while others prefer to have a radio or fan while they sleep. Keep in mind that when living in a living community, there are hundreds of other students living around you, so you’ll likely experience and get used to the ambient noise in the hallway or from the room above. For this question, think about your immediate room. Are you a light sleeper or a heavy sleeper? Think about noise, light, guests, and other possible distractions during sleep. What do you like the background noise level to be?
This question asks about the importance of your ability to study quietly in your room:
In this question, “quiet study” refers to times when you will need more focused and intense focus on your studies, such as preparing for an exam or writing an extensive paper. This question does not refer to daily homework or group projects.
This question asks about the importance of your ability to use your room for hanging out with friends. Do you like to have friends visit you? Do you prefer to visit other people in their rooms and have your room for your own time? How often do you like to socialize with friends? While there are many options to hang out with others such as the living community floor lounges, lobbies, game rooms, laundry rooms, kitchens, or outside or at the dining hall, some students prefer to hang out together in their living space. Please review the Standards of Residence for our full policy on guests and visitation.
This question asks about the importance of having your roommate become a close friend. It is important to think about your expectations so you’re not disappointed if you want to be best friends but your roommate just wants to have a respectful living environment without hanging out together. While some roommates become lifelong friends and like to hang out together, others can be excellent roommates while not becoming close friends. Either way, or somewhere in between, communication is key in all situations!
Your personal bio is an opportunity to share information about yourself and what you’re looking for in your roommate experience. Below are a few suggestions for what you may want to include.
The personal bio is optional. You can leave it blank or you can enter 3–5 sentences that can be viewed by others as they browse potential roommates. Your bio can also be viewed when you are matched with a roommate.
Example: Hi! I’m Lou and I’m from Phoenix, AZ. I’m undecided on my major but possibly going into nursing. I chose NAU because I want to live in beautiful Flagstaff and be close-ish to family. My friends often say I’m quiet at first and great at getting to know others. I’m pretty studious, but in my free time, I enjoy reading fiction, watching TV series, or listening to new music. I want to be good friends with my roommate and be able to talk about any potential differences we have regarding room expectations.