The roommate issue looms large for most entering college students. Students and their families worry about who their roommate will be, whether they will like each other, or whether they will get along. Most students heading off to college have never shared a bedroom with someone else. When that bedroom is also your living room, kitchen, den, and recreation room, the prospect of sharing that small space with someone else causes many students concern.

Rather than focusing on what to expect from a roommate and how to react to potential problems we would like to suggest a more proactive approach.