As a TU student, you are able to enjoy many rights and privileges. The housing department strives to make your time here meaningful and conducive to your academic progress. The following are an overview of your main rights as a member of the on-campus community.
Sharing a room/apartment
Without a doubt, your time at TU will be filled with many new experiences and memories. For most, sharing a room or apartment may be a new experience. Roommate relationships are the foundation for community development. It is not necessary to be best friends with your roommate, but we do expect you to be fair, honest, and considerate of one another. Each person needs to take responsibility for their behavior and share the responsibility for a positive roommate relationship. Developing this relationship is a process, and whether you have known your roommate previously or are just meeting them now, this relationship takes effort.
Set your expectations
As a member of TU’s residential community, you are entitled to the rights and responsibilities and to share your living preferences with your roommate, but in order to do so, you need to know what they are. Think about the questions to the right and write the answers down before talking with your roommate about their expectations.
Get to know your roommate
The easiest way to accomplish this is to ask questions that will help you learn about each other and learn about similarities. The idea is to open the lines of communication which will prevent most roommate conflicts. Both first-time acquaintances and old friends will need to take time and talk about issues that will impact their time together. Be aware of the assumptions and generalizations you make about people.
Changing your housing assignment
As a member of TU’s on-campus residence program, you are in a binding agreement with the University. You are expected to honor your part of the housing agreement throughout the determined length of the agreement. Should you feel that extenuating roommate-conflict circumstances prevent you from properly doing so, please email campusservices@utulsa.edu for additional information.
Roommate agreement
Set a meeting time during the first week of living together to set ground rules. For help with this, see the roommate agreement. Make sure you have enough time to address all of the areas of the agreement. Take turns responding to each item on the agreement before going on to the next one. Negotiate and compromise on each item as necessary. Though the content of your agreement may change throughout the year as you become acclimated to TU life, remember the framework for your discussion. You will be able to address situations when they arise throughout the year. Submit your completed roommate agreement to your RA/Clubhouse/Housing Office by the end of the first week of classes. Speak to your RA/Clubhouse/Housing Office if you have any questions, concerns, or issues that might arise at any point in the process. Should you need a new roommate agreement at any time, see your RA/Clubhouse/Housing Office.
It will be common for some of your preferences to change while living on campus. It is also possible that one or both of the roommates will not live up to the agreement. You may choose to renegotiate your roommate agreement using the same process as your original agreement. In addition, try to avoid blame and accusations when you renegotiate your agreement. If a solution cannot be reached by the roommates, the next step is to ask a staff member for help or mediation. All Residence Life staff have been well-trained to serve as impartial mediators.
Roommate conflict resolution process
Often, when students experience a roommate conflict, it is difficult to approach the roommate with concerns. TU’s residence life staff are trained in conflict resolution and management and are ready to help facilitate the mediation process. Please email residencelife@utulsa.edu for resources and to provide additional information.