Dorm Life Diaries: My HSE Dorm Experience
When I first arrived in Moscow from Delta State, Nigeria, I thought the cold would be my biggest challenge. I was wrong. The real adjustment began the moment I stepped into my dormitory at the Higher School of Economics (HSE). Dorm life in HSE is not just about where you sleep, it is a place where cultures collide, habits are questioned, friendships are formed, and personal growth quietly takes place.
The first night I spent at the hostel, I lay awake longer than I expected. It wasn’t because the room was uncomfortable or unfamiliar, it was because the silence felt different. Not the usual warm, noisy silence of home, but a structured quietness shaped by rules, shared walls, and strangers learning how to coexist. As someone who had her first degree from Delta State University, Abraka, where hostels are lively and often loud, the quietness felt almost unsettling.
The dorm life feels like when you are far from home, learning how to share space, time, and routines with people from across the world. It becomes an extension of HSE university experience, one that teaches independence, cultural awareness, patience, and adaptation in ways the classroom never could.
Moving into the hostel was the first tangible confirmation that I had begun a new chapter. Carrying my luggage through unfamiliar corridors, listening to languages I did not understand, and trying to locate my room with instructions written in Russian made everything suddenly real.
The room itself was modest and functional. It did not promise comfort, rather it promised survival. Beds, desks, shared storage, and strict organization defined the space. At that moment, I came to the realization that dorm life is designed less for personalization and more for efficiency.
For international students, this transition is abrupt. There is no gradual adjustment. One day you are surrounded by familiarity, and the next, you are negotiating space with strangers who will become part of your daily reality. Cultural differences appear in unexpected ways in the dorm. Some students value silence, while others are comfortable with background noise, and cleaning standards vary. What feels normal to one person feels intrusive to another.
In my first week, I had to learn quickly that silence is valued. Loud phone calls, playing music without earphones, or laughing too loudly at night can earn you disapproving looks or even a polite warning from the dorm supervisor and fellow dorm mates. It wasn’t hostility, it was simply a different culture of shared living.
The shared kitchen is a particularly powerful cultural space. It is where national identities surface through food. Spices, aromas, and cooking styles reflect stories of home. Preparing Nigerian meals in a shared kitchen often attracted curiosity, questions, and conversation. For me, cooking Nigerian food became both therapy and a challenge.
The first time I tried to cook stew, the aroma attracted curious glances. Some students asked questions, others wrinkled their noses. Still, the kitchen became a place of cultural exchange. I tasted dumplings and borscht, and in return, I introduced some of my dorm mates to Nigerian jollof rice.
Dorm life also humbles you in ways you can’t imagine. Bathrooms are shared, and timing becomes important, especially during mornings. Laundry rooms require patience and planning. Sometimes all the washing machines are occupied and that means waiting for another tome or another day.
At first, these shared facilities felt inconvenient. Back home, I was used to have more personal space. But gradually, I learned discipline, time management, and consideration for others. These are some of the quiet lessons dorm life teaches without words.
As an international student, I learned that conflict in dorm life is rarely dramatic. It is subtle, accumulated through small misunderstandings. Therefore, learning to communicate respectfully, even when language is a barrier, becomes essential. Loneliness is a real part of being a foreign student that people rarely talk about. Dorm life can either isolate you or become your support system.
For international students, homesickness often arrives unexpectedly. It settles in during quiet evenings, long winters, or moments when cultural differences feel overwhelming. Being physically close to others does not guarantee emotional connection. There were nights when the dorm felt isolating, when conversations around me happened in languages I could not understand. In those moments, the dormitory felt less like a home and more like a temporary shelter.
Yet, this loneliness also encouraged self-reflection. It forced me to confront independence and emotional resilience in ways I had never experienced before. And the strictness at the dormitories? They operate on clearly defined rules. There are visitor policies, and inspections. In Delta State University dormitories, hostel life is more flexible, sometimes chaotic. In HSE, discipline is non-negotiable.
Initially, these rules felt restrictive and overwhelming. The idea that your movement and space were monitored created a sense of constraint. However, over time, the structure began to make sense. I later understood that shared living requires boundaries, and these rules ensure safety and order in a multicultural environment.
For international students, understanding these regulations also requires navigating language barriers. Notices are often written in Russian, and misinterpretation can lead to unintentional violations. This adds an extra layer of responsibility and caution. Adaptation, once again, becomes necessary.
At the same time, shared spaces require cooperation, cleanliness, time management, and respect for others’ needs are constantly tested. Learning to clean not just for yourself but for a community is a quiet but important lesson the dorm life teaches. Despite its challenges, dorm life also creates opportunities for meaningful connections.
Shared struggles often bring people together. Late-night conversations, mutual academic stress, and collective experiences gradually build familiarity. Friendships in the hostel form quietly, without pressure. Some of the most genuine interactions occur in simple moments such as borrowing items, helping each other with tasks, or exchanging cultural stories. These small interactions accumulate into trust and companionship. For international students, these relationships provide emotional support and a sense of belonging that eases the weight of being far from home.
Dorm life at HSE somehow accelerates independence. Tasks that were once shared at home, like cleaning, cooking, and time management, become individual responsibilities. Living alone within a shared environment teaches accountability. There is no one to remind you of deadlines or routines. You learn to manage your time, your space, and your energy. For me, dorm life redefined adulthood. It highlighted the importance of self-discipline and adaptability, qualities that extend beyond academic success.
Beyond accommodation, dorm life is a form of cultural education. It exposes students to different worldviews, communication styles, and social norms. Living with other international students challenges assumptions and expands understanding. It teaches tolerance not as an abstract concept, but as a daily practice. Which also reminds us that diversity isn’t just theoretical but lived. Dorm life isn’t perfect. It is challenging, structured, and at times emotionally demanding, but it is also transformative.
For a student like me, it has been a journey of adjustment, self-discovery, and growth. It teaches more than classroom lessons, how to coexist, how to adapt, and how to find yourself within unfamiliar surroundings. Though I miss home deeply, the lessons learned within those dormitory walls will stay with me long after graduation. In the end, the dorm did not just give me a place to sleep, it gave me a new perspective on life, people, and myself.
*The photo belongs to the author
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Oghenetega Gokeme
