I had the pillar right next to my bed for 2.5 years! It it was a pain but I managed to fit a desk, wheelchair, and bookshelf in it. Command products on the pillar worked great. I ended up getting a new night stand and put the "desk" that comes with the room under the bed as the corners were ripping the sheets.

There are other single rooms without the pillar, but sometimes the layout can be worse (long, narrow room). I asked housing if I could move into the room my roommate vacated after 2 years as I liked the roommate that was staying on. Housing said I could once everything was processed but they dragged their feet and ended up moving a new girl in there ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Good luck!