When I was a student I had in fact lived in a room with 5 other people while doing a summer internship. This was in Palo Alto. Basically all people living there were interns. There was even a choice of male-only, female-only or mixed rooms. It wasn't bad. People knowingly chose this kind of arrangement, sacrificing their privacy in exchange for more social mingling, just like youth hostels. In my 20s I would be upset if coming back from work I stayed alone in a private room in a new city; living with people my age was better.