Home from home or a melting pot? : The impact first-year university accommodation has on students’ university and post-university experiences

Meek, Helen and Budd, Richard (2026) Home from home or a melting pot? : The impact first-year university accommodation has on students’ university and post-university experiences. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

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Abstract

Despite numerous studies exploring student accommodation (SA) and students’ transition to university there is a lack of focus on the impact of the allocation of SA and resulting ‘housemates’ on students’ experience both at university and post-university. This study explores students’ experiences of SA, with a particular focus on the impact of SA on their networks and social capital, not only at university but also post-graduation. The theoretical framework draws on Bourdieu’s ‘thinking tools’ of habitus and forms of capital along with a discussion of the concepts of ‘homophily’ and ‘propinquity’ which influence network formation. The research, a case study of Lancaster University, adopts a mixed-methods approach including an online questionnaire with 255 responses and 15 semi-structured interviews with Lancaster University undergraduate alumni. Key findings revealed first-year shared university accommodation, particularly in relation to housemates, had a major impact on students’ transition to university life, both positive and negative, and had a long-lasting impact post-graduation. First-year accommodation was a key site for making friends and developing social networks. Therefore, HEIs’ allocation process is important because, due to the concept of propinquity, students were more likely to become friends with those living nearby. This provides HEIs with the opportunity, through their allocation process, to create households of diverse students to help facilitate social integration and enable students to connect with others they would not normally encounter. However, the research revealed many students were drawn to others they regarded as ‘similar’ based on the concept of homophily, and major differences can result in conflict. Networks based on first-year SA continued to be exceptionally valuable post-graduation in terms of providing enduring friendships, partners and important sources of support. However, there was little evidence to suggest they were a particularly useful source of social capital in terms of seeking and finding employment, whereas familial social capital continued to be of primary importance.