It's not difficult to find students living off-campus around us. Many university students begin to live off-campus after leaving their parents as they enter the universities. While they expect a new free life in the university, they also have lots of concerns about living alone without their families. In the online community for university students, we can see these anxieties. How can we live wisely? The Chungbuk Times is going to introduce various tips from students who have lived off-campus for a long time.
 
- What we have to pay attention to when we begin to live off-campus
We can easily see what is happening at our private places in the beginning when we don't limit the time visiting with friends. Before encountering this situation, we had better restrict senseless visiting.
If you decide to look for a roommate, living with a close friend is not recommended. It's not really comfortable to live with someone who is not within your family. Trouble between you and him or her can occur even though both have been very close because you can’t tell him or her complaints to keep your relationship and it will get worse and worse.
-Maintenance cost
Many students planning to live off-campus are worrying about electricity charges, gas charges and water charges that are not included in the monthly rent. It could reach to about 5,000 to 10,000 won for water, about 30,000 to 40,000 won for electricity in the summer and about 40,000 to 60,000 won for gas in winter per individual on average. Water charges have little to do with seasonal changes, but gas and electricity usage are greatly affected by the season, so you may make a payment twice as high as usual.
Changwon University student Choi En-young(Dept. of Japanese Language and Literature, living off-campus for 2 years) said, "Usually I spend 5,000 ~ 10,000 won for gas, but it costs more than 80,000 won in winter due to the boiler.
 In summer, air-conditioning is the cause of high electricity charges. Students who live off-campus reduce these charges by doing laundry at once and unplugging unused home appliances, which are the best recommendations from students. When we don't use electronic goods, leaving it plugged in wastes lots of standby power. Standby power takes up about 11% of home electronic consumption. You can save not only your money but also energy with this practice. Setting the computer on sleep mode is also helpful for your economic life.
-Foods
 A large number of students who live off-campus have rotten items in their refrigerator. They bought needless ones because they did not check what they had in their refrigerator. You want to arrange your refrigerator and attach a memo about things you need to buy to prevent unnecessary waste. As well, if you have a shopping list in your hands, it would be a good way to save your money.
When you need to buy groceries, you are not advised to go to the big supermarket. Because they sell most stuff in bulk, you have to pay unnecessarily for foods that will eventually be thrown in the garbage.
It's good to look for a house with a microwave which helps you easily cook frozen foods. Even if you don't have one, you can make it in an alternative way. For example, when you want to eat frozen rice, you put it in the rice cooker and push the warming button. In the case of soup, before you go to your bed, put it in cold water and then it will be unfrozen when you wake up.
 Many of those who live off-campus buy a bottle of water from a convenience store. However, it costs much more. Unless you care about other's attention, use water purifiers on campus. But if you care, you can drink your own water by boiling tap water.
Daegu University student Park Mi-jin(Dept. of Social Welfare, in off-campus housing for 4 years) usually boils the tap water to save her money and to drink safe water. She said, "When I boil the tap water, I drop cassia seeds or a Solomon's seal tea bag in the boiled water." And she gave one more tip: a used tea bag can be used one more time if you keep it in the refrigerator.
-To. students who begin to live off-campus
Experienced students living off-campus unanimously advised to check doors. It could be really dangerous if you do not care about the doors.
Daegu office worker Ahn Hye-kyung (in off-campus housing for 4 years) said, "We must keep the doors safe. One night, a guy was pounding on my door saying he was thirsty. It was late and my house was on the fourth floor, which made me think something was weird. If I hadn’t locked the door, I would not be sure I’d be here now."
 The next piece of advice to students who will reside in off-campus housing is heath care. They mostly live alone, so they may lose their health easily. You must pay attention to your health in order to keep your body healthy. As you have to care about your health yourself, you should control foods. That means that you should not eat instant food and that you should eat healthier foods.
Everyone confirms that living off-campus makes you feel free and easy from your parents, but there always should be a well-ordered plan for successful university life. Your decision to have roommates can be one of your plans. We hope you find your own appropriate way to live off-campus.
 
Tips for successful off-campus living from interviewers
1. Download the app, Neukdaeda 2, to find criminals around you.
2. Prepare a first-aid kit.
3. Prepare a loud alarm clock, but don’t place it near you.
4. Remove TV from your room in order to avoid being lazy.
5. Set your boiler's temperature on 0 degree when you are hot.
6. Prepare as many towels and hangers as you can.
7. Investigate about used items both online and offline.
8. Receive cash receipts for the National Tax Service.
9. Replace your kitchen/bathroom sponge frequently because of germs.