You can budget for rent, travel and textbooks. You cannot easily budget for the cost of a roommate who games until 3 a.m. when you have an 8 a.m. lab three times a week. Sleep is the quiet engine behind your degree - and your roommate has a huge say in whether you actually get any.
Why Sleep Matters More Than You Think
Large reviews of sleep research show that even partial sleep loss - cutting a few hours each night - significantly impairs attention, working memory and decision‑making (Pilcher & Huffcutt, 1996). Another review focused on students found that poor sleep quality and short sleep duration are consistently linked with lower academic performance (Curcio, Ferrara, & De Gennaro, 2006).
Translation: trying to revise, sit exams and write essays from a sleep‑deprived brain is like trying to run a marathon in flip‑flops. You might technically finish, but it will be slow, painful and far more likely to go wrong.
Night Owl vs. Early Riser: Built‑In Conflict
Most sleep clashes in shared housing fall into a few patterns:
- The staggered schedule: One person starts winding down at 22:30; the other’s “evening” starts at midnight.
- The alarm war: Multiple alarms with snooze, thin walls and a light sleeper on the other side.
- The social jet lag: Weekdays are (sort of) aligned, but weekends turn the flat into a nightclub while someone is trying to reset for Monday.
None of these people are villains. But in a small student room, the combination of different schedules, limited sound‑proofing and exam pressure creates constant micro‑stress.
The Domu Method: Turning Sleep Into a Matching Factor
Domu Match treats sleep as a core compatibility dimension - not an afterthought. Our questionnaire includes:
- Typical weekday and weekend bedtimes and wake times.
- Whether you identify more as a morning person or night owl.
- How sensitive you are to noise and light when sleeping.
- How often you expect to have late‑night guests or calls.
That data flows into your compatibility scores. When you check your matches on the Domu Match dashboard, you will see which people share similar rhythms - and where compromises might be needed.
Questions to Ask Before You Share a Wall
Use these questions in real‑life roommate chats (or as a checklist for yourself):
- "What time do you usually go to bed and wake up on weekdays?"
- "Do you need quiet and dark to sleep, or can you sleep through noise and light?"
- "How many alarms do you set in the morning and how quickly do you get up?"
- "What does a typical weeknight look like at home for you?"
If your answers clash hard - and neither of you is willing to adjust - that does not mean you are bad people. It means you should probably not be thin‑wall neighbours.
Protecting Your 8 A.M. (Or Your Late‑Night Flow)
Whether you are the early‑morning lab person or the late‑night coder, the key is the same: be honest in your Domu Match profile about how you actually live, not how you wish you lived. Then look for matches whose habits are close enough that small compromises feel realistic, not exhausting.
You can start that process any time by creating a profile and completing the questionnaire on our sign‑up page.
References
Curcio, G., Ferrara, M., & De Gennaro, L. (2006). Sleep loss, learning capacity and academic performance. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 10(5), 323–337. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1087079205001231
Pilcher, J. J., & Huffcutt, A. I. (1996). Effects of sleep deprivation on performance: A meta-analysis. Sleep, 19(4), 318–326. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8776790/