Students isolating with housemates feel ‘uncomfortable’

Chris Brighton on 20 May 2020
Students isolating with housemates feel ‘uncomfortable’

Almost 30% of students who are isolating with university housemates are feeling uncomfortable about their current living arrangements, according to research by Student Hut. 

The research found that 18% of students living with housemates, 22% living with family/parents and 23% living with a boyfriend or girlfriend had ‘faced problems’ caused by their lockdown living arrangements, with ‘close confinement’ being the top cause for concern. 

A Student Hut opinion panel member said: “Because we're stuck together constantly, we're getting on each other's nerves and getting into arguments”.

20% of students currently living with friends and 15% currently living with a boyfriend or girlfriend were also unhappy with the situation.

Meanwhile, over 90% of students living with family during lockdown are satisfied with the current situation, with 17% saying that choosing a university close to home is now more important to them.

“Students have been isolating for months now with people they may barely know; it’s not surprising that they are finding the situation difficult. With a significant number of students living with friends and housemates finding the situation untenable, and more students keen to attend university locally next academic year, we may see a rise in enrolments from students who have grown to appreciate the security of living with their parents during lockdown.” said Katherine Nicholls, Director of Research at Student Hut.

The findings have come from a project to track student opinion and attitudes during the COVID-19 crisis.

The project will provide weekly updates showing the change in student attitudes from the UK’s most engaged and diverse student panel, taken from an audience of one million users and over 150,000 subscribers. 

For press enquiries, please contact Nicola Jones or call +44 (0)1273 734640. You can find previous Student Hut press releases and media coverage about the COVID-tracker here.

Chris Brighton
Chris Brighton on 20 May 2020