But for some students, the perks of off-campus living can be found without leaving campus.
Colleges and universities across the country are offering apartment-style residence halls at an increasing rate.
Joan Lachowski, housing coordinator for men at the University of Richmond, said the university offers on-campus apartments to provide a variety of housing options to students.
"The apartments are a totally different style of living," she said. "Regular dorms have single, double, triple rooms. (The apartments) have two bedrooms, one bath, a living room and a dining room. (They are) almost exactly like townhouses rented to the public."
Lachowski said the apartments offer advantages to students. "They are a jump-start to living on your own," she said.
Brad Reid, director of housing and residence life at UNC-Wilmington, echoed Lachowski. "I think it's important on any campus that students have the opportunity to have a variety of living options, especially first-year students, to have a residence hall living experience," he said. "We also want to attract returning students to live on campus. Those are two key reasons for having on-campus apartments."
But Reid said the isolating nature of apartment-style living is a problem.
"The people in the apartments are pretty isolated," he said. "The RAs have to work hard to get (residents) out and participating in the community. Most people move there because they want their privacy."
Other schools offering this type of housing include Elon College, the College of Charleston and several UNC-system schools, including UNC-Charlotte and Appalachian State University. UNC-Chapel Hill does not offer students the option of living in on-campus apartments.
