This post is going to be the longest post because I’m posting the reflection I wrote about my infographic along with the infographic even though I have already posted it before. I’m just doing so because I feel that the reflection will make more sense if you can look at the infographic at the same time.
The Issue of On-Campus vs. Off-Campus Living
I made a graphical representation of the pros and cons of living on campus or off campus at Santa Clara University. The split view illustrates the separation and differences between the two choices of living on campus and living off campus. The images used show the main issues and thoughts that I wanted to convey when students think about the benefits or differences when making the decision to live on campus or off campus. I chose to keep the message simple and straightforward by using simple images to convey the advantages and disadvantages of both choices.
KEEPING IT SIMPLE
The main reason for keeping the message simple and to the point is based on the demographics of the audience. The audience is made up of busy students attending Santa Clara University, between the ages of 18-24, who currently live on campus or off campus, and use some form of social media. Because students are busy and very often receive their information through social media avenues such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, it was important to keep the message simple and the graphics direct and uncluttered. I used Adobe Illustrator to create this layout and the icons were found on the site: www.flaticon.com. The icons used were easy to understand and conveyed a quick message to the reader; how much does it cost, do I save money, what are my living arrangements, do I have more room or less room, who pays for utilities, do I have a curfew, do I need a car, etc. These are all questions that were easily answered with a few simple icons and one easy to glance at picture.
THE ISSUES THAT CAME UP
In the process of doing research for this project, two important issues stood out. Number one, 48% of all SCU students currently live off campus, and number two, many of them have chosen to live off campus to save money. For this reason, it was important to show the possible savings and costs on both sides of the discussion. Therefore, it was important to highlight the cost and the savings with icons and figures at the top of the infographic. Many other issues such as eating habits, more or less space, levels of freedom, transportation needs, and other pros and cons were also highlighted, however, the driving force behind the decision to live on campus or off campus has always been about money.
THE SCU COMMUNITY
As I approached this project, I was certain that I was one hundred percent positive as to what the final outcome would indicate, based on my previous readings and research. However, the longer I spent investigating the cost factors involved in living off campus, I realized that it was not a clear-cut decision. It is not guaranteed that everyone will save money. Santa Clara University and Santa Clara as a community has one of the highest cost of living averages nationwide and this increases the uncertainty of saving money when you live off campus. However, it can be done if you make the right choices.