(One such Dudley student was a 65-year-old business person. "He came in as a freshman, lived at Martha's Vineyard, and traveled up to classes," Handy said.)

Off-campus students also cited economic factors.

"It's way cheaper than living on-campus," said Diana L. Adair '98, who co-chairs the Dudley House Undergraduate Committee, chairs the Undergraduate Council's Student Affairs Committee and is a founder of GirlSpot. She said that living off-campus costs her as much as or less than at the Dudley Co-op, where she lived her sophomore and junior years.

Housing at the Dudley Co-op costs $2,600 per semester, while on-campus housing costs $3,808 per semester.

Joan J. Ryoo '97-'98 said she is spending a lot on rent, but added: "I know I'm spending a lot less on food than I was on the meal plan."

Other students appreciated the distance, despite the time it takes getting to classes.

"I can expose myself to the Harvard environment as much as I want, but I can also go home and forget about it," said Michael Cohen '98, who moved off campus the spring of his sophomore year.

Some want kitchens.

"I just wasn't into the way eating went to campus," said Mike S. Esposito '97-'98, who prefers to cook and eat on his own schedule, "rather than wait for a meal, and then cram as much mass-produced food into [his] body [as possible]."

Some had no reason to stay.

"A lot of my friends have already gone, so house life wasn't a big draw," said Ryoo, a concentrator in anthropology and the history of art. "I had my fill of the House experience."

Ryoo took a semester off last fall to do thesis research in London. She is now living off-campus while she finishes her the second semester of her senior year.

Off-campus students reported few dissatisfactions.

"At times you may feel a little isolated from your House community," said Gregory M. Tears '98.

"[In a residential house] you have everything taken care of and you just have to worry about your academic life," Esposito said.