Nessa lives on the WCT base pretty much full time, because she feels like she has to prove to the government that she's in full control of her powers and isn't going to go feral and on a killing rampage. She does go back to Oregon for the holidays to see her mother though. She lives in shared dorms (WHO WANTS TO BE HER ROOMATE) and has been on the WCT for a year--just a few days longer than Karkat. Before the WCTs, Nessa was in powers rehab for about a year, not by choice, as the government didn't trust letting her back out into society without some proof that she was in full control (she may have spent about six months as a feral tiger all up in the woods murdering animals and well, that's not something you want in a crowded LA street)

She spends her mornings training, keeping her martial art and quick shifting skills honed in case of peril, but she can be easily distracted from it by a friendly face. She mostly eats raw meat thanks to her powers, so if you're squeamish try not to sit next to her at dinnertime, because you bet your butt she gets blood pretty much everywhere.

As a member of the team, Nessa is pretty strong and has been on a lot of missions (usually leading ones to rescue Karkat from being kidnapped) She does get carried away with biting and scratching sometimes though, so needs to be told when enough is enough if you don't want her to kill the target. When she's in her sabre-toothed form also, she give people rides.