On-Campus Housing
Students in their first four terms of enrollment must live on campus unless they are married or are at least twenty-one years of age on the first day of classes of the term in question. On-campus housing is guaranteed to first-year students and sophomores, for whom residence is required. Housing is generally available for all who request it, but availability is not guaranteed. Please visit the Yale College Undergraduate Regulations for more information.
Battery-Powered Micro-Mobility Devices
Due to the risk of fire, all battery-powered micro-mobility devices (e-scooters, e-skateboards, e-bikes, etc.) are prohibited from Yale University residential properties (e.g., Yale College Housing, Yale Graduate Housing, University Properties, and all other Yale owned or leased residential buildings). This prohibition includes storage and charging. Approved mobility devices for people with disabilities are exempt from this policy.
Room Change Requests
Students must live in the rooms to which they have been assigned and should not expect to change rooms during the academic year. Room changes outside a student’s current suite are considered only in limited circumstances, such as unresolvable maintenance issues that render a room unusable or approved medical accommodations with the support of the Student Accessibility Services Office.
Given the limited availability of room changes outside a student’s assigned suite, room changes typically considered during the academic year is an in-suite room switch.
Changing Rooms Within a Suite
In-suite room changes may be considered when all members of the suite agree to the proposed switch. Students must email undergraduatehousing@yale.edu copying their residential college dean’s office, and include all roommates/suitemates on the message to confirm mutual agreement.
To maintain fairness and operational efficiency, in-suite room change requests are not accepted during the following freeze periods:
Fall Term Requests: July 15 - September 1
Spring Term Requests: December 15 - January 12
Filling Empty Rooms
Any and all available beds within a residential college can be filled at any time and without prior notice to students. In the event that there remain one or more empty beds, rooms, or suites, these spaces will be made available for assignment to students without other housing. Should a bed become available due to a student taking a leave of absence or a term abroad, that empty bed may be assigned according to the needs of the college.
Housing Requests
Any student who has not secured housing at the end of a current room draw cycle, is returning from leave or a term abroad, or has previously relinquished housing, and still desires to live on campus may submit a request for housing via the Housing Portal. As space becomes available, students are assigned to vacancies first within their residential college. If no spaces remain there, assignments may be made in annex housing and/or across the residential colleges.
Please note the following important information:
- Students can submit a request for housing via the Housing Portal for a given term:
- Requests for Fall term housing can be submitted beginning in February (after the intent declaration deadline has passed) up until the start of Fall term classes.
- Requests for Spring term housing can be submitted beginning in September up until the start of Spring term classes.
- Housing placements for a given term are processed on a rolling basis. Once the fall/spring placement periods begin, students can expect to receive notification of their status within 5-7 business days of submitting a request.
- The placement period for the fall term opens in April.
- The placement period for the spring term opens in November.
- Students will be assigned to partially filled suites and will have suitemates and/or a roommate. Submitting a request for housing does not guarantee assignment to a single room.
- Students may be placed in Annex housing if there are no available spaces in a residential college.
- Students currently seeking reinstatement may still request housing. Please note that eligibility to receive a housing assignment is contingent upon reinstatement approval.
- When submitting a request for housing, students will have the opportunity to provide additional relevant information to aid in their placement. Please note that while requests related to placements will be considered, they are unlikely to be met.
- Upon submitting your request, you will see your status in the housing portal as Pending Room Assignment.
- Historically, there has been room for every student who wishes to live on campus.
Bathroom Designations
Residential Colleges designate bathrooms within the college as single-gender or gender-inclusive. Students are able to live in rooms and suites of any gender configuration, but bathrooms will have a gender assignment of women’s bathroom, men’s bathroom, or gender-inclusive bathroom. These bathroom types will alternate, so that students can always find options by heading up- or downstairs.
With bathrooms designated as women’s, men’s, or gender-inclusive, students have the autonomy over their living arrangements and can prioritize roommate choice without worrying about bathroom location. Students can be assured that a suitable bathroom will be accessible within their entryway, even if it’s not on their specific floor.
Religious Accommodations
Yale College has no formal religious accommodation policy, but the residential colleges and the housing team will take reasonable steps to meet students’ needs. For example, students with sabbath obligations can be issued physical keys and assigned to colleges without automatic lighting or plumbing.
Relinquishing Housing
Students may relinquish their housing at any time; however, they should be mindful of any applicable relinquishment fees and/or eligibility requirements at the time of relinquishment.
Juniors and Seniors can relinquish their housing directly through the Housing Portal prior to the start of a given term. Because first-year and sophomore students have a two-year live-on requirement, they must email undergraduatehousing@yale.edu to confirm their eligibility before moving off-campus.
Important Relinquishment Deadlines
- Fall Term: The deadline to relinquish housing without financial penalty is the day before Room Selection opens during the Room Draw process.
- Spring Term: The deadline to relinquish housing without financial penalty is November 30th.
Students contract for housing for the full academic year. Relinquishing housing for one term results in the cancellation of housing for both the fall and spring terms.
For example, a student who relinquishes housing for the fall term also relinquishes their spring term housing. Students who plan to return for the spring must submit a new Housing Request via the Housing Portal.
Fees & Reimbursement Schedule
An undergraduate who participates in the room draw of a residential college in the spring and accepts a room as a result of the draw, has contracted for that room. If that student subsequently relinquishes the room, they may be subjected to a relinquishment fee and/or per diem charges. Please refer to Financial Services Regulations for the complete fee/reimbursement schedule.
Once a change to housing has been made and confirmed by the Undergraduate Housing office, a student can expect to see an update to their student account within one week. If after one week the charges have not been updated, the student should reach out to Student Accounts for assistance.