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Tips For Making A Long-Distance Relationship Work

A long-distance relationship can be complicated, especially when you're in college or university and your partner lives hundreds or thousands of miles away. This is because there are so many things that can get in the way, such as distance, different schedules, lack of communication, and busy lives. The best thing is that where there's love, there's always a way! With a bit of effort, you can always make a long-distance relationship work. Sure, college life restrains you from certain activities like crashing at your partner's place now and then, but that doesn't mean you have to give up on love. Since a solid relationship requires both people to be on the same page, you and your partner should openly communicate your expectations and boundaries while focusing on your studies. The most important things are setting relationship goals, having trust, communicating often, and having realistic expectations about what you can and cannot do as a long-distance couple. If you're worried about losing the connection with your partner after moving to a bachelor apartment in Ottawa or an on-campus dorm, these five tips will save your relationship. 1. Communicate Your Feelings This cannot be emphasized enough: communication is essential in any relationship, but it is crucial in an LDR. Sharing your feelings, expectations, and worries with your partner will go a long way in nurturing a lasting relationship. Remember that if you're going to maintain a long-distance relationship, you will have to be okay with talking on the phone. And that doesn't mean just a quick call once a week. It's going to take time and effort on both sides. Second, it's essential to talk about the good and the bad. Be open when discussing the things that bother you, and use clear, non-judgmental communication to eliminate the negative factors from your relationship. Without communication, the relationship is left hanging in the balance between reality and what you want it to be. 2. Have Faith in Your Relationship Trust and reassurance are so important when you're in a long-distance relationship. You don't want to lose the spark in your relationship just because you can't see each other every day! Trust is more critical in LDR because it can be hard to know what your partner is doing. If you have trust in them, you won't be constantly worried. You'll be able to live your life and have fun without always wondering if your partner may find someone else. 3. Schedule Video Dates and Calls Technology has made managing long-distance relationships easier for everyone. You get to see your partner while being hundreds of miles away, something we all need to keep going in life. Video chats can help a relationship keep that spark of excitement. You'll be able to see how they’re looking , what they're wearing , and how their day is going. Seeing each other can also help you overcome separation anxiety. Suppose your fiance lives thousands of miles away, in a different time zone. In that case, you can reserve your Saturdays for video calls every week. Both of you might be having busy lives, and the excitement to see each other after a week's hard work can get you closer to each other. 4. Watch Out For Each Other Keep reminding your partner that you're there for them and watch out for each other's physical and mental health. If one partner is facing a hard time , the other one should be more considerate and compassionate. It is a good idea to talk to your partner if you expect space or more attention during a hard time, and make it easier for them to support you by sharing your thoughts and feelings. 5. Plan Little Surprises When you finally want to visit your partner after a long wait, the excitement will be worth it! But, when you two cannot visit each other, sending unexpected gifts is a good idea . These little gestures will remind them of your love and strengthen the relationship. A long-distance relationship can work when both partners are sincere and ready to put some effort into their bond. Be sure to have faith in love and start your university life with a positive attitude.

Pros & Cons of Living Alone Off Campus

Many people spend their first year at university sharing a dorm room with another student — and they have mixed experiences. The other extreme is to live alone off campus. There are a number of pros and cons to this living arrangement. To choose between having your own apartment and sharing with roommates, you’ll need to decide what matters most to you. Pro: It’s More Comfortable For most students, the biggest advantage of living alone is comfort. No one is bothering you with habits like making too much noise late at night or early in the morning, leaving dishes in the sink for too long, or inviting friends you dislike over. Plus, you don’t need to worry about adjusting your own behaviors or lifestyle for someone else, either. Cons: It Can Be Expensive Even renting a small apartment on your own is much more expensive than sharing a large apartment with roommates. As well as being responsible for the entire rent, you have no one to split utilities with. It’s important to determine if you can afford to live alone — consider that you may need to work a part-time job. Pro: You’re Truly Free Some students find moving out of their parents’ house into another shared space somewhat of a letdown. You still need to be considerate of other people and your roommates may have quite different lifestyles to you. Having your own apartment means true freedom. All the decisions about your home life are up to you, including when you clean, how you decorate, and what groceries you stock up on. Con: Making Friends Is More Difficult It’s easy to make friends when you live with other people. If you already know your roommates, the bonds between you will likely grow stronger. If you are assigned roommates or you find them through social media, there’s a good chance you’ll at least have someone you enjoy talking to — perhaps the friends of your roommates if not your roommates themselves! If you live alone, however, you’ll need to put in extra effort just to meet people. Pro: Your House, Your Rules Meeting new people is less of a concern if you already have plenty of friends. A big benefit, though, is that you’ll be able to invite friends over whenever you want — even large groups of people. Since you live alone, there’s no need to ask anyone’s permission. Con: You May Feel Lonely Inviting friends over is quite different from living with other people. If you prefer to spend time alone anyway, this is less of a problem. However, if you’re a social butterfly, you may find living alone to be a lonely existence. Pro: Friends and Family Can Stay Over If you’re attending university far from your hometown, an extra appeal of living alone is that you can invite old friends and family members to stay for the weekend whenever you want. All you’ll need is a futon in the living room. Plus, college friends who want to come over for drinks can crash at your place, avoiding the need to order a ride home. Con: It May Be Difficult to Find an Apartment You’ll need to start your search for housing early, as there tend to be limited one-bedroom apartments in most cities. If many other students also find living alone appealing, the apartments near campus may disappear quickly. Whether you decide you’d prefer to live at home or you want to have roommates, you can find the perfect apartment at 1Eleven. Our uOttawa off-campus housing has one-bedroom apartments as well as suites for two and four people. If you choose to live alone, you’ll still have plenty of opportunities to make friends in places like our games lounge, gym, and yoga studio. Apply now for the floor plan you want before all the units are taken.

Should You Buy Books Before Class or Wait?

When preparing for college, one of the first things you need to consider is books. Should you buy them in advance or wait until class starts? The right time to buy actually depends on a few factors. Have You Received Your Required Materials List? After you’ve chosen your classes for the upcoming semester, your university will send you a list of the textbooks you’ll need to buy. Never assume this list will be the same as in previous semesters — it’s worth waiting to receive an updated list to avoid wasting money. Plus, bear in mind that if some of the required readings for your course are just a few pages in a book, your professors may provide you with digital copies. This will save you from needing to buy the book at all. If you have any doubts abou t what you need to buy (such as the right edition of a book), reach out to your professors for confirmation. Do You Need to Complete Readings Before the Class? One reason to buy books before class is because you’re expected to do some reading beforehand. You may even need to complete an assignment in time for your first class. Should You Buy Books at All? Some students decide to wait and see if they’ll need a book before they decide to buy. This is because professors may barely use some of the books included on the syllabus. However, waiting is a risky move: trying to share with a friend, managing without a book, or purchasing at the last minute will only lead to stress and make studying more difficult than it needs to be. If you want to save money, some better options are to rent the textbooks you need, buy used books, or sell your books once the course is over. Should You Rent Textbooks? The main benefit of borrowing textbooks is you’ll pay around 10 to 30 percent of the price of a new book. Make sure you read the fine print carefully, though: if you’re unable to return your book by the specified date, you may incur late fines and you won’t save as much as you initially expected. For instance, if the contract allows you to have the book for a set number of days, you may need to start renting the book around the day your class starts. A downside of renting is you’re unable to highlight or otherwise annotate the text, which may be problematic if you like this study style. It also means you’ll be unable to refer back to the book at a later date . Although this is less necessary when textbooks are for electives, you may find books for your core classes are useful throughout your studies. Can You Find Used Textbooks? You may be able to purchase used textbooks from students who have just finished the class you’re about to take. You’ll likely pay around 50 percent of a new book, and there’s no requirement to keep the books in good condition. Of course, you will need to check that the student who had the book before you didn’t fill it with notes that could be distracting or unhelpful to you. It’s also important to make sure it’s the same version as the one your class requires ; otherwise, you could have difficulty following the correct page numbers for reading assignments. If you do decide you’d prefer to purchase used textbooks, it’s worth starting your search before your class begins. This will put you at an advantage over other students who are looking for the same textbooks. Demand may be higher than supply, which could mean there will only be a few books left or you’ll need to pay more if you wait too long. No matter how and when you acquire your books, it can be challenging to study if you’re sharing a room on campus. A much better option is a 1-bedroom apartment. Ottawa students can find fully-furnished private apartments in three different floor plans at 1Eleven student housing. Apply now while leases are still available.

Tips for Being in a Long-Distance Relationship in University

Although maintaining a long-distance relationship in college can be a challenge, it’s far from impossible. Even if your partner lives too far away for you to see each other often, you can make it work. However, you shouldn’t just expect things to go perfectly smoothly — it’s important to take steps to ensure your relationship has the best shot possible. Set Some Ground Rules You both need to be on the same page about your relationship. Be clear about boundaries and what would upset you. Remember that your relationship will only work if you are happy to agree to these terms. Be Honest with Each Other Relationships need to be built on honesty. This doesn’t mean your partner needs to know everything about your life, but it is important to keep each other informed about the big things and come clean about anything you think may bother the other person. Similarly, communicate with your partner if something is upsetting you. Negative feelings won’t just go away if you keep them bottled up — it’s much more likely they’ll spark an argument. Stick to a Schedule to Talk It’s useful to decide on a schedule for when you’ll talk — this could be briefly each day or a few times a week. Having a schedule will prevent the temptation to drop everything because your partner sent you a message and avoid a sense of guilt when you’re too busy to chat. Just make sure you let the other person know in advance when something in your schedule changes. Make Plenty of Time for Everything Else Don’t allow your relationship to dominate your college experience. The reason you’re attending university is to gain a degree — and that needs to be your priority. In addition, you should never feel like you need to miss out on other opportunities your school offers, such as clubs, sports, and a social life. It’s crucial that you fit your relationship around other commitments to avoid any feelings of regret or resentment. Plus, staying busy will take your mind off missing your partner. Expand Your Friend Group Another thing you can do to stop feeling lonely is to make plenty of friends. They’ll be able to cheer you up when you’re having a tough day, and they’ll be the people you can confide in. It’s always important to have a support system beyond your partner. Visit Each Other Put in the effort to plan visits when possible. Showing off where you live, your campus, and your college town will help you feel more like part of each other’s lives. Make sure you also introduce your significant other to some of your friends. Enjoy the Experience You may start university feeling like there’s nothing about a long-distance relationship to enjoy, but it can actually be rewarding if you stay positive. Of course, there will be difficult days, but college can be a great time in your life if you focus on what matters and look forward to visits from your partner. It will be great for your relationship if you can have some privacy when your partner comes to stay in your student housing. Ottawa students have their own room in a shared suite or a bachelor apartment at 1Eleven. Contact us today to secure the floor plan you want.