Returning Student Housing Application
Returning Student Housing Application
Rising sophomores, juniors, seniors, students enrolled in a 4+1 or 3+2 program and Flex Pathway students transitioning to Newark in the fall are eligible to apply for returning student housing.
Living on campus as a returning student is not required, but students must apply in the My Housing Portal to be considered for a space. There is no fee to apply, and the application is not first-come, first-served.
The Roommate Manager and Housing Communities sections are optional if students would like to request a roommate or apply to live in a Living Learning or Theme Housing Community. Roommate requests may be restricted for certain communities.
Students interested in moving off campus can find resources to assist with that search on the Living Off Campus page.
2027–2028 Returning Student
Application Opens
Monday, February 8, 2027
2027–2028 Returning Student
Application Deadline
Thursday, March 4, 5 p.m.
Priority Order for Housing Guarantee
First-time freshmen admitted during the current academic year will be automatically guaranteed on-campus housing for their second year if they apply by the posted deadline.
All other returning students are not automatically guaranteed on-campus housing; guarantees will depend on the number of applications received and our available spaces each year. The priority order for these students to be guaranteed a space will generally be based on the term a student was admitted to UD, with students admitted most recently receiving highest priority. Priority will be averaged for roommate groups with different admit terms. Factors like academic credits, GPA, residency, financial aid, etc. do NOT factor into housing guarantee.
All students with a valid application on file by the deadline will receive an email about one week after the application closes indicating whether they have been guaranteed housing.
Priority to be guaranteed housing differs from priority for determining actual room assignments, which is explained below.
Traditional, suite- and apartment-style housing will all be available to returning students, each type making up about one third of our returning student inventory. Single rooms are limited. Final housing placements will depend on what kinds of spaces are available at the time that students select or are assigned to a space.
When applying for housing, students are applying to live on campus in general, not for a specific type of space. We do not guarantee assigntment to a particular style of housing, building, room or with a particular roommate.
Apartments only make up about 30% of our housing inventory for returning students, so we cannot guarantee placement in an apartment. If students only want to live in an apartment, they should consider off-campus housing options.
Once a student’s basic application is complete, they may create verified roommate groups of 2–4 with other applicants in the Roommate Manager section of the My Housing Portal until the application deadline. Group size does not guarantee placement in a specific room type.
While most students in roommate groups are able to be assigned together somewhere on campus, forming a roommate group does not guarantee assignment together nor in a specific room type, which will depend on space availability at the time of assignment.
Students applying to live in a Living Learning or Theme Housing Community may only create a group with other students who have also applied to that community. That means all group members must apply to the community separately, and groups may be separated who do not meet this criteria as of the application deadline.
Students with a medical or dietary circumstance that may impact their housing can request reasonable housing accommodations by submitting additional documentation to the appropriate office for consideration. Both a housing application and accommodation paperwork must be submitted by the housing application deadline.
There is no upfront fee to complete a housing application, and students can cancel their application without fee before being guaranteed housing.
Once guaranteed and through 11:59 p.m. the night before the contract binding date, students can still cancel their application with a $200 cancellation fee.
Starting on the contract binding date, students become legally bound to the contract and can no longer cancel their application.
Students applying by the February deadline will have a binding date in June, which will be communicated throughout the application process.
To cancel their application before becoming legally bound, students should log into the My Housing portal, go to the Application Status section, select Cancel Application/Request for Release from the menu dropdown and follow the steps for the application.
Housing Application Steps
There are three different sections available to returning students in the housing application process:
- Basic Application (required)
- Housing Communities (optional)
- Roommate Manager (optional)
Completing the basic application in the Apply for Housing section of the My Housing Portal is required of all applicants.
The Roommate Manager and Housing Communities sections are optional if students want to request up to three roommates or apply to live in an optional Theme Housing or Living Learning Community (LLC). Roommate requests are restricted to community members for all returning student housing communities.
Basic Application
(Required of All Applicants)
- Review application instructions.
- Electronically sign the housing contract (if under 18, parent/legal guardian must sign).
- Agree to the cancellation fee policy.
- Your application is valid! Receive confirmation email.
- Confirm demographic and emergency contact information.
- Provide optional identity details.
- Get instructions to submit housing accommodations, if needed.
- Answer lifestyle questions.
- Complete the room interest poll.
- Submit the basic application and learn about next steps.
Optional Sections
After submitting the basic application, students gain access to these optional processes up until the application closes.
Housing Communities Section
- Read about the upper division communities being offered for next year.
- Indicate which type of community you want to apply to: Honors Housing (Honors Program students only), Living Learning Community (LLC) or Theme Housing Community.
- Select the community you want to join.
- Complete required essay questions.
- Receive email confirming submission.
Roommate Manager Section
- Review instructions to either create a new roommate group, join an existing group with specific students, search for potential roommates or view suggested roommates.
- Accept or decline pending invitations to join a group.
- Receive emails confirming new group members or other changes to the group.
- Verify your group.