Among the many tasks to be completed by a student before heading off to college, finding a roommate can be one of the most daunting. For those who already know someone attending the same school, rooming with a friend is always an option. However, use caution when making this decision. Living with a buddy can easily put a strain on the friendship. For people who aren’t sure who they want to room with in college, consider the following items in order to have a more successful roommate experience.

• Find someone with similar interests: If you’re hoping to build a friendship with your roomie, it is good to search for some common ground. It helps if you both have similar ideas of fun so you can hang out and explore your college/university together. 2016 PV graduate and University of Iowa freshman, Allison Ocel, adds, “Having my roommate as a friend made the college transition a lot easier. I felt like when I came here, I was already at home and had someone I could talk to if I needed anything.”

• Compare schedules: Make your schedules as similar as you want them to be. If you have identical schedules, you won’t have to worry about waking each other up unwantedly; if you have different schedules, you will get more alone time in the room.

• Level of organization: Be sure your cleaning habits won’t irritate the other person, and vice versa.

• Think about preferred residence halls/apartments: You both want to be happy with where you are living. If you disagree on where to live, try listing out the pros and cons of each of your top choices and be willing to consider each other’s options.

• Decide how much noise you can handle: Do you like listening to music or watching TV when you study? Do you need background noise to fall asleep, or you need complete silence?

• Cyberstalk: Follow your potential roomies on social media. You can learn a lot about a person from their Tweets and Instagram pics. Another online option to take advantage of, is the roommate matching service offered by some colleges.

“I used the University of Iowa roommate matching system, which made it easier to find people that were similar to me. From there, I used Facebook to message a few girls about being roommates,” Ocel reflected on her roommate-finding process.

“Since Allison was productive in her search, I didn’t have to do as much and the process was a lot easier, and it has turned out to be a fabulous match,” Ocel’s roommate, Emma Lanham, explained. Don’t be afraid to reach out and message people; you will likely make their lives easier in doing so.

• Get to know them: If you have the luxury of living somewhat close to your possible future roommate, take the opportunity to get to know them before school starts in the fall. To avoid those initial awkward conversations that occur whenever you meet someone for the first time, try doing a fun activity together instead of meeting for lunch somewhere. You could go shopping, or even do something as simple as working out. Maybe there is an amusement park about halfway in between both of your houses. Whatever it is, just try to make it fun for both of you. After all, the best friendships aren’t forced–they are built on memories.  

• Listen to your gut feelings: If something is telling you a certain person isn’t right for you, don’t be afraid to trust your instincts. If you already don’t get along with each other, it probably won’t get any better once you are sharing the same room.

The most important thing to remember is odds are, you’ll never find the absolute perfect roommate. There will always be some compromising whenever you share living space with another person(s). Just find someone who has differences you can live with. In order to make yourself a good roommate, always be willing to communicate and accommodate your roommate’s needs.