Returning Student Sign-Up Guide (2009 - 2010)

Overview

There are a variety of living options available on campus -- apartment-style living in the Christiana Towers, Unique Housing Options which include Upperclass Honors, Special Interest Housing, and the Global Living community, and traditional-style housing in many locations on campus. All residence hall rooms and public areas are smoke-free. Smoking is permitted at designated areas outside of the residence halls. All students who live on campus, except those who live in the Christiana Towers apartments or in Graduate Student & Family housing, must purchase a dining plan for each semester or session they will be matriculating. Assignments are based on the number of semesters you have lived on campus. Within each "priority group" (students with the same number of semesters), applications are sorted by a randomly assigned number.

IMPORTANT: The Binding Date of the Academic Year Student Housing Agreement is June 1. For students living on campus for the Spring semester only, the binding date is December 20. Students will be charged for the room/space from opening day of occupancy through the end of the academic year unless Housing Assignment Services approves a Request for Release from the Student Housing Agreement. By submitting your Application, you are agreeing to abide by the Student Housing Agreement and the Dining Agreement. You are also agreeing to pay the full rental charge for your assigned room, whether or not it is the type of housing you requested. You will not be released from your Student Housing Agreement because you fail to sign in or occupy the space for Fall or Spring Semester. Please be sure to read the Housing Agreement and Dining Agreement before beginning the Application process.

Building Options

For current housing rates, click here.

Air-conditioned residence halls are the Christiana Towers, Independence Complex, Ray Street, Rodney, Sharp, Sypherd, Kent, Sussex, and Squire.

Mixed-class buildings (freshman and transfer/upperclass students) are Smyth and, under special circumstances, Squire and Warner.

Vacation housing is available in Independence Complex and the Christiana Towers only. If you wish to live on campus during academic-year break periods, you should request one of these locations as your first choice. If you are a resident of the Christiana Towers, there is no additional fee for vacation housing. If you are assigned to Independence Complex, you may request to remain in your room during academic-year break periods for a nominal fee.

Building options for returning students:

Independence Complex, located on Laird Campus, houses upperclassmen in Thomas McKean, James Smith, and Independence Hall. Freshmen will be housed in George Read North and South.

Independence Complex offers students the Friends Together option, allowing groups of friends to live in adjacent suites.

The Christiana Towers Complex is comprised of two high-rise residence halls, which together accomodate approximately 1,298 upperclass students. Students are housed in apartment suites, which contain a living/dining room, kitchenette, bathroom, and one or two bedrooms.

The Christiana Towers Apartments are home to the Global Community. Friends Together Housing is also available.

The Ray Street Complex is home to Special Interest Housing , a place where students can live and work with like-minded students of various disciplines and interests and develop a learning environment that supports both their interests and academics. The three Ray Street residence halls house 344 students in both regular and Special Interest Housing.

North Central Campus, located on the Green, consists of the Brown, Harter, Sharp, and Sypherd residence halls. Living on North Central offers students easy access to the heart of campus. Trabant University Center is directly across the street, and Main Street is just steps away.

Large rooms and suites and Upperclass Honors Housing are available on this part of campus.

South Central Campus is comprised of the Cannon, Kent, New Castle, Smyth, Squire, Sussex, and Warner residence halls.

South Central offers students several Unique Housing Options, such as Upperclass Honors, large rooms and suites, and Substance-Free Housing. Warner Hall, home to the Women's Interest Community, is an all-female building. A Return Request option is also available for students wishing to stay in their building for the following year.

Unique Housing Options

Unique Housing Options (UHO) offer students a range of possible living accomodations, allowing residents to share space with others who possess common interests, lifestyles, or backgrounds. Choosing a UHO is entirely optional. Options currently available include Friends Together, the Global Community, Large Rooms & Suites, Special Interest Housing Communities, Substance-Free Housing, Upperclass Honors, and the Women's Interest Community. For more information about any particular option, click that respective link, or visit this page.

For students wishing to live in Unique Housing, a supplemental application is required. In addition, you must note that you are applying for a UHO (specify which) on your Housing Application.

Supplemental applications can be accessed through the Unique Housing Options webpage, under each UHO's description.

Presently, supplemental applications are not required for the Women's Interest Community and Upperclass Honors. Honors students who are matriculated in the Honors program with a 3.0 GPA or above are guaranteed Upperclass Honors Housing. Non-honors students with a 3.0 GPA or above may apply, but are not guaranteed. Honors students requesting to live with non-Honors students are also not guaranteed. If you are applying for Upperclass Honors Housing, use the "Specific Building Request" section of the Application to specify in which Upperclass Honors building you would like to live. Choose whether you would prefer a single or double room by selecting one in the "Room/Apartment" section. If you are unable to be assigned to an Upperclass Honors floor, you will be contacted by Housing Assignment Services.

Except for Upperclass Honors Housing applicants, all students who submit UHO applications are assigned manually. Return Requests, number of semesters on campus, and other criteria are all considered in making UHO assignments. Please be sure to read your supplemental application for complete details on your UHO's particular assignment process.

If you are unable to be assigned to a UHO, Housing Assignment Services will attempt to place you in the type of housing you indicate on the Preference Form. Please note the preference order of all UHOs you are applying for (if more than one) on the Preference Form, as well. If you have applied for more than one UHO and are not assigned to your first choice, then your other UHO applications will be considered before assigning you to any other type of housing.

Roommate Captain

If you are applying to live with a roommate (or roommates), you must select a Roommate Captain. When determining housing assignments, the computer program recognizes the Roommate Captain, identifying each student as part of a specific roommate group. Thus, the same Roommate Captain's name must be on the forms of all roommates within that group (including those of the Roommate Captain). Designating the person who has lived on campus the most number of semesters as the Roommate Captain will give your group an advantage.

NOTE: If one or more of your roommate group applied for housing after the housing application deadline of March 15, your group will be assigned after all students who met the application deadline have been assigned.

Return Request Option

If you are applying for the same type of housing you lived in the previous year, you may choose to return to your same building or same room if you are in an upperclass area. If you are a current resident of a Return Request building, you are guaranteed reassignment to the same room if you have a full group (two persons for a one-bedroom apartment, four persons for a two-bedroom apartment, or two persons for a double room), and the Roommate Captain is a student who is currently living in that space. Certain exceptions apply:

  • It is possible that a particular apartment on a floor may be needed to fulfill a "Friends Together" request, or a particular room may be needed to fulfill another Unique Housing Option. In these cases, students are still guaranteed reassignment to their buildings, but not necessarily to the same room or apartment.
  • If you and a current roommate both request to return to the same apartment but with different roommates, the priority group and random numbers of the Roommate Captains will determine whose request is honored. Both roommate groups will be assigned to the same building.

If you choose to apply for a Return Request, it is important that you still complete your Preferences Form with information you will want considered, in the event that your Return Request cannot be honored.

Applying for Housing

You may apply for on-campus housing and submit your Preferences Form using the Online Returning Student Housing Application. To access these forms, you will need to have either prepaid your $200 housing deposit (prior to accessing the Application) or you may pay by credit card, ACH payment, or with your UD1 FLEX account if you have an available balance of at least $200. If you are uncomfortable submitting your Application and Preference Form online, you may contact Housing Assignment Services at (302) 831-3676, or e-mail your request to UD-Housing@udel.edu.

In order to guarantee your on-campus housing assignment for the upcoming year, your Application and Preferences Form must be received by Housing Assignment Services no later than March 15, 2009. Although HAS will try to accommodate students who submit their Application after the March 15 deadline, on-campus housing cannot be guaranteed to students who apply after that date.

All matriculated students who submit applications by March 15 are assigned based on the number of Fall and Spring semesters they have lived on campus. Within each "priority group" (students who have lived on campus the same number of semesters), the applications are given random, computer-generated numbers. The Roommate Captain's priority group and random number will determine the order of assignment for each applicant or applicant group. Spring 2009 counts as a full semester of residence.

The Application will ask various questions about your living preferences, which will be taken into account when determining your assignment. Below is a list of categories that the Application will include, and an explanation of each:

  • Specific building request: You may pick up to three buildings which you would like to be housed in. Please list buildings using their three-digit codes, which can be found on the Preferences Form.
  • Room type: Choose either a single or double room (or a one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartment, if applying to live in the Christiana Towers).
  • Location: If applying to live in the residence halls, rank each available option. Your top choice should be marked "1," your second choice "2," and so on. Choose each location only once. If you indicate specific buildings, your specific building request will override your location preferences.
  • Hall type: You may choose only one hall type. Please note that Room Type and Location always take precedence over Hall Type preference.

You will also be asked to rank each of these preference categories in priority order, according to which specification is most important to you. This prioritization, your group's number of semester's on campus, and your randomly assigned number will all affect your housing assignment. The assignment program will do its best to satisfy as many preferences as possible based on your order of importance. Thus, consider what is most important to you as you prioritize your preferences.

Additional Notes Regarding the Christiana Towers Apartments

Students may increase their chances of getting placed in the Towers by having Full Apartment Advantage. Full-apartment groups are either (a) two students applying for a one-bedroom apartment, or (b) four students applying for a two-bedroom apartment. Partial groups are either (a) one student requesting a one-bedroom apartment, or (b) fewer than four students requesting a two-bedroom apartment. Partial groups will be assigned after full groups, in the order of the Roommate Captain's priority group and random number.

If you wish to include an incoming transfer student in your group, please contact Housing Assignment Services at (302) 831-3676.

Also, Christiana Towers applicants will be asked to designate a floor preference. Floors 1 through 5 are considered "lower," floors 6 through 11 "middle," and floors 12 through 17 "upper." Please choose whichever floor range best fits your needs and preferences.

How to Ask for What You Want

If you want a double room with a specific roommate:

  • Select your Roommate Captain's name. If you are the Roommate Captain, enter your name.
  • If one student has lived on campus more semesters or has selected the Return Request option, that student should be designated as the Roommate Captain.
  • You will be assigned to the same room according to the preferences listed on the Roommate Captain's form, as long as empty double rooms are available and you have indicated Roommate as your top priority.
  • If no double rooms remain at the time of your assignment, you and your requested roommate will be assigned separately according to the preferences noted on your individual forms.
  • If you or your roommate applied for on-campus housing after March 15, the student who applied after the deadline is not guaranteed housing and will be assigned only after all guaranteed students are assigned.

If you want a double room but do not have a specific roommate request:

  • The system will read your "Roommate Characteristics" preferences and will try to match you with someone whose responses are compatible with yours.

If a single is the most important factor to you:

  • Select Room Type as your top priority. However, please keep in mind that a limited number of singles are available.
  • Call Housing Assignment Services at (302) 831-3676 as soon as possible for further instructions.

If you want to live with a specific roommate or roommates in the Christiana Towers:

  • Decide which one of you will serve as the Roommate Captain. If you select the student who has lived on campus the most semesters and you have a full group, you will maximize your chance of receiving the type of assignment you prefer.
  • Agree on the preferences and priorities to be specified on the Roommate Captain's form. You will be assigned according to these preferences and all of the students in your group will be assigned together according to these criteria, as long as empty apartments of the type you are requesting are available.
  • Each roommate must complete a Christiana Apartment Preference Form. The forms do not have to be identical. If, for some reason, you or one of your roommates need to cancel your housing application at a later date, the preferences on each individual's form may be considered in making an assignment.
  • Make sure the Roommate Captain's name correctly appears on each person's form.

If you currently live in the Christiana Towers and want to choose the Return Request option:

  • A student who currently resides in the apartment or building in which you wish to live must serve as the Roommate Captain for your group.
  • Complete your form with information you will want considered if your Return Request cannot be honored.
  • If you are not part of a full-apartment group, your Return Request will be considered only if your apartment is not needed for a full group.

If you are applying for an apartment in the Christiana Towers and do not have a full-apartment group:

  • Individual applicants and partial groups are still guaranteed assignment, even though the preferences of full groups receive priority.
  • The system will note your responses to the "Roommate Characteristics" questions and assign you with a person or persons whose responses are as compatible with yours as possible.

Filling out the Roommate Characteristics Questionnaire

Your relationship with your roommate will play a powerful part in your overall college experience. The vast majority of roommates enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship in which they learn to rely upon one another and very often develop life-long friendships. As a returning student, you have the option of choosing a roommate to live with. However, every student is strongly encouraged to fill out the Roommate Characteristics Questionnaire, which will be used in the event that you cannot be placed with your selected roommate, that your selected roommate cancels their Housing Application or withdraws from the University, or in the event that you do not select a roommate to begin with. Even students applying for singles should fill out the questionnaire, as demand for single rooms is usually high, and many applicants for singles may be given doubles.

Again, even if you have listed whom you would like to live with on your Housing Application, you should still fill out the Roommate Questionnaire. Any student who does not complete the questionnaire runs the risk of being housed with a roommate who has not been matched for compatibility.

The questionnaire itself asks some general preference questions -- if you are a morning person or a night person, if you like to use your room for socializing or study, etc. Please respond to each question carefully and honestly. The Housing Assignment Services staff uses a computer program that will evaluate and weigh each of your responses, and will attempt to match you with another student whom you would be comfortable living with. Please note that you may not necessarily be matched with another person who answered each question with the same selection, but with someone who would be compatible according to the combined answers of all questions.

For a look at what questions will be asked in the Questionnaire, click here ( ). Please take time to read each of the “Tell me more” sections contained in the PDF, which will offer an explanation as to why the question was asked, and what you should keep in mind when responding to that question.

Housing Requests Involving Medical, Psychological, or Disability Needs

The University of Delaware strives to provide the best housing arrangement to suit your particular needs. A variety of housing options already exist to accomodate special needs and it is important when making housing decisions to consider your needs carefully. We understand that there are circumstances where particular requests and accomodations need to be considered. Requests for exceptions are evaluated through the Office of Disability Support Services (DSS).

Any returning student with a medical, pshycological, or disability need should complete the Housing Requests due to Medical, Psychological, or Disability Reasons form, and return it to the DSS Office by March 15.

To accurately and equitably evaluate requests for housing based upon medical, psychological, or disability needs, the University requires documentation of your circumstance, in addition to the request form. Documentation should include an evaluation by an appropriate professional that relates the current impact of the condition to your housing request. All information is considered confidential.

Please note that while your preferences will be considered, specific areas and types of rooms are not guaranteed.

For complete details regarding special needs housing requests, click here, or contact Housing Assignment Services at (302) 831-3676.

CEND Students

Matriculated Continuing Education students are taking at least six credits and who submit their Application and Preferences Form by the deadline will be assigned housing if space permits. Decisions will be made by mid-April, and full deposits will be refunded to students who are not assigned or guaranteed assignment. CEND students must have the minimum GPA allowed for the number of credits earned, and must not have any Code of Conduct violations. CEND students will be permitted to remain in on-campus housing only if they increase their GPA each semester. For more information about CEND eligibility, see Student Status.

Canceling Your Housing Application

Students who cancel their Application by April 15, 2009 will receive a $100 refund. After that time, students who have been assigned housing will not be eligible for a refund. Refunds will be credited to your student account. All students must pay the full charge for the type of housing they are assigned, whether or not it is the type they request on their Preferences Form.

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Sign-Up Process

What are the important dates and deadlines for the 2009 - 2010 housing process?
For a complete list of dates and deadlines, see the Housing Assignment Services calendar.

Is on-campus housing guaranteed for returning students?
Yes, students who submit their housing application and $200 deposit by March 15 are guaranteed a space on campus.

What are my payment options for the $200 deposit?
Payment by credit card, ACH payment, or UD1 FLEX are accepted for the Web application. You may also pay by cash or check (in person or through mail) to the Cashier's Office. In this case, you will be able to access the Web application 24 hours after your payment clears.

Is the housing deposit refundable?
A $100 refund is given for cancellations received by April 15.

I am not sure I want to live on campus next year. Should I stil pay the deposit?
No, the deposit should only be paid when you decide to apply for on campus housing, as deposits are not completely refundable. However, on-campus housing is only guaranteed if an application and deposit are received by March 15.

Can my financial aid package be used to pay the housing deposit?
Some financial aid packages may be used to pay the housing deposit. Contact Financial Aid at (302) 831-8761 or e-mail finaid@udel.edu with any questions.

What are the terms of the annual Student Housing Agreement?
The Student Housing Agreement is available here. The Agreement becomes binding annually on June 1. This means that if you are assigned on-campus housing, you will be obligated to pay for your assigned housing for the full academic year. For students living in traditional residence halls, a dining plan is also mandatory. If you wish to cancel your on-campus housing assignment, you must do so prior to June 1. To initiate a cancellation, contact Housing Assignment Services at (302) 831-3676, or e-mail UD-Housing@udel.edu. Contact DiningServices@udel.edu to cancel your dining plan.

Can I still apply for on-campus housing after the March 15 application deadline?
Yes, but Housing Assignment Services cannot guarantee on-campus housing. If you submit your application after March 15, you will be assigned housing as space permits, based on the date of application.

How can I change my room assignment?
If you are not satisfied with your room assignment, a Summer Room Change Request Form may be found online or obtained from Housing Assignment Services. Be sure to include your summer contact information or a cell phone number. These forms are processed throughout the summer and confirmation of any change in your room assignment will be available online. While Housing Assignment Services makes every effort to accommodate student preferences, some areas of campus may be more popular than others in any given year, thereby limiting the ability to reassign you.

If I am accepted into a Study Abroad program, can I be released from the Housing Agreement?
Students who are accepted into a Study Abroad program must cancel their housing within two weeks of their acceptance in order to receive a full refund of the housing deposit. Students may also defer their housing until the Spring Semester, retaining their priority. Students will receive information in their acceptance letters regarding this.

I am going to rush for a fraternity/sorority. If I decide to live in the chapter house, can I cancel my housing?
Students who are new pledges may cancel their housing application by March 31 and will receive a full refund of their deposit as long as their names are included on the list of house members. Special cancellation forms are available online.