An Academic Oasis

A door shuts softly on the second floor of the Residential College. Lounge areas, which once welcomed laughter and conversation, are eerily silent. Two students break the silence as they walk the hallways discussing biology before disappearing into one of the many study rooms. As soon as the door shuts behind them silence returns to the empty floor.

This silence means only one thing on a frigid Monday night in December–final exams.

Exam time is one filled with much procrastination, cramming and stress for Ole Miss scholars. Libraries and computer labs across campus overflow with “off-campus” students seeking academic refuge from the outside world and its distractions. Combined with stress, the overcrowding of university facilities has become one of the worst nightmares for college pupils.

However, students of the Residential College seem to have the issue under control.

The Residential College at Ole Miss serves as a scholastic oasis for its residents. The Lucky Day Program sponsored dormitories convenient on campus locations are a great benefit for their students.

“Being on campus is an easy way to access the library, as well as study materials because everything is right here in front of you here,” said George Jackson, a sophomore living in the Residential College.

Residing in the same location as fellow Lucky Day scholars is beneficial for helping students stay on task during exam week.

“Being around people with a common goal really makes studying a whole lot easier in the fact that people here encourage you rather than distract,” Jackson said.

The Lucky Day program also provides the Residential College with tutors to help any resident with their studies.

Students such as Mason Money, a sophomore resident, have noticed the effort put forth by the Lucky Day and Residential College programs to advocate the importance of education to the scholar inhabitants.

“The staff have been really active in trying to help all of us prepare for this week. We have plenty of study rooms on each floor, personal space, and if extra help is needed to study, the extra help is available here for us,” said Money.

“It’s not only the newest dorm, but it also creates a great atmosphere for learning.”

The Residential College project at the University of Mississippi has been an important step in the education of college students. Some studies show that living on campus increases a scholar’s GPA between .2 and .9 on a scale of 4.0.