Facebook…as a screening tool?

According to a piece in USA Today, some parents of incoming college freshmen are using Facebook as a screening tool for their child’s roommate, and apparently this is causing an increase in the number of room change requests.

One of the beauties/benefits of social media is its ability to foster connections. It’s unfortunate that this example is proving that social media is being used for the exact opposite function. 

Most colleges aren’t honoring room change requests, citing policies that freeze room changes from a few weeks to the entire semester.

As one student who commented on the USA Today piece pointed out, what made her change roommates was behavior that wasn’t stated or even hinted at in her (former) roommate’s profile, so this certainly isn’t a foolproof way to go about screening a roommate.

Some schools are utilizing technology and social networks to allow incoming students to fill out profiles to find roommates. While this is a more constructive use, it still feels as though this is allowing cliques to be formed prior to anyone setting foot on campus.

Isn’t part of college learning how to live with someone who isn’t an immediate family member, and doesn’t this help the student learn a number of skills that will be necessary in the ”real” world?