For some students, living in a house or apartment may not be just a dream, but will soon be a reality. Beginning next fall, underclassmen will have the choice to live on or off campus, in a house or apartment of their choice.

For some, this is ideal, giving them more space and flexibility.

Quinnipiac has never done this before and staff members from Residential Life are excited to be able to offer something new to students. Stacey Miller, director of Housing in Residential Life, supports this idea.

“This is a good opportunity for juniors to live in their own dwelling and still be connected to campus housing,” she said. “The off-campus houses are a unique program that the University offers. Many of the students that live out there really enjoy their experience.”

These new plans for housing are an option, so students who wish to live on campus will be able to. The off-campus housing will work the same way the lottery system for picking housing works, and students will hear more when housing papers come out.

Some of the advantages to living off campus include having a full kitchen, at least one full, private bathroom, and many places have up to three bedrooms. There are four and seven person houses that are available through the University.

Depending on how many people one lives with, they may have a single bedroom. All houses are furnished with beds, desks, dining room tables and chairs.

Michelle Streckenbach, a sophomore biomedical science major, had good things to say about this new idea.

Last year, she was upset with how the housing process took place. Her group ended up having to split up and she was placed in a random room this fall with girls she had never met.

“They are taking a step in the right direction by trying to solve this problem,” she said. “It’s good that they are trying to fix the issues they had last year.”

Quinnipiac does not offer seniors off campus housing, but offers a website that lists non-University housing options. Many houses on the website are within a mile of campus, making it an easier commute. The price of houses varies and the cost depends on where students choose to live. Cost of off-campus housing is not determined at all by the University, but by where they are living.

“There are benefits to living off-campus, depending on what kind of a place you are looking for and the situation,” Samantha Smith, a political science major and a resident of The Complex said. “But, I feel like living off-campus would not be very much different to living in The Complex or The Hill.”