Roommate Resources and Conflict Management

Roommate Resources and Conflict Management Guide updated 9/16/23

We would like everyone to have a great experience in Tang Hall.  This takes a cooperative effort from the residents in our community since our actions impact others.  Here are some tips and resources for making your stay more pleasant.

Be Proactive:  Set yourself up for success by discussing expectations with your roommates!  Formalize your plan with a Roommate Agreement document.

Here are a few guides to get you started on your discussion.

  • Apartment Cleanliness Guide
    • All residents play a role in keeping our building clean and safe!  
  • Recommended Discussion Guide
    • This guide contains discussion points and tips for building a community within your apartment and how to have respectful, effective conversations.
  • Suggested content for your Roommate Agreement:
    • Communication – preferred methods and contact info
    • Noise – acceptable levels at different times
    • Guests – when, how long, how often, how many, level of coordination
    • Cleanliness and hygiene, especially in the bathroom and kitchen, and taking out trash
    • Allergies and dietary restrictions
    • Shared space – assign space fairly, agree about borrowing (or not borrowing)
    • Expenses and supplies – acquisition and cost-sharing plan
  • Sample Agreement Outline from Grad Res Life
    • This outline was provided by Grad Res Life during the COVID years.
  • Additional Examples or templates:  You can ask the THRA for additional examples of a roommate agreement.

Noise:

  • Please see the Housing policy on Noise.
  • Please note that rooms are not soundproof!  Sound can travel under doors and through walls. Also note that some living rooms share a wall with a neighbor’s bedroom.
  • Consider being a good neighbor and checking in with your roommates about noise levels, especially for calls, etc., during quiet hours.
  • Here are some other sounds you may wish to be aware of during quiet hours
    • Doors slamming (you can use your key to close the door quietly)
    • Speaking volume (even if using headphones in a call)
    • More than the minimum required cooking noises in the kitchen
  • If a sensitivity to noise is causing difficulty even after reasonable attempts by all parties to adjust, see below for options to change rooms.

Heads of House:

  • A Head of House is the leader of a House Team who lives in a residence hall and takes a lead role in building community and supporting and advocating for students.
  • The Heads of House at Tang Hall are Larry and Dawn Anderson.  They can be reached at tang-headofhouse[at]mit.edu 
  • The Heads of House can help mediate conflict and suggest paths forward.

Changing Rooms

  • MIT Graduate Housing provides an internal transfer process to change rooms within Tang Hall.  In 2023, there is no fee for transferring rooms within Tang Hall. (Please see the link for the most updated information.)
  • The “Additional Preferences” section can be used to communicate if there are roommate considerations.

As you navigate your time in Tang Hall, please consider courteous communication as your first step toward conflict management.  Learning to live and work together is part of the graduate residential life experience.  The additional resources on this page are also available to support you in your time here.

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