"Blue Mir Hall" is a dormitory located at the Seoul campus of Chung-Ang University (CAU). Currently, CAU has four dormitories: Blue Mir Hall Buildings 308 and 309, Future House, and Global House. Among them, Blue Mir Hall Buildings 308 and 309 are the largest dormitory on the CAU campus, accommodating around 2300 students. Dormitories are important spaces where many students live their daily lives, but there are various issues ranging from the application process to the actual living arrangements. For more students to live comfortably, these issues need to be addressed. In this Campus Special, CAH will explore the problems present in the Blue Mir Hall dormitory, examine students' reactions, and consider possible solutions.
Problems in Registering for the Dormitory
Selection Criteria Without Regional Differentiation
One notable aspect of the dormitory application process at CAU is that, unlike many other universities that assign different scores based on the distance between the applicant's residence and the school, the university places all students residing beyond a 20km radius from the Seoul campus on an equal footing for selection. Students residing more than 20km away can secure dormitory placements based solely on their academic performance. This means that a student with a residence located 25km away in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, and a student from Jeju Island, situated about 470km (and a plane ride) away, are both placed equally on the distance criterion. However, students residing closer to the university, like those in Gyeonggi Province, can still manage commuting, even if it takes time (approximately 1 hour and 17 20 minutes for a one-way trip from Suwon to CAU). On the other hand, for students living in remote areas like Jeju Island, commuting is practically impossible. Those from remote areas who fail to secure dormitory placements are left with the economic burden of finding off-campus housing, such as renting a room. Many students from remote areas who come to Seoul to study feel that this selection method is unfair. Placing students who can commute and those who can't on the same ground while solely relying on their grades is seen as unreasonable. This selection process may seem inequitable for students who have no choice but to relocate and live away from their homes due to academic pursuits.
Registration Problems of 2023 Second Semester
Regarding the dormitory application for the second semester of 2023, a lot of attention was drawn to posts on the university students’ community platform 'Everytime'. The announcement regarding dormitory applications was not made properly, resulting in many students missing the application period. Last year, the announcement for dormitory applications was posted on June 15th, and the application period was from June 20th to July 1st, totaling 12 days. However, this year, the announcement for dormitory applications was made on June 19th, and the application period started from on June 20th and only went until to June 27th, lasting only for a total of only 8 days. Many individuals pointed out that this year’s dormitory application announcement was notably delayed, and the application period was shorter than usual, expressing dissatisfaction with the notice. As the application period varies like this every year, students can't help but feel inconvenienced. Additionally, there was dissatisfaction with changes in the dormitory application method. Unlike the previous integrated selection process, this time, the method shifted to building-specific applications. Contrary to the previous approach, which involved a single selection followed by assigning buildings based on academic performance, the new method requires students to choose between Blue Mir Hall Building 308, Blue Mir Hall Building 309, and Future House right from the initial application. This different approach created an unexpected "competition" among students in terms of which building to choose, leading to discomfort and unease.
Issues Related to Living at the Dormitory
Laundry Facility Shortage Problem
Currently, there is only one laundry room designated for either male or female students in both Blue Mir Hall Building 308 and 309. However, this arrangement falls short for the approximately 900 students residing in Building 308 and the 1400 students in Building 309. This shortage issue was highlighted in March 2022 when complaints from male students were posted on 'Everytime,' claiming that some female students were using the male laundry room to do their laundry. Such posts have been appearing since 2018, indicating that the lack of laundry facilities has been a long-standing issue raised by many dormitory residents. Since doing laundry is important for basic hygiene, this shortage issue needs to be fixed.
Dormitory Cafeteria that Is Too Expensive
The CAU dormitories do not have facilities for students to cook their own meals. As a result, most students must either eat outside or rely on the dormitory cafeteria's meals. However, the issue is that the dormitory meals are not offered at a particularly affordable price for students who don’t have much financial abilities. The cost of a single meal in the cafeteria of Building 308 ranges from 4,500 to 5,500 won, while in Building 309, prices vary between the average of 7,000 to 12,000 won per menu item. In an interview with a student from the Department of Sociology at Chung-Ang University, the student expressed that the prices are not significantly remotely reasonable and or cost-effective enough to replace eating out. Compared to the 4,000 won cost of dormitory meals at universities like Soongsil University just a couple kilometers away, the dormitory meals at CAU might seem to be quite expensive. For students living in the dormitories, the expensive dormitory meals can be a burden. Additionally, on weekends, only the cafeteria in Building 309 operates. This means that students have no other dining options. Unlike other universities' dormitories like at Ewha Womans University that have cooking facilities, CAU students living in dormitories undergo an extreme limitation of meal choices. Clearly, new solutions are especially needed for students who are living in dormitory.
Reactions of Students and Directions for Improvement
To gather insights from students who have actually lived in the dormitories and understand their opinions on the issues mentioned above, a survey was conducted.
The resolution of dormitory issues is crucial for the sake of the residents' happy school life. Addressing these problems directly impacts their quality of life. With the numerous complaints that have arisen so far, it is now truly the time for these issues to be resolved. The school should listen to the students' opinions and work towards improving the problems so that students can have a better living experience.