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Housing & Residential Life

Changes to the Housing Selection Process

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Undergraduate Housing Selection Changes

Cornell Housing & Residential Life is are thrilled to announce many exciting changes to the on-campus room selection process. Thanks to YOUR feedback from focus groups and surveys conducted last year, we are making significant improvements to simplify processes, which we’ll continue to roll out in the months ahead. To give you a preview of what to expect:  

  • RISING JUNIORS AND SENIORS WILL NOW GET FIRST CHOICE FOR GENERAL ROOM SELECTION, TAKING PLACE IN SEPTEMBER
    For the first time ever, we’ll be launching the room selection process for our upper-level students during the fall semester, which means that you will get first choice in the Room Selection process. The adjusted timing also ensures you have the best understanding of your on-campus and off-campus options, allowing you to make informed decisions for the 2024-2025 academic year. 

    This new, streamlined process will make it easier to select your housing for next year, regardless of whether you wish to live on North Campus, South Campus, or West Campus. Rising juniors and rising seniors get first choice if they want to stay in their current room. After same-room selection, they can choose whether they want to select a different room within their current community (for example, to stay on West campus but move to a different house or building) or switch to a new community altogether. 

    To review the new process please visit the on-campus application process page.
     
  • THERE ARE MORE BEDS AVAILABLE IN MORE DESIRABLE LOCATIONS FOR JUNIORS AND SENIORS 

    Being an upper-level student should have perks, right?  You asked for more singles, Townhouse Apartments, West Campus rooms and access to newer buildings… you got them.  

    On North Campus, explore the new housing options for upper-level students. Whether you are looking for the community and setup of a single in one of our new buildings or prefer the lifestyle and convenience of an in-unit kitchen in an apartment, we have the perfect fit for your housing needs.

    West Campus is also increasing the options and opportunities for rising juniors and rising seniors by providing more rooms and building options than ever before. Visit the West Campus Housing System to learn more about this living-learning community. 

    In addition to new options being available, the new process will have more freedom of movement to other locations. Students are not limited to selecting in the area they are currently living in. Check a new location off of your Cornell bucket list!

    For example, if you are a Rising Junior living in Cascadilla on South Campus, you can choose to stay on South Campus but change your building to Sheldon Court. Or, if you want to stay in the same building but change your room, you can do that too! The new room selection process allows students to choose rooms in a cascading timeline starting with same-room selection, same community/building selection, and then opening up to general room selection to any open spaces on campus that have been designated as Junior and Senior housing.

     
  • A NEW AND SIMPLE “SAME ROOM” SELECTION PROCESS 

    If you will be living on campus this coming fall and want to keep your same room and have the opportunity to pull in preferred roommates, we’ll help make that happen.

    Please note that some buildings are designated for specific class years, such as first-year or second-year students. Students living in these halls will not be able to participate in the Same Room process.

    Preferred Roommates: You can pull in an eligible person to live with you if there is still space in your room after the Same Room process. For example, if both you and your current roommate go through Same Room, then there’s no space to pull in an additional person. But if your current roommate does not participate in same room, you will have an opportunity to pull-in a friend who meets the qualifications for that location.  

    Please note that rising sophomores are not eligible to be pulled in at that time.  

  

 

Application Process

Learn more about the application process by visiting the Current Undergrad Application Process page and reviewing the step-by-step instructions.

 

Questions and Answers 

We encourage you to explore the Room Selection FAQs page to learn more about common questions and answers to the housing selection process.