Residence Hall Amenities
Ball State is home to 11 residence halls, but not all of them have the same amenities. Here is a quick rundown of some things you might be looking for in a residence hall and which residence halls have them!
In addition to these major features, all the residence halls have a laundry room, a fitness center, and lounges. Many residence halls also include amenities such as kitchenettes, game rooms, media rooms, and music rooms.
Living-Learning Communities, or LLCs, are a great way for freshmen to begin meeting new people. Living in an LLC means you are a part of a community of people who share the same major and similar interests. Different Living-Learning communities are assigned to different residence halls. However, you do not have to be in an LLC to be in a certain residence hall in most cases. More information can be found on Ball State’s website, bsu.edu, on which residence hall corresponds to which LLC.
Residence Hall Rules and Resources
As expected, there are a decent number of rules and policies for students living in on-campus residence halls. We won’t cover them all here, but an exhaustive list of residence hall policies is available online. Search for “BSU housing policies” on your browser. Here are some important things to know:
- Quiet hours in the residence halls are from 11:00 p.m. to 9 a.m. from Sunday to Thursday and 1 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. During finals week, quiet hours are all hours of the day, every day. On any day, at any time of day, playing loud music, TV, instruments, or practicing your tap dance solo is prohibited. There are practice rooms in Sursa Hall and the Hargreaves Building for these purposes.
- You may have guests in your residence hall with approval from your roommate. Only one guest per resident. Your one guest can stay for a maximum of four nights.
- No animals are permitted in the residence halls—except for fish in a small fishbowl or tank. Aquariums larger than 20 gallons are prohibited. Service animals and emotional support animals are allowed if they are certified and shown to be necessary for the student with a documented disability to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy campus housing. More in-depth information can be found on Ball State’s website.
- Students are required to leave the residence halls during Thanksgiving, winter and spring breaks—unless you have worked out a housing arrangement with the Office of Housing and Residence Life. These arrangements are based on availability, and students are subject to additional charges.
- Resident Assistants (RAs) and Academic Peer Mentors (APMs) live within the residence halls as resources for students. Whether you’re having roommate trouble or just want to chat, RAs are there to help. Each residence hall has multiple RAs, with each floor having their own. Your RA will schedule meetings with the floor to touch base and address any issues if they arise. Some meetings are mandatory. RAs also schedule fun events for the people on their floor to get to know each other! APMs are similar, but they schedule events for the whole residence hall to join in on instead of the activity being floor specific. APMs are also a good study resource for students if they want someone to help them understand something within their LLC’s scope of knowledge.
How to Get Along with Your Roommate
Speaking of roommate trouble, living with another person is not always great. To do your part and avoid possible trouble between you and your roommate, practice the following!
- Ask questions before you move in to see if you are a good fit for each other! You could ask some of the following questions. What are your interests/hobbies? What major are you? Are you an early riser and/or a night owl? What items do you plan on bringing? Do you want to share items? What are your cleaning habits? How do you feel about guests in the room? What day are you moving in? If one person is moving in earlier than the other, what should they do in setting up the room space?
- Use the roommate agreement! Take the time to go through the roommate agreement with your roommate when you move in and set up how you’d like the year with your roommate to look, from cleanliness and duties in the room to how often you’ll be in the room in the first place.
- Know your on-campus student rights. These can be found on the Ball State website. In short, you have the right to live in your own space and not be bothered.
- Be friendly! This seems like a no-brainer, but if you take those small steps to kindle a friendship, it goes a long way. It is easier to live with a friend than it is to live with a stranger. Go out to eat with them, or plan another fun activity to do together from the events on campus. Even going to the rec center and working out together works! Just keep putting in effort, and you will be rewarded.
While there are many benefits to having a roommate that you get along with, sometimes a roommate just isn’t the right fit, and steps need to be taken. Here’s what to do if that does happen to you.
- If you are having trouble with your roommate, first try to talk it out with them if possible. Summon the diplomacy and reasoning skills you have in you and ask if there is a time when you two can talk it out. If you are not able to come to a compromise on your own, get your RA involved.
- RAs can do a variety of things to help you out, from having one-on-one talks with both you and your roommate, sitting in on your talk with your roommate if you are nervous, and if worse comes to worst, contacting the Resident Learning Coordinator (RLC) on your behalf. Students themselves can also contact the RLCs via email.
- Roommate changes are dependent on available space and are at the discretion of the building's RLC. Before approving a change, RLCs will work with students to help them understand the situation and make an effort to work out the problem.
Off-Campus
After your freshman year, you have the option to either stay on campus or find other housing accommodations off campus. Options can include an apartment or a house; it all depends on what your wants and needs are.
Tip: You may think it’s too early to start exploring off-campus living options, but students start signing leases in the fall semester. If you are thinking of living off-campus at all, you will want to start researching now!
For apartments, Muncie has many complexes that are available for leasing throughout the school year and summer as well. Some of them already come furnished and with your own bathroom. Many apartments also come with amenities such as a gym, pool, study lounge, basketball court and more. If you’re looking for a more community-oriented living situation, this might be the choice for you.
Houses can be found with different leasing companies and are located all around the surrounding neighborhoods off-campus. Some of them can house up to 6 people and are a close walk to campus. Typically, houses do not come furnished and carry some extra responsibilities. However, if you’re looking for a more spacious living area, this might be the option for you.
Signing and reading a lease might sound like a lot, but Ball State provides tons of resources to help students in the process. The Ball State Off-Campus Quality Initiative Program is a program that connects landlords and property management companies with students. These properties meet certain criteria related to the maintenance and upkeep of their properties. These properties would be a great first step in looking at trusted housing properties. Ball State also offers guidelines on reading a lease, moving in, requesting repairs and avoiding scams.
Looking for off-campus housing can also be very stressful; however, Ball State Daily offers many events and guides to find the best option for you.
The Ball State Daily Housing Guide is an online search tool where you can search for apartments and houses all around Muncie and filter results by your specific needs. Whether you’re looking for a certain number of rooms, price, amenities, or distance to Ball State, this tool makes it easier than ever to find off-campus housing. For fall and spring semesters, there is the Ball State Daily Housing Fair. Here, you have the chance to speak with leasing representatives from properties around Muncie and learn all about the different housing opportunities available to you. To find more information about off-campus housing, search your web browser for Ball State Daily Housing.
