Why are students on the Guaranteed Housing List?
As we have increased the number of students that live on-campus as freshmen and improved the on-campus community, more students wanted to remain in housing as upperclassmen. We have received a record number of applications for the 2011/2012 academic year, and we temporarily reached capacity. Students that are on the Guaranteed Housing List are GUARANTEED housing for the 2011/2012 academic year. They will receive their assignment during the remainder of the Spring 2011 semester and throughout the summer.
How will students know what is happening and when will they receive their assignment?
We will begin assigning the Guaranteed Housing List on April 25, 2011 and will continue to do so throughout the summer. We will be sending regular updates to students on the Guaranteed Housing List, via email and postings on our website, updating them to their status on the Guaranteed Housing List.
What is being done to ensure there is enough space available?
Historically, our office processes several hundred cancellations over the summer from students whose plans change. The spaces that open from this process have previously been enough to cover demand from the Guaranteed Housing list.
Additionally, Mason is in the process of negotiating leases at a number of apartment complexes in our area. This will accelerate the Guaranteed Housing List assignment process and provide an enhanced range of options for our students. More details about this option will be available in the coming weeks. We appreciate your patience as we firm up the details!
- The majority of available units will be two and three bedroom double occupancy apartments (4 or 6 to a unit) with full kitchens, basic furnishings provided, utilities and cable included in the cost, and close to campus with CUE bus service. These properties include other great on-site amenities including quality community rooms, fitness facilities, outdoor recreational options (including pools), parking and more.
- Students who elect to live in these apartments will be assigned to available spaces with other Mason students. Priority will be given to groups of students that can fill entire units. This option will be available both to students on the Guaranteed Housing list and to students who selected on-campus but see these apartments as a better fit for their needs.
- The Office of Housing and Residence Life will provide on-site staff.
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 April 21, 2011
Hi Everyone!
Doubles/Roommate selection is complete, so we are gearing up for General Selection for April 4 and 5. All students who are eligible to participate in Housing Selection who have not yet selected may still participate in General Selection.
In anticipation that some people may be surprised by what rooms are still available, keep the following in mind:
- Approximately 1000 people retained their current space or were assigned to an LLC space
- Approximately 1200 people selected during the Doubles/Roommates process
The room countdown tool shows that the majority of rooms left are singles or triples, with scattered spaces available in partially filled doubles. Don’t forget that the majority of people left to select are people who wanted singles, triples, or didn’t have a preferred roommate.
Students who are eligible to participate in General Selection will receive an email reminder on April 1.
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 April 1, 2011
Below are some numbers that give you a sense of how many people applied for housing, what they are hoping to select, what we anticipate the Guaranteed Waitlist to look like, etc.
# applications received: 3993 (2171 female, 1822 male)
# people retaining alone or with their current roommate: 763
# people retaining and pulling in a new roommate/suitemates: 109
# people hoping for singles: 1240 (699 female, 541 male)
# people hoping for triples: 112 (46 female, 66 male)
# people hoping for doubles who have a preferred roommate: 1418 (800 female, 618 male)
# people hoping for doubles who do not have a preferred roommate: 235 (104 female, 131 male)
(Yes, we know those numbers don’t add up to exactly 3993 – there are a handful of applications that were canceled due to lack of housing Agreement, there are the students being pulled in by someone who is retaining, and there are a handful of people whose application information was incomplete and required follow-up.)
What do these numbers tell us?
Well, for starters, a lot of people are reapplying for housing! This is exciting, but it also has some consequences.
Guaranteed Waitlist: At this time, we can say that the Guaranteed Waitlist will have several hundred students on it. We can’t get more specific than that, yet. We will post more information once retention is complete and once we see how many students don’t select during their windows.
General Waitlist: Because the Guaranteed Waitlist numbers are expected to be high, the chances of a student on the General Waitlist receiving an assignment offer will be low. Students should certainly still apply for the General Waitlist if they want to live on-campus next year, but we want to make sure everyone understands that they should have a back-up plan in the event that they are not offered housing.
Triple Rooms: We noticed that demand for triples was pretty high this year. Given that overall demand for housing is high, we decided it would be a win-win to create more triple rooms for next year. There are various rooms on campus that are large enough to be used as a triple. We have turned some of these rooms into triples for next year.
Five-Person Suites: By creating triple rooms, we also created a new option! There will now be some suites in Blue Ridge, Piedmont, Shenandoah, and Tidewater that can accommodate five friends who want to live together.
Double/Roommate Selection: We were amazed (and encouraged!) by how many students indicated a preferred roommate on their application. We created this process to improve the chances that preferred roommate pairs will be able to select together. While we are confident that those chances have drastically improved from previous years, we want to make sure everyone understands that there still is no guarantee that a double room will be available for a roommate pair in this process. Availability of double rooms relies greatly on the outcome of the retention process. We anticipate that some of the pairs towards the end of the doubles/roommate process will need to select from spaces in partially occupied rooms. It is also possible that some pairs won’t be able to select if all spaces in doubles are chosen by the time their lottery numbers come up. In this case, they will still be able to participate in general selection. Depending on their placement in the lottery, they may end up on the Guaranteed Waitlist, too.
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 March 17, 2011
When do I select my room?
We have been contacted by a few students who think that by filling out their housing application, they are done, and that an assignment will be sent to them. Housing Selection is a three step process – the application is Step 1. Step 2 is to research the available rooms so that you are ready for Step 3 – Selecting Your Room. You (or your roommate/suitemate) will select your room during an assigned window of time in late March/early April. The full selection schedule will be posted when lottery numbers are emailed out at the end of Spring Break.
- If you are selecting on your own, you will select your own room.
- If you are selecting with a roommate, you OR your roommate will select your room. Generally the student with the lower (better) lottery number will do the selecting, since he/she will be able to enter the selection software sooner.
- If you are selecting with multiple suitemates/roommates, you or one of your suitemates will select your room. Generally the student with the lower (better) lottery number will do the selecting, since he/she will be able to enter the selection software sooner.
Once you or your roommate/suitemate has selected your room, you will receive an email prompting you to pay your housing deposit. Remember, the deposit should be paid immediately after selection, or by April 8 at the latest. If you do not pay your deposit, your assignment will be canceled. Be sure your roommate/suitemate(s) pay their deposits!
Will I go through selection if I am retaining my room?
We recently posted a page about retention on our website that covers this, but the gist is:
- If you indicated on your application that you want to retain your space on your own or that you want to retain and live with the same roommate, then you will not go through a further selection step. Your assignment will be booked by OHRL over Spring Break, and you will receive an email with instructions for paying your housing deposit. If you do not pay your deposit by April 8, your assignment will be canceled.
- If you indicated on your application that you want to retain a space and pull in a new roommate or suitemates, then you will go through a selection window after Spring Break. Students retaining and pulling in new roommates/suitemates will be assigned a selection window for Tuesday, March 22. Detailed selection instructions will be posted on our website by the end of Spring Break. After you retain, you and your roommates/suitemates must pay the housing deposit. If the student who is retaining does not pay his/her deposit, ALL students who they pulled in will have their assignment canceled, so make sure everyone pays their deposits! If one of the students pulled in does not pay his/her deposit, only he/she will have their assignment canceled. We want to ensure that no one tries to use pull-in as a way to get around the lottery process!
Can I pull in a transfer or a student who lives off-campus?
We’ve said this a few times, but it keeps coming up. Housing Selection is only for students who currently live on-campus. Transfers and off-campus students will go through separate processes, so no, you cannot pull them in.
Can I pull suitemates in during the doubles/roommate selection windows?
Yes…. mostly. Any roommate pair who mutually requests to live together will be eligible to select or be pulled in during the doubles/roommate selection windows. Students who are not part of a confirmed pair will not be recognized by the selection software as eligible for pull-in during the doubles/roommates windows.
A scenario that will work:
Four students want to live together in a suite with two doubles. They pair up so that on their applications A asks for B and B asks for A, and then C asks for D and D asks for C. They are now two confirmed pairs. Person A has the earliest lottery number, enters the selection software, places themself, and then pulls in B, C, and D.
Scenarios that will not work:
Four students want to live together in a suite with one double and two singles. A and B are a mutually requested pair and can select during the doubles window. C and D are hoping for singles. Person A has the earliest lottery number and can pull in Person B, but cannot pull in Persons C and D because they are not a mutually requested pair (and there won’t be any singles visible during that session, so he can’t place them in their preferred room size anyway).
Four students want to live together in a suite with two doubles. A and B are a mutually requested pair and can select during the doubles window. C and D did not originally request each other, but are now interested in a double. Person A has the earliest lottery number and can pull in Person B, but cannot pull in Persons C and D because they are not a mutually requested pair.
You may have noticed that we didn’t ask for suitemate information on the application. That is because it doesn’t matter who your preferred suitemates are.
- If you are participating in the doubles/roommate selection windows, if they are mutually requested pair, then you’ll be able to pull them in, regardless of how late their lottery numbers are.
- If you’re not participating in the doubles/roommates selection windows, then you will be able to pull in any suitemates who still haven’t picked a room, regardless of how late their lottery numbers are. This scenario is the same as how all of RAP worked last year.
Can I pull in roommates/suitemates during general selection?
Yes – once the doubles/roommates windows close and we enter general selection, you will be able to pull in any student who is participating in Housing Selection and who does not yet have an assignment.
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 March 9, 2011
There is no perfect Housing Selection process. The reality is that, with over 3000 students participating in Housing Selection each year, there is going to be a range of preferences, and no one process will meet everyone’s expectations. The best we can do is offer a process that is fair and transparent. Each year we look at feedback from students and take opportunities to tweak the process and make improvements that will have the most positive impact on the most students.
Many of the conversations we have had with students this year seem to center around the idea that people have to make a choice between two or more priorities. For example, students who are interested in mixed singles and doubles suites aren’t sure if they should have their doubles select during the earlier round of selection set aside for roommate pairs, or whether they should hold off and all pick together during general selection. That decision is going to be different for each group, but that’s part of the benefit of our process – groups get to choose what is right for them, rather than having OHRL make a decision or assumption about what is best. Some groups will decide that letting the pairs take advantage of the doubles/roommate process is worth it, other groups will decide that being guaranteed the ability to pick at the same time (even if it may mean not ending up in the exact same suite) is the better option.
We understand that making that choice may be difficult, but it is ultimately your (and your roommate/suitemate(s)) decision to make, based on your own priorities. We are going to give you as much information as possible to help you make your decision. Check out the room and suite type availability lists and the floorplans now, and after lottery numbers are released, use our lottery number tool to see where you fall in the selection order.
We’ll be posting more information over Spring Break and will keep students with active applications updated!
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 March 9, 2011
Step 2 of the Housing Selection process is “Research.” We’re encouraging participating students to go to our website and research the available rooms and suites. It’s important that, when your selection time comes along in late March or early April, it isn’t the first time you’ve seen what’s out there. Equally important – we want you to have a realistic sense of what room types are widely available, and which are limited in supply.
For example, we hear a lot of students asking what their chances are of getting a Northern Neck “supersingle” (a 1-bedroom single suite with a kitchen). Take a moment to check out our Room Type and Suite Type availability charts. There are only eight of those suite types on-campus, and, of those, there is a good chance the current residents will retain a few of them. So, in short, there isn’t much chance selecting that particular room type.
Once the Housing Selection application deadline has passed, we’ll post some statistics about the applicant pool. You can combine that information with the information in the Room Type and Suite Type availability charts to get a better estimate of your chances of selecting a certain room type or suite type (or building location).
Towards the end of Spring Break, when we send out lottery numbers, we will be posting two tools to further help you make some predictions about your possible selection outcome:
- Room Type Counter – this tool will show a countdown of how many rooms are available of each room type, by gender. As rooms are selected, it will update so you can see what is still left.
- Lottery Number Counter – You’ll be able to enter your lottery number and gender to see how many people of your gender are selecting ahead of you.
So, it’s time to start researching what’s out there. Check out the floorplans, housing rates, room and suite availability charts, and RA room locations to get started!
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 March 4, 2011
We have been getting a lot of questions about how pull-ins will work.
First – a definition for those who don’t know what we are talking about: Pull-in refers to a portion of the selection process where the first person in a pair or group selects their space, and then also selects the remaining space(s) for their preferred roommate(s)/suitemate(s). For example: in every roommate pair, one person will select and then pull-in the other person.
How Pull-In works:
In any given roommate pair or suite group, there will be a person who has the “best” lottery number. They will be able to log-in to select the room/suite first. (Other students with later numbers can also log-in, select, and pull-in, but most groups will have their earliest person do this.) Once they log-in and select a room for themselves, they will have the opportunity to pull-in one or more students to fill more beds in the suite. You do not have to fill the suite (though we certainly encourage you to do so!).
The person doing the selecting will need to know the pull-in password and meal plan preference for each person they are pulling in. The pull-in password is unique to each student, and will be emailed to you with your lottery number.
You should only give your pull-in password to someone who has permission to select your room! It is your responsibility to make sure that the person selecting for you knows your preferences and your limitations (for example – if you can’t afford a single room, make sure they know that).
Pull-in scenarios that WILL work:
- Retaining: The current resident of a suite (with singles, doubles, or mixed singles and doubles) is retaining his/her room and wants to pull-in one or more students to fill (or partially fill) the suite. (NOTE: make sure that the current residents of the suite don’t have competing plans. If a suite has two beds, only two people can live in it!)
- Singles Suites: The first student in a pair or group selects a single in a suite of all singles. They can then pull-in one or more students to other room(s) in the suite.
- Doubles Suites: The first student in a pair or group selects a space in a double in a suite of all doubles. They can then pull-in one or more students to other room(s) in the suite. *Note – this is true during both the Doubles/Roommate portion of selection and during General Selection.
- Mixed Single/Double Suites – During General Selection: The first student in a pair or group selects a space in a single or double in a mixed suite. They can then pull in one or more students to other room(s) in the suite.
- Mixed Single/Double Suites – During Doubles/Roommate Selection: The first student in a pair or group selects a space in a double in a mixed suite during Doubles/Roommate selection. They can only pull roommates/suitemates into the other double in the suite.
Pull-in scenarios that will NOT work:
- Mixed Single/Double Suites: The first student in a pair or group selects a space in a double in a mixed suite during Doubles/Roommate selection. They will not be able to pull into the single rooms. They can only pull roommates/suitemates into the other double in the suite.
- Transfers/Off-Campus roommates: Only students who have on-campus assignments (or are on Study Away but had Fall 2010 assignments) for Spring 2011 can participate in Housing Selection. Eligible students cannot pull-in or select with incoming Fall 2011 transfer students or with students who currently live off-campus. There are separate housing applications/processes for transfers and for students who wish to move on campus and apply for the General Waitlist.
We have talked to several students who are confused about how the Doubles/Roommate selection impacts pull-ins. The entire General Selection process, which happens after the Doubles/Roommate selection, will function the same as selection did last year during RAP. The only difference for this year is that mutually requested roommate pairs will have the chance to select their rooms before general selection, if they so choose. Pairs are not required to take advantage of the Doubles/Roommate process if they would prefer to live in a mixed singles/doubles suite with friends. We recommend that pairs with that preference should skip Doubles/Roommates and select during General Selection.
Remember – who you live with will have a far greater impact on your experience than which building you live in!
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 February 22, 2011
In an effort to respond to student feedback about the former Housing Selection process (aka RAP), we updated the selection order for the 2011-2012 process. Students who request to live with each other on their housing applications will be able to select a double room earlier in the selection process.
In previous years, students earlier in the process who were selecting without a roommate scattered themselves in the double rooms. As a result, roommate pairs later in the process were unable to select a double together, because there were only individual spaces left, not any fully empty doubles. Imagine you’re getting on a bus that you know will fill up. As people filter on, everyone sits in an empty row, and then the people who get on the bus later eventually take up the second seat in the row. The same is true for room selection, only the outcome lasts an academic year, not just a few hours!
We determined that by moving roommate pairs to the front of the selection process, the pairs will have a significantly increased ability to select together. The credit hours order will be preserved within the doubles process, so seniors seeking doubles will have earlier lottery numbers than sophomores seeking doubles, etc. The doubles selection will have no impact on single rooms, since only double rooms will be available for selection during this part of the process.
We’ve been fielding a variety of questions about this at our info sessions and via email, most of which have to do with suites that are mixed singles and doubles. Examples of the scenarios that have been posed include:
- 3 people hoping to select a suite together as a pair and a single.
- 3 people hoping to select two doubles and leave a space for a random person.
- 4 people hoping to select a suite together as a pair and two singles.
- 5 people hoping to select a 6-person suite.
We considered situations like this when determining what the selection order for 2011-2012 would be. Ultimately, when weighing the impact of doubles selecting first against scenarios like those above, we determined that the guaranteed positive impact for roommate pairs will be greater than the potential negative impact for students in the above scenarios. It is important to remember that there was no guarantee in previous years that the students in the above scenarios would be able to select together. In the 2011-2012 process there is still a significant opportunity for them to select together during general selection.
So, what options exist for students in the above situations? Well, the easiest solution is to utilize the roommate finding events, Facebook group, and other social networking to find another person and pair up. If that doesn’t work out, there are two options:
- The whole group waits until general selection to pick.
- The pairs select during doubles selection and cross their fingers that the other bedspaces in the suite will remain open long enough during general selection for their remaining suitemates to select them.
If you take the second route, the people in the doubles are stuck where they are, regardless of whether the leftover suitemates can select with them or not. In #1, everyone gets to make a decision together, look at the remaining rooms, and figure out the best scenario for the whole group. Maybe a suite that fits you is available, maybe there are two neighboring suites with enough space for you, so you could at least be assured of living on the same floor or in the same building together, etc. In the end, it’s your choice – we just want you to make an informed decision!
A final thought… Which is more important to your happiness and success in your living situation – the people you live with, or where you live?
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 February 9, 2011
As we begin sharing information about Housing Selection for 2011-2012, we know at least a few of you will wonder what happened to RAP.
We’re trying hard to respond to student concerns, and one of the first things we hear is that that our processes are confusing. The first step in making a process more clear is to name it something that clearly describes what it is. Not everyone knew that RAP stood for Room Assignment Process. Even if they did, it technically wasn’t an assignment process, it is a selection process, since students select your own rooms during it!
RAP is dead (or so we hear), long live Housing Selection! Follow us on Twitter and Facebook to get up to date information as the process unfolds!
Posted in Housing Selection 2011-2012 January 26, 2011
Posted in Uncategorized March 17, 2010
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