Many students choose to live off-campus for a variety of reasons such as more space, wanting more freedom, or financial reasons. Regardless of the reason, living off-campus means that your child is completely independent and unsupervised. Talk to your child about the legal consequences of underage and excessive drinking that exist while living off-campus. There are a variety of legal problems that can arise including underage alcohol citations, providing alcohol to minors, noise complaints, property damage, and eviction.

Stress that safety is a priority when it comes to living off-campus for them and others who visit them.  Off-campus parties are the main setting where heavy drinking happens, and students who live off-campus are the ones who are most likely to attend such parties—more so than students who live in dormitories or at home.

Some schools have a policy that extends the Code of Conduct to off-campus environments. This means that if your child gets in trouble for something done off-campus, it can be reported back to the school, which can then  follow up with a disciplinary measure.  Check to see if your child’s school has this policy in place by looking up the online copy of the Code of Conduct provided by your child’s school.