The deplorable conditions of Greece’s publicly run student dorms are no secret, with reports painting a picture which goes beyond bad management to one of neglect and sometimes even unlivable conditions.
Rooms without heating or cooling, buildings without hot water for months, broken elevators, and frequent power outages characterize the dorm experiences of many students in Greece, according to previous report in To Vima.
The sad state however has been viewed as an opportunity by private companies, which are slowly buying up buildings and refurbishing them to cover the needs of modern students.
Reports at OT reveal that Greece is following the European trend, albeit at a slower pace, with the entrance of privately run student dorms, particularly in Athens and Thessaloniki.
One company, called Premia Properties, has bought up buildings in the downtown Athens area of Kypseli, and in Thessaloniki, Patra, and most recently even in Xanthi, all homes of Greece’s public universities, offering 255 student dorms in total.
According to OT, the Greek government is also trying to solve the issue of student housing through public private partnerships, including through the creation of new residences in the regions of Thessaly, West Macedonia, Thrace, Crete as well as near the University of West Attica that will hopefully house 8,000 students.
Aside from ensuring that students are safe and have the appropriate accommodation and facilities to flourish as they study, the Greek government’s move to improve student accommodation is also important for the global ranking of the country’s universities.
Moreover, modern accommodation facilities will make Greece more attractive to international students as Greece aspires to turn the country into an international hub for higher education by improving existing public universities and potentially allowing the entrance of foreign universities into the Greek market, pending the passage of the Greek government’s proposed university reform bill.
