<Author>RM</Author>
<Nationality>USA</Nationality>
<Gender>Female</Gender>
<Age>23</Age>
<First language>English</First language>
<Other foreign languages in decreasing order of proficiency>French,Chinese</Other foreign languages in decreasing order of proficiency>
<Last degree>BA</Last degree>
<Years of staying in China>1</Years of staying in China>
<Topic>12</Topic>
At the college I attended, approximately 90% of students lived on campus, which is a high percentage for an American university. Some schools in America are largely commuter schools with many of their students residing in apartments that they rent off campus. I personally lived on campus for all of my college career and think that there are many advantages to this.
Many students choose to live off campus because it is often cheaper than living on campus, thus helping to reduce the cost of an expensive college education. Students also like the increased independence that comes with living off campus, and the feeling of being in the real world. Additionally, by living off campus, students are able to inhabit apartments with their friends and have their own kitchens and living rooms. This enables them to cook their own food if they do not like eating in the cafeteria.  Some students will even rent houses with their friends, which affords them more space than the typical college dormitory. Off campus apartments are sometimes nicer than the residences that the school provides on campus. 
While there are some benefits to living off campus, I feel that there is a loss of community in doing this. A big part of the college experience is taking part in extracurricular activities and you will oftentimes miss out on these if you dont live on campus. Also, you miss out on general interaction with your fellow students when you live off campus. Off campus housing is not controlled by the university, and may not have the same safety standards that dormitories have. To save money, students may rent apartments in unsafe neighborhoods. Furthermore, in an off campus apartment, you are not being supervised by the university, which may give you the freedom to engage in behavior that is detrimental to your wellbeing. Lastly, when you live off campus, you have increased commuting time, as well as other responsibilities in maintaining your apartment, which will give you less time to devote to your studies. 
A solution that some colleges in America have come up with is to build apartments on campus. This allows students some of the benefits of having their own apartments, such as having a kitchen in which to cook their own food, while mitigating some of the risks, such as living in an unsafe apartment. Students still get to have a little more space and freedom while not missing out on the camaraderie of college life and having a lot more responsibility. I lived in an on campus apartment my senior year, and found that this was the best of the two worlds. Colleges in China should look at building on campus apartments for students as a solution to this trend. The apartments should be reasonably priced so students will not be tempted to move off campus to save money and should have ample space and satisfactory facilities. 