by Rachel Barter ’27 on September 17, 2026
Opinion
I am very excited to be back at Providence College and getting back into the swing of things, but I would be even more excited, as would presumably a lot of other students, if I won the student parking lottery and could have my car on campus. I know this comes across as greedy, which it certainly is, but the transition back to campus as one of the seemingly few seniors living on campus and someone who was fortunate enough to have their car parked on campus last year has been depressing.
In fact, last week, I had a member of Friars Club unknowingly rub salt in my wound. I was walking by her while she was giving a tour, and she told a prospective incoming student that on-campus student parking was only open to seniors. When the prospective student mentioned that she was surprised it was only for seniors, the tour guide responded that juniors can technically get a spot through the parking lottery, but it is highly unlikely because they prioritize the on-campus seniors. My instinctive reaction was to exclaim that seniors are certainly not prioritized with on-campus parking and that I am Exhibit A, but obviously I didn’t say anything and kept walking by, reflecting on that encounter as I walked to class. I have no idea where the tour guide got that information or impression from, but I wish she was right.
Looking back on my privilege last year and having a car on-campus, I am truly grateful and wish that all students could experience the bliss and freedom of it during all of their years at PC. Although this wish is unrealistic now, I hope one day that at least all on-campus juniors and seniors at PC will have access to their vehicles.
I almost wish that in another universe I hadn’t won the parking lottery last year and had instead won it for this year because during my freshman and sophomore years, I was blissfully unaware of the ease and freedom that having my car on-campus would unlock. Now, I have a taste for freedom, and I can’t maintain the independent lifestyle I adapted to last year. As a senior, it’s imperative to have a car because some of our friends have likely graduated, and we may have to begin driving to interviews or grad school tours out of state as we prepare to fly the coop.
Honestly, I selfishly think that more should go into selecting students who receive parking on-campus than just a randomized lottery. Similarly to the men’s basketball tickets, seniors should have a higher chance of winning it by putting the person’s name in twice if they are a senior, especially considering that the vast percentage of seniors live off-campus and are not eligible for on-campus parking anyway.
Besides seniority, the lottery could consider the student’s distance from home. As someone who is from Maine and has a four to six-hour commute home depending on traffic, it is a lot to ask my parents, who both work a minimum of 40 hours a week (sometimes on the weekends), to drive up to 12 hours in a day just to pick me up and bring me home. I could make the drive in at most six hours without forcing them to take a day off of work. I know that public transportation is technically an option for me, but it would take me approximately six to six and a half hours, if everything were to line up perfectly, taking four different legs of public transportation to get me an hour from my home because I live in a rural area. Taking public transportation would cost me around $80 for the full trip in comparison to the maximum of $40 I would spend on a half-tank of gas for my car.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I am extremely grateful for having a parking pass last year, which allowed me to go to New York and Connecticut for the first time, but I wish that I could do the same this year without the hassle. If I had known I wouldn’t get it again this year, I would have explored more, breaking further out of my small-town girl shell before it was too late.
If you have a parking pass this year as a junior or a senior, cherish it and don’t take it for granted. Let the privilege of having it take you places across New England and beyond. Hey, maybe even visit Maine for me! After all, it is “The Way Life Should Be.”