Measurement of the need for a student residence and its essential characteristics in a public university in Mexico

Abstract

Student residences are a recurring theme at an international level as far as the analysis of universities is concerned. Most of them do not meet the social coexistence needs of the students who inhabit them, although they are progressively planned with better budgets, materials and innovative techniques. The problem lies in the fact that, at the time of their planning, the preferences and real needs of their participants are generally not taken into account; thus, student life can become dissatisfied in residential spaces. To delve deeper in this sense, a survey was conducted on students of the Autonomous University of Querétaro (UAQ) in order to understand what the actual basic needs are for this type of facilities from the students’ vision. The main objective was to find out if a student residence is desired and, if so, what the main reason for this is. Once the need for this type of facilities was defined by the group of students surveyed, it would be necessary
to specify what preferential characteristics can be established from the participants’ vision. In conclusion, the proposal for the implementation of this type of facilities and the study of the implications it would have on the life of the current student is left for consideration.