This is the big discussion isn't it. Well lucky for me I have experienced both.
I remember back when I was thinking about which universities I wanted to apply for and the one main contributing factor to this decision, not only for me but for everyone else, was the location. Most people I knew wanted to move away from home and that was something I was so dead set on as well so I was extremely thankful when I got into uni somewhere miles away. I lived in halls for the first year and then transferred to an alternative uni for the remainder of my degree, one located in my hometown and moved back in with my rents - oh how things had changed.
This is my moving out day back in 2013.
I wanted to write this post so people can see what the pros and cons are for living away from home whilst studying. Hopefully this will help contribute to your thought process when it comes to making this life changing decision. Please remember majority of this will be my opinion only.
PROS
-Independence. There is nothing more satisfying than knowing you're able to survive without the support of your parents, and being able to make cheesy chips at 4am in the morning without being judged or moaned at. This means you can do what you want and when you want, for those of you with strict parents this will be a big bonus!
- Networking. Moving away from home means moving in with a whole new crowd of people some of which you may have never even met before. You can make so many friends at university from all around the world and you definitely will be more knowledgeable about different cultures after if not from the degree itself.
- Freedom. You will certainly have a lot more freedom when it comes to spare time, of course there will still be the odd chore here and there so your housemates don't get annoyed but it's definitely more chilled out.
- Parties. When I was living in halls there were so many parties all the time, one minute you'd be watching Netflix the next thing your flats turned into your local liquid. There seemed to be something going on every night of the week!
- Peace. Living away meant I had my own space and was able to get on and study in peace, something I couldn't do whilst living at home with my 4 siblings!
CONS
-Finance. You now have to be in control of your money and learn to budget, this can be extremely hard if you have never had to do it before. Luckily I have always been interested in money and finances so never had a problem however a lot of my friends were maxing out credit cards and running to bank of mum and dad which is something you don't want to be doing when you're trying to prove you can go solo.
- Support. Although you are making tons of new friends you have left behind lots of others, including family, and it can be difficult not being able to turn to them in times of need. Obviously in this day and age we can just pick up the phone but I find that's never the same as speaking to them in person and having a cuddle.
-Personal Space. If you're like me and hate people touching your things this could be a problem. You will have to share a kitchen with these people and sometimes even a bathroom which means people pinching a bit of your soap or using your cheese grater and not washing it up. This will happen and it is annoying. I tried to buy mostly dry food and keep it locked in a cupboard so I didn't worry so much. Alongside this student halls are renowned for being particularly small so don't expect a west wing and a maid.
-Cleaning. Moving out means you have to learn to clean up after yourself this includes washing up, tidying, changing bed sheets and doing the laundry. We all know at 18 this isn't what you want to be spending your time doing but it comes with the package. Unless you're like some people I know and then you can just travel home every weekend and have your parents wash your clothes.
-Bills. Whilst in halls I didn't have this problem as the fixed rate I was charged included everything but when you move out into a shared house you will have to manage things like rent, phone, water, gas, electricity, TV license and more.
That's all for now I hope you enjoyed reading this post and I hope it perhaps gives you an insight into some of the things you may not have even thought about when deciding whether to move away or not. Please don't let this post put you off in anyway and if you would like to know the pros and cons for living at home then watch out for the next post or if you have any questions about uni then please ask.
xxx
21 year old living on the south coast of England attempting to make a career in Accountancy. 
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