Moving into a new place requires furnishing it yourself, and students should not expect their apartments to be any different.
If a student wants to live in a fully furnished space at the University of Tulsa, there are available options. Any of the multiple apartment complexes on campus, however, are not one of them, and that’s not a bad thing.
When doing a precursory Google search of “furnished apartments near me,” I was surprised by the wealth of options, until I realized that each result was a hotel. In the real world, most people are expected to furnish their own apartments. TU is no different.
If you want a fully furnished space, move to Fisher West, or Lottie Jane/John Mabee. It shouldn’t be expected that any TU apartment should come with anything more than a washer, stove, fridge, etc.
One of the nice things about the modern-day college campus is that it allows its students to dabble in the art of being a grown up without having to take the full plunge. In my apartment, we have one bill: electric. Heat and water are covered by the university. It gives me the chance to learn about how to pay bills without drowning in a sea of monthly payments.
The same is the case for furnishing my apartment. I have never felt more responsible than when I was thrifting, garage sale-ing and Facebook marketplace-ing for my apartment furniture. Throughout the summer, I gained valuable skills in how to find furniture on the cheap. That would never have happened if I had come to a fully furnished apartment.
Another thing to consider when debating furnished apartments at TU is the furniture itself. If the showroom in the Lorton Clubhouse is any example, it would be ugly. Most likely in blue and gold colors. Additionally, either the university would have to constantly replace this furniture, or, the more likely case, you get stuck with furniture that is scratched or stained. In my first year at TU, I lived in Lottie Jane, and nearly every single chair in the dorm rooms had some mysterious, terrifying stain. Consider that level of neglect in a space as big as the apartments. Additionally, when I moved into my apartment this year, nearly every single appliance was broken. I can only imagine how many beer-stained couches would be inherited were the apartments to come fully furnished.
One last factor when debating furnished apartments at TU is the fact that this university loves to overcharge me for every single thing. I guarantee that were they to furnish apartments, there would be some sort of premium placed on them, which is something that I do not have the budget for. Maybe other folks are different in this realm, but I was able to thrift everything in my living room for about $75 in total. TU would charge me so much more for what I can only assume would be gross, ugly furniture. Why go for that when I can learn how to furnish an apartment, take all the furniture with me, and, most important, know that it is clean.
