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"Going off to college comes with a whole lot of life changes (duh). You're in a new place, you're probably surrounded by people you don't know, you have to somehow fit everything you own into an unforeseeably tiny closet, you're curfew-less for the first time in likely ever. It's liberating! It's awesome! It's\u2026totally terrifying.\n\nThose first couple weeks away from home can strike fear into the hearts of the best of us, and if you're going the random roommate route&amp;amp;#8212as the majority of freshman do&amp;amp;#8212you might be even more freaked out as move-in day approaches. And while living with someone you've never laid eyes on (especially after you've spent years sharing a wall with your siblings) is definitely going to feel a little weird at first, we swear it comes with a lot of amazing bonuses. Intrigued? Read on.\n\nIt gives you room to try on a new you.\n\nHeading off to college is a good time to start saying yes to things you might not try otherwise (within reason, anyway&amp;amp;#8212there are some things you definitely should still say no to). And the awesome part about living with someone you don't know from pre-college is that it can be seriously freeing, because you're not tied to being the person your friends-from-forever-ago know you to be. Experiment a little (but be safe about it!).\n\nWho knows? Suddenly you&amp;amp;#8212the girl who only listened to Top 40 radio for her entire life&amp;amp;#8212might find yourself jamming to punk bands and spending your weekends at rock shows. And it's important to discover those things about yourself without feeling self-conscious. Change is great! But it's weird, too, especially for friends who have known you since childhood.\n\n\"But you're a cheerleader! You can't play volleyball!\" \"But you've exclusively worn Chucks for years! You can't wear stilettos!\" When you're living with someone new, no one's going to call you out on trying things that are a little different from the norm.\n\nThere's no pressure to be BFFs.\n\nOne important thing to keep in mind: There's a real chance your new roommate won't become your best friend. Maybe she will, but even if you don't hit it off and spend the first night in the dorms braiding friendship bracelets and marathoning Gossip Girl, that doesn't mean it won't be a great living situation.\n\nSometimes it's actually ideal to live with someone you're more acquaintances with than best buds. When you have a tough day, or you're frantically trying to finish that chem homework and write the linguistics essay, or you want to hang out one-on-one with another friend in your room, it's honestly kind of nice to live with someone you can simply say \"hey\" to as you're passing through.\n\nThis is the year 2014, so you get a sneak peek before move-in day.\n\nThanks to the wonders of the internet, you can learn more about your future roommate online than you probably will the entire first month of living with her, which means you're in good shape to get a gist of what you're in for. Just make sure that you're keeping an open mind: Someone who seems like they aren't your kind of roomie might actually be the best thing that's happened to you since graduation day.\n\nSo go forth! Make friends! Try new things! And have a little fun, will ya?\n\n **\n\nGot roomie advice of your own? Share it below!\n\n**"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.teenvogue.com/story/living-with-a-stranger-in-the-dorms>