I sat on the futon in my dorm in October of my freshman year, asking myself the question everyone asks their friends: “What’s the move?” When I walked back from dinner at the dining center earlier, it had seemed eerily quiet on my floor. Were people out doing things with other friends? Were they out to eat? Did they go home?

No cars in the heritage lot. DC emptier than usual. Crickets in Shack. A tumbleweed slowly rolled by the freshman hill roundabout. It felt like everyone had packed their bags and left without a trace, only to return on Sunday night. Where were they going?

Campus turned into a ghost town more often than I expected my freshman year. It was then that I learned about the term “suitcase campus.”

I tried to tell myself I wasn’t crazy for being the only one in my dorm after my freshman year roommate went home or off campus. I didn’t have a car on campus, but I eventually caved and started asking my parents to pick me up for the weekend. I would visit my friends at the University of Minnesota or St. Thomas. It was jarring to me that I felt more sense of community with my other friends off campus than at Bethel on the weekends.

This wasn’t the way I pictured living on campus as a freshman. I had looked forward to hanging out with friends, attending school events and having the college experience that everyone raved about. Instead I walked around scratching my head, asking myself why people would even live on campus if they just go home on the weekend?

We asked 136 Bethel students for their thoughts.

— Luca Lombardi, business manager

Survey responses

How often do students go home?

What do students do on campus?

How was this data collected?

The Clarion staff collected this data by roaming the academic buildings Nov. 13, 2025, and asking students to take the survey voluntarily. Then, staff sent the survey out to residence halls for additional. responses. The Clarion collected 136 student responses in total. (Survey created by Kailey Tan.)