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Cornell University

Housing & Residential Life

Residential Support

As you settle into your new home on campus, we encourage you to take full advantage of the resources and support services available to you. Whether you need assistance with housing questions, want to explore campus facilities, or simply seek a friendly face to chat with, our dedicated team is here to help make your transition as smooth as possible.   

Here are some of the Housing and Residential Life teams and resources available to support you as you transition into life at Cornell. 

  • Resident Advisors (RAs) - Upper-level students who live in your building and serve as a resource as you navigate Cornell. RAs help develop community and can be a valuable resource as you assimilate to life at college. You can expect individual check-ins with your RA called “RA Chats,” which you will learn more about when you move in.
  • Residence Hall Directors (RHDs) - Full-time professional staff members who manage Cornell’s residence halls and the building’s RA team and live on-campus. The RHDs serve in a 24-hour/7 days per week on-call rotation to ensure there is always somewhere there when you may need them.
  • Faculty-in-Residence (FIR) - Faculty members who live in first-year residence halls on North Campus to support a robust residential experience and engage residents in meaningful discussions and activities.
  • Housing and Residential Life Office – A full-time team of professional staff members who are here to help answer your on-campus living questions and help guide you through housing decisions and experiences during your time at Cornell.
  • Undergraduate Resident Fellows (URF) - Help create a positive, vibrant and academically engaging living-learning community. URFs serve as peer mentors to undergraduate residents with a particular focus on the well-being of individual House members in the West Campus House System.
  • Graduate Resident Fellow (GRF) - Graduate Resident Fellows are PhD students who live in-House and who support the House Professor-Dean, Assistant Dean, and House Fellows on West Campus in creating a positive, vibrant and academically engaging living-learning community.  GRFs serve as mentors and role models to undergraduate residents, and they serve in leadership roles for academic enrichment by promoting a variety of programs and activities.
  • House Professor-Dean and House Assistant Dean - Each House in the West Campus House System is overseen by a House Professor-Dean, a tenured faculty member who is the leader of the House's intellectual program, and an Assistant Dean, a student affairs professional who directs the multiple functions of the House and shares responsibility with the House Professor-Dean for the realization of the House's educational mission.
  • House Fellows - House Fellows are Cornell faculty and senior administrators who engage with West Campus residents through intellectual and social opportunities that enhance student-faculty-staff interaction within the House. 

For a list of Residential Support staff, please visit the Housing and Residential Life staff directory or explore the West Campus House System.