Abby Schiela, Author at

Posted on February 12, 2018January 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Law School Applications: Constant Support

As a senior at Grove City College I am preparing to graduate and am applying to law schools. At first this process seemed similar to applying to colleges, but I soon realized that I was wrong – when I was applying to colleges every teacher in my high school knew the process and was able to assist me, but not everyone knows how law school functions or how the application process works.

One day I was talking to one of my entrepreneurship professors about how I felt like I was floating along in this confusing process, and he offered to connect me with his son-in-law, a recent law school graduate and a Grove City College alum. He sent me his son-in-law’s contact information and I set up a time for a phone call. This was an incredibly helpful conversation that gave me direction in the application and decision process – I am still receiving advice from my professor’s son-in-law and am so thankful for this connection.

My professor also suggested I contact one of the professors who teaches law classes at Grove City College, as well as the president of our college, President Paul J. McNulty. I was hesitant to contact both of these men – they did not know me, and certainly they were very busy. I did email both of them, though, and both of them responded with offers to meet with me to help me feel grounded and succeed in this process. The law professor was tremendously helpful in making me feel like I was capable of succeeding in this process and helped me to gain the confidence to continue on with my applications.

Meeting with President McNulty was a great experience. He is a very knowledgeable man and knows a lot about how the field of law works. At first I was intimidated to contact him because of his high position at the College, but then I thought about how many times I had seen him in the dining hall with students and how friendly he was in each of his interactions. I am so glad that I did email him, though, because he scheduled a meeting with me very quickly and offered great advice. Our meeting was informative and comfortable.

Several of my professors and supervisors at Grove City College have graciously written recommendation letters for me, as well, and though I am sure that none of them needed another thing on their to-do lists they all seemed to be excited for me and genuinely happy to support my applications.

These experiences have convinced me that Grove City College is truly a tremendous community and was the best decision I could have made for where to go to college. Each of the people I have spoken to have been very helpful and very willing to assist me – even the president of the college is accessible to students.

Posted on February 10, 2018January 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Community Focus: Sweet Jeanie’s

Grove City College has a special relationship with many of the local businesses, but Sweet Jeanie’s is one of the sweetest. Sweet Jeanie’s is a local ice cream shop that opened in the spring of 2015. It is owned by a local couple and they quickly became very involved with the College. I have personally worked with them twice now, and have heard about several other partnerships.

The first time I worked with Sweet Jeanie’s was in the spring of my sophomore year. For my Sales in the Startup class we were assigned a project in which we had to use our sales skills to raise money for a charity that we had worked with throughout the class. My group approached the owners of Sweet Jeanie’s and asked if they would be willing to work with us so that we could sell cups of ice cream to professors to gift to their classes during the last week of the semester. Sweet Jeanie’s sold us their homemade ice cream at their cost and gave us space to scoop the ice cream into plastic cups which they provided for us. They then stored the ice cream cups for us as we slowly delivered the cups over several days. On the evening that we scooped the ice cream into cups they were very hospitable, despite not making any profit from us, and their employees asked us several times throughout the evening if they could get us anything or could help us in any way.

The second time that I worked with Sweet Jeanie’s was to host a Residence Life event. I am an RA, and as such I have to plan and host several programs throughout the year. I partnered with the owner of Sweet Jeanie’s, Jeanie, and two local Lularoe consultants to discuss women in business. Sweet Jeanie’s provided us with an ice cream bar and again only charged us the cost of the food – they even brewed us an urn off coffee for free! Jeanie spoke at the program about her experience as an entrepreneur and let us use their space free of charge. Again, everyone was incredibly hospitable and offered to help us several times.

Sweet Jeanie’s is a great example of the College’s relationships with local businesses. While the environment at Grove City College is welcoming. loving, and all around Christian, so is the local environment. So often I hear about feuds between college students and local people in areas with other colleges, but this is not the case in Grove City. The College and the local community work together to make Grove City an all around great place to live.

Be sure to stop by and visit Sweet Jeanie’s next time you’re in Grove City!

Posted on February 8, 2018February 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Staying Fit on Campus: Athletic Facilities

A common concern for any college student is how to maintain fitness amidst a busy schedule. I have gone through various fitness phases in my time at Grove City College, and because of this I have made use of almost all of Grove City’s athletic facilities. On your tour you probably heard all of the benefits of our facilities, but are they really all that they are cracked up to be?

The Weight Room/Aerobic Room

This is actually two different rooms, but they are connected to one another and as such go together. The weight room is stocked with free weights, weight lifting platforms, cable machines, and various other free weight machines. The school is constantly updating this room with new tools for students to use – for instance, this year there were two new lifting platforms added to the room.

The aerobic room is filled with treadmills, ellipticals, stationary bicycles, recumbent bicycles, rowing machines, and machine weights. This room is also well supplied and has plenty of room to move around.

Both rooms have mats for stretching and floor exercises as well as various accessories to use in your workouts.

These rooms are both great to stay fit – they are easy to move back and forth between, as there is a door that connects them, and they are open late at night. Everyone is kind in these rooms – I have worked out with people who I had only met in passing before and people who come separately are always willing to spot one another in the weight room. As a woman, I was concerned to enter the weight room at first because it has a reputation as the male gym and the aerobic room has a reputation as the female gym – the testosterzone and the estro-gym. These reputations are absolutely false. I have never felt overwhelmingly outnumbered in the weight room and there are always several males in the aerobic room – I honestly do not know where those reputations came from, because they are not at all true.

The one con to these rooms is that their hours are limited compared to several of the other facilities on campus. They are open early in the morning for various lengths of time depending on the day, and again from 3 p.m. until 11:30 p.m. The late mornings and early afternoons are reserved for class use and faculty use. Typically I am in classes while these rooms are closed, however, so it is not usually an issue.

The Indoor Running Track

This is a gem that I did not discover until the second semester of my junior year (I think I was a bit late on the uptake, though). We have an indoor running track that is above the back half of our IM room (Intramural room, basically a big open gym for basketball, soccer, and other recreational sports). The track is smaller than a typical outdoor track, so each lane is a slightly different distance than the other lanes. Twelve laps around the outside lane is equivalent to one mile, however. The track is open all day.

This is one of my favorite places on campus – it tends to be slightly colder than the rest of the building and is a great place to walk or run. I particularly enjoy going on walks with friends on this track in the winter, when it is too cold to walk outside for recreation.

The only con that I have found with the track is that due to its short size there can be a lot of pressure on your joints if you run many laps in a row in the same direction – I definitely recommend switching directions every couple of laps if you plan on running long distances there.

The Outdoor Track and Turf Field

We have an outdoor track and turf field in our stadium on lower campus. These are great facilities during nicer weather. Students will often use the field to play frisbee or other recreational sports, and the track is a great quality, quarter mile track.

Both of these facilities have been redone in the last two years. They are open from dawn until 11 p.m. in the non-winter months.

Recreation Pool

Our recreation pool is actually the old competition pool, and is a great option for anyone who enjoys swimming. The lane lines are often in the pool, but even when they’re not people are very respectful of one another’s space. Kickboards are also available for student use in the recreation pool area. There are two life guards on duty whenever the pool is open.

This is the most limited of our athletic facilities, but it is open for several hours each day.

Dance Studio and Multi-Purpose Room

These are open rooms on the second floor of the Physical Learning Center (the PLC). They can be reserved for student use, but are often available for use on a walk in basis. They are also used for classes. These are great spaces to exercise in groups and/or to do workout videos.

IM Room

The IM Room is one of the athletic facilities that I have not used much at all, but are a great resource. My brother is a sophomore on campus and often goes to the IM Room to play pickup basketball with his friends. This room has long hours and has basketballs that students can borrow. It is also used for sports practices and IM sports.

As you can see, the athletic facilities at Grove City College are extensive and very easy to use. The surrounding area also has great places to run, and it is easy to do exercise videos on one’s own dorm room. Happy exercising!

Posted on February 3, 2018January 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Why Chapel?

You may know that there is a Chapel attendance requirement for students at Grove City College, but you may not know its purpose.

Full time students at Grove City College are required to attend a minimum of 16 Chapel events per semester. There are many opportunities to attend these events, but the most popular ones are on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9:25-9:50. There are no classes at this time. For more information on the basic requirements or to see the current Chapel schedule take a look at the Grove City College web page about the Chapel Program.

Why this requirement, though? Chapel is one of the things that makes Grove City College unique. It provides a consistent opportunity to come together as a school and worship Christ together. Students often attend more than their required 16 for the semester, because nobody wants to miss the great speakers and programs that are put on. The requirement ensures that all students experience the Christian community at Grove City in a formal way, because there is something to be gained from a formal Christian community in addition to the genuine Christian attitudes of faculty, staff, and other students.

New to the Chapel program this year is a themed schedule – this past fall semester Tuesday chapels all revolved around loving and knowing God and Thursday chapels revolved around loving our neighbor. These messages often created conversations that stemmed beyond the 25-minute chapel presentation and lasted for several weeks – they gave the campus community a shared lesson to learn about, grow from, and debate about. They contribute to the well-rounded education we receive at Grove City College in and out of the classroom.

My favorite Chapel event of the year has always been All-Campus Worship at the beginning of the fall semester. During the first week of classes Orientation Board hosts a worship night on the quad, and there is always a huge turn out. It is a time to praise God and come together to start off the year right in worship of Him. This event has always showed me what it means to be part of a greater community, and though the weather at Grove City is known to be unpredictable it has been beautiful for this event in each year of my time here.

This year I was “on duty” in my residence hall during all campus worship (I am an RA, and being on duty means that I must remain in the building for the duration of the night to check for facility concerns and to maintain safety and community standards), so I watched from a second floor window in my residence hall. Watching the campus sing together on the quad was beautiful, and even from within my building I could feel God’s presence. I was reminded of why our Chapel program is put in place – to encourage us to worship and grow together.

Posted on February 1, 2018January 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Catching Up with Alumni: Lauren Schmitt ’15, Music Education

Knowing how four years and a degree from Grove City College can help you will help make your college search so much easier, so I caught up with 2015 graduate, Lauren Schmitt, to see how her Music Education degree from Grove City College was helping her now.

Q. For what age range is your teaching certification?

A. My education certification is K-12 and I am also certified to teach both vocal music and instrumental music.

Q. I know you live in New Jersey. Since Grove City is located in Pennsylvania did you have an trouble getting your certification to transfer from Pennsylvania to New Jersey?

A. I had no trouble getting my PA certification to transfer to an NJ certification. All I had to do was send in a copy of my PA cert and they sent me an NJ cert. PA and NJ have very similar expectations and requirements for their teachers so the certifications transfer over really easily.

Q. What is your current position and who is your current employer? Did your Grove City degree help/hinder you in getting that position?

A. I currently teach 4th and 5th grade instrumental music (band) in the Parsippany Troy-Hills School District. I’m not really sure if my Grove City degree helped or hindered in me getting this position. Since I grew up in the district that I’m working in, I have a lot of connections with the other music teachers in the district. I think that helped me a lot in getting an interview as well as getting the position. The one thing that certainly helped in the interview process was that when I did my student teaching, I got to student teach with all grades K-12. Most colleges in the NJ area don’t have that opportunity for their students. On the secondary level they either student teach at a middle school or a high school level. When I did my student teaching at Lakeview, they had one band teacher for both the middle school and high school so I had the opportunity to work with beginner students as well as the most advanced students in the school.

Q. I know you are also working on grad school classes, what has that experience been like? Has your Grove City degree helped/hindered you in any way?

A. I am currently about half way done with my Masters in Music Education through Boston University’s online program. It has been a great experience so far, but completely different from any other education experience I’ve ever had. Since I’m taking all of my classes online, I pretty much get to set the pace of everything I’m learning, I just need to make sure I’m handing in all of my assignments on time. Most of my contact with my professors is all through email which is something I’m still getting used to. Grove City College definitely helped me with figuring out the best way to balance my schedule. I’m still working while I’m taking classes so my schedule can sometimes get a little crazy. In the fall, along with grad school and work, I was also working with our high school marching band five days a week. I am constantly trying to find a balance between getting work done and doing school work. Thankfully, at Grove City I was a member of a lot of musical ensembles and most of my nights were spent in rehearsals. I usually never got back to my room until about 9:30 every night. Because of this, I had to find time to get all of my homework done, which is kind of like what I’m doing now. I’ve also been able to take a lot of the material that I learned in my classes at Grove City and apply them to my grad school classes.

Q. What do you miss most about Grove City College?

A. The biggest thing I miss about Grove City is the community of friends I had out at school. As a music ed major, I was taking most of my classes with the same people every day for four years. Because of this, we grew really close pretty quickly. Two out of my three roommates my senior year were also music ed majors. I also became really close with a lot of my professors. Since most of the music professors teach multiple classes, we were able to have them over a number of semesters. Since our class sizes were small, we got to know our professors really well. I miss how much the professors cared about you as a person and not just as a student. I still remember my senior year, I had a midterm review in my Issues in Education class an hour before my senior recital jury. I remember talking to the professor about it a few days before the class and she told me that she knew I wasn’t going to be able to focus on class that day so I should get the notes from someone else and focus on my jury. When I saw her after my jury, she made sure to ask how I did and you could tell she was genuinely interested to hear how I did.

Q. Would you recommend Grove City College to prospective high school students? Why or why not?

A. I would recommend Grove City to prospective High School students, especially if you do well in small classroom settings. When I was first looking at colleges, I knew I was looking for a smaller classroom setting because I knew that’s how I learned better. I wanted to be able to ask my professors questions and have them know who I was. This is exactly what I got at Grove City, even in my humanities classes.

Q. What is your best piece of advice for an incoming Grove City College student?

A. I have two pieces of advice or incoming Grove City students. My first piece of advice is to get to know your professors. Once I got to know my professors well, it changed the way I learned at Grove City. I wasn’t afraid to go in to their office hours and ask them questions. It also helps because you are going to be sitting in their class two or three times a week. If you can get to know them and they get to know you, it makes class more interesting. My other piece of advice is to get involved in activities on campus. My freshman year, I didn’t participate in many things outside of class. I thought it might help to make my transition into college a little easier. I was in marching band, but other than that I didn’t participate in many other activities. My sophomore year, I joined every major performing ensemble on campus (marching band, concert band, wind ensemble, orchestra, and choir) as well as a few other performing groups (woodwind quintet, flute choir, pit orchestra, etc.) and it changed my whole GCC experience. I got to know so many more people and experience a lot of new things. I even got to play with the woodwind quintet at the president’s house. Yes, it may make your schedule a little more crazy, but it is totally worth it.

Q. Is there anything else that you would like to share about experience during or after your time at Grove City College?

A. Because of my time spent at Grove City, I felt really prepared for life after college. With the information I learned in class, I felt completely ready to take over a classroom of my own. Grove City prepares you for what you are going to face in the future. Also, just because you leave school, it doesn’t mean that you stop learning. Don’t stop looking for opportunities to learn outside of the classroom. There is always room for improvement.

Posted on January 29, 2018January 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Jobs on Campus: Can I be a TA as an Undergrad?

Teaching Assistant at Grove City College

Typically at large universities Teaching Assistants, or TAs, are graduate students who assist with undergraduate classes. But we do not have graduate programs at Grove City College, so do we have TAs?

Yes, we do. There are many classes at Grove City College that are assisted by one or more TAs, especially classes with hands-on, practical experiences. As an Entrepreneurship and English major I have more experience with these two departments than the others at the College, but both departments offer opportunities for students to assist their professors. The Entrepreneurship department has more opportunities for students to become TAs, whereas the English department has more opportunities for students to be Student Assistants.

I will go over the basic differences between TAs and Student Assistants here, but check out my post about being a Student Assistant if you are curious about that side of things. The major difference between a Teaching Assistant and a Student Assistant is that a Teaching Assistant typically assists with a specific class, and often works both with their supervising professor as well as closely with the students in that class, while a Student Assistant typically works behind the scenes with their supervising professor, and not necessarily with other students. There are many opportunities for both kinds of positions at Grove City College.

If you are a TA, you are likely a TA for a specific class that you have taken before and done well in. In my experience as a student in classes with a TA and as a TA myself, TAs will typically work closely with students in and out of class to help them understand the course material and to understand and complete assignments well and on time. There are often TAs for science classes with labs, and in the Entrepreneurship department there are often TAs for classes that require extensive group work and practical applications of skills.

The great thing about this position is that it is very easy to fit into your schedule. Generally TAs attend regular class periods for the class they are working in, so it is important to not schedule another class at this time. Other than this, however, most of a TA’s job can be done on their own time, or during meetings set up with students in the class.

This past semester I was a TA for an Entrepreneurship class in which students are put into teams and then compete in an online business simulation throughout the semester. I regularly attended class meetings and met with the professor on a semi-regular, as-needed basis. I also met with various teams from the class throughout the week in order to answer questions, assist in game strategy, and work through team dynamics. Due to the flexible nature of these meetings, I would work anywhere from 3-10 hours a week in this position, based on if a major assignment for the class was due, if teams needed help with their dynamics, or how busy I was in my classes.

Many Grove City College students are a TA at some point in their time at the school, and it is certainly possible to be a TA as an undergraduate.

Posted on January 27, 2018January 8, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

How to Use AP Credits: Dual-Degree Program

There are many ways to use AP credits towards your college degree. Some of the more common options are to graduate a semester or two early or to use them to open your schedule up to a second major or a minor or two.

I entered college with 26 AP credits. I was considering using them to graduate early, but I wanted to double major in Entrepreneurship and English, and I needed at least seven semesters worth of classes to complete all of those requirements, even with my AP credits. That did not entirely discredit that option, but as I read about Grove City College’s academic programs I found an even better one. Grove City College’s Dual-Degree program gave me a way to use my AP credits to their fullest potential in my four years of college.

The Dual-Degree program allows students to pursue two separate degrees at one time. For instance, I am pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship and a Bachelor of Arts in English all at once, and rather than graduating in May with one degree that lists two majors, I will have earned two separate degrees. This is something that will allow me to stand out in the professional environment post-college and will hopefully be an asset long in the future.

The requirements are fairly simple and can be found through the Grove City College Registrar’s website, the College Bulletin, or are listed on this page about Grove City College’s Dual Degree Program. Thanks to my AP credits I have not had to stress out much about the additional credits that this program requires, though I did take advantage of Grove City’s online summer class offerings as well as our internship program to lighten my schedule.

This program is an excellent way to make good use of your AP credits (or any credits that you may be bringing in with you from high school or dual-enrollment programs) and to get the best out of your four years at Grove City College. This program is a great option for someone who wants to use the credits that they’re bringing in as much as possible, but for whatever reason does not want to graduate early.

Posted on January 2, 2018January 2, 2018 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Catching Up with Alumni: Joe Hanson ’17, Mechanical Engineering

Grove City College Mechanical Engineering

While your college experience is certainly formative and the environment at a college is definitely a huge factor in choosing the one that is right for you, you also want to know that your degree will be worth something after your four years are over. I recently caught up with 2017 graduate, Joe Hanson to see how he is using his degree and how his time at Grove City College impacted him.

Q. What is your current position and who is your current employer? How did you connect with this employer?

A. I am a mechanical engineer at Karpinski Engineering. Taking the Career Fair seriously was the best decision I made in my four years in college. I was able to talk to many companies and gain valuable insight and experience in talking to professionals in a professional setting. It was much easier than expected; I talked to around 10 companies, and each was engaging and offered unique insight into the working world. I talked to Karpinski for about 10 minutes and received an email with an interview invitation a couple weeks later. I ended up interviewing with three different companies in late September and early October, and all companies were present on campus at either the Career Fair or in a separate campus event.

Q. How did Grove City/your Grove City degree help/hinder you finding employment?

A. A mechanical engineering degree made my job search fairly easy. My opinion, from personal experience as well as seeing others’ experiences, is that someone pursuing a mechanical engineering degree can expect to find great success as long as he/she is active in the job search. The Career Fair is a very easy and accessible opportunity to meet potential employers and allows people to personally connect. Applying to jobs online is much less personal and often made me feel reduced to a number.

Q. What do you miss most about Grove City?

A. I miss the community most. I made great friendships at Grove City, and, while many have continued past college, I miss having everyone all together on one campus.

Q. Would you recommend Grove City to perspective high school students? Why or why not?

A. Grove City offers a great value of an education. The price is right, and employment opportunities are plentiful. Humanities courses were informative and well-rounded as well, and a few classes forced young Christians to evaluate and challenge their personal beliefs, a very important part of one’s spiritual journey. I would recommend Grove City to anyone wanting a balanced, wholesome education and experience with a job offer at the end of it.

Q. What is your best piece of advice for an incoming Grove City student?

A. Hit the ground running. Talk to professors, get ahead in your classes, get involved in clubs on campus, find ways to meet upperclassmen. Form as many connections as you can upon arrival, before you and your peers are buried in the books.

Q. Is there anything else that you would like to share about your experience during or after life at Grove City?

A. It was a wonderful experience. There were many difficult semesters (everyone learns that Grove City classes are not a cakewalk), but they were well worth the effort. There are few places you’ll encounter in life that offer a plethora of social and educational opportunities that are generally wholesome throughout.

Posted on December 29, 2017December 8, 2017 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

What Happens When I Get Sick?

It is bound to happen at some point in your time at college – you wake up with a runny nose and a sore throat and by the end of the day you can barely keep yourself upright and you are running a fever. Or you are doing your usual workout in the weight room and you hear a pop in your knee as you squat at the weight rack and shooting pain goes up your leg. What do you do when you no longer live at home with a parent who makes you soup or schedules your doctor appointment?

Both of the above have happened to me since being at college, including several other health concerns, and I have gotten through each of them relatively unscathed. Grove City College’s Zerbe Health Center is a great resource when you are sick or injured and do not know where to turn. At home when you are running a fever you schedule an appointment with your family doctor and get prescribed some antibiotics that your parent then brings home for you on their way home from work, but when you are sick at school you probably do not have a local doctor, you may not have a car on campus, and you probably do not have the energy to trek to a pharmacy. Zerbe can help alleviate all of these issues.

Zerbe Health Center has nurses available during all business hours, and a doctor or physicians assistant comes in every weekday afternoon to see students. This makes getting treatment easy and efficient. I have always been able to see the doctor on the day that I contact Zerbe about making an appointment – the staff is great at making sure that students’ needs are met in as timely a fashion as possible.

Zerbe also has several prescription medications on hand, so that if the doctor prescribes something you can easily get it from the nurses on the way out, as opposed to having to go to Rite Aid or Walmart to pick it up. I am allergic to several antibiotics, too, and they have different ones available, so it has never been an issue. In addition to prescription medications, Zerbe has over-the-counter medications and treatments available to students for viral diseases that cannot be treated with antibiotics and to treat symptoms of any illness. I have received ibuprofen, decongestant, cough drops, numbing throat drops, salt (for gargling with a sore throat), and an ice pack from Zerbe at different points in my time here. I have had friends who have had stomach bugs and have been given bags with sports drinks, crackers, and other stomach remedies from Zerbe.

Twice in the last four years I have injured myself during workouts, and both times I was afraid that Zerbe would not be able to treat an injury as well as they can treat an illness, but have been pleasantly surprised to find that they have. The doctors are well-informed and have taken the time to explain my injury to me, as well as to tell me my limitations and lay out a plan for getting back to normal activity.

In addition to Zerbe the environment at Grove City College is just so caring that I have never felt hopeless when sick. I have gotten two very bad colds while at college, one in the winter of my sophomore year and one during finals in the spring semester of my junior year. Both times I could barely leave my bed to go to classes and/or finals, but I had very understanding professors who were willing to make accommodations for me to succeed. I also was constantly surrounded by friends who took care of me, offering throat coat tea, bringing smoothies to my room, and even doing my laundry. The College promotes a caring environment and people support those around them to the best of their abilities.

Getting sick in college can be frustrating and scary, but you will make it through it (though I definitely recommend investing in some Emergen-C packets or Zicam tablet before leaving home).

Posted on December 27, 2017December 8, 2017 by Abby Schiela — Leave a comment

Navigating Roommate Conflict

As a senior in college I have had relatively little experience with roommate conflict until this year. I was blessed freshman year to have a great roommate with whom I could live very peaceably and became very close who I have lived with for all four years of college. Even in my first two years as an RA, I did not handle many roommate conflicts, as most of the women on my halls were seniors and had figured out their living situations to a point where major conflicts rarely occurred. This year, however, I am RAing on a hall of mostly freshmen and transfer students, and since nobody on my hall knew their roommate(s) previous to deciding to come to Grove City College, there is occasional conflict.

There are definitely good ways to handle conflict with your roommate and bad ways to handle conflict, so here are some of the most important pieces of advice that I have for you after navigating through several situations this semester.

Be as direct as possible without being aggressive

Nobody likes when someone is passive aggressive towards them. Deal with the issue as directly as possible without being aggressive. If your roommate is borrowing your clothes without asking and you want her to stop or ask first, sit down with her and talk in a calm voice and do not beat around the bush. Something like “Hey, I’ve noticed that you’ve been borrowing my clothes a lot lately and it has been a little bit frustrating because sometimes I want to wear clothing that you’ve taken…” or “I’m really glad that we can share clothes, but I’d prefer if you asked before borrowing something of mine” is a direct way to approach the subject without escalating the situation. Attempting to deal with the situation passively, such as through leaving notes on your roommate’s desk or sending angry text messages, will often lead to a war of passivity and anger rather than resolution.

Use “I” statements

When addressing an issue with your roommate, try to focus on your actions, reactions, and feelings. Saying “I get frustrated when I can’t find my red shirt because you’ve borrowed it” is going to be a less confrontational and more successful way of approaching the topic than “You really frustrate me when you borrow my clothes.” By using “I” statements you allow your roommate to approach the conversation openly, rather than making him/her feel like they need to shut down and defend themselves.

Seek to understand

A lot of the conflicts that I have seen and heard about happen because two people are not understanding one another. In navigating conflict with your roommate, always seek to understand his/her point of view and empathize with their situation – most people are not malicious when they do something that bothers you. Along with this, give your roommate the benefit of the doubt, he/she is probably not trying to frustrate you or make your life difficult, they probably simply do not realize that it is an issue.

Make a roommate agreement

This is a great thing to do before a conflict arises, so that you can refer back to it, but it is not too late to make an agreement even if a conflict arises first. Open up a discussion for how the two of you share your room – maybe there is more that should be addressed than just the one main issue. Let this be a time where you both candidly discuss what sharing a room would ideally look like. You can Google “roommate agreement forms” and find several versions on the internet – choose one that will work for you.

Involve your RA

Talking about the conflict with your RA is not “tattle-telling.” While I cannot speak to the role of the RA in roommate conflicts at other colleges, RAs at Grove City College want to help you to navigate the situation to bring reconciliation to your relationship with your roommate. Our goal is to teach you and support you in handling the situation, not to do it for you or to yell at your roommate. Your RA is a resource that you should use, and it is always helpful to discuss the situation with him/her early on so that they are aware of the situation in case it escalates despite your best attempts to solve it. This will allow you to solve or be removed from a bad situation as easily as possible.

Roommate conflict is a scary thing to handle, but it often leads to growth for all parties involved and will give you a better understanding of your roommate’s point of view.