By Cece Burkett
Housing Selection is an exciting process available to returning UMW students who would like to choose their on-campus housing for next year. This article will give an overview of the Housing Selection processes offered and several considerations for families as your student plans to choose their on-campus space.
Roommate Groups
Students can form roommate groups with 1, 2, or 3 other individuals they have identified as desired roommates. Each group will have a group leader. This group leader will be able to select the desired room and place other roommate group members into their respective spaces during their timeslot.
Students who do not join a roommate group will receive a timeslot and select their room during the last day of the 4-3-2-1 process. While students will be able to see all available one person spaces, this does not guarantee that a single room will be available. Students will also see spaces in double and triple rooms that have not been completely filled.
4-3-2-1 Process
Previously known as general housing selection, this process was changed this year in hopes of improving the student experience during the course of Housing Selection. Students will select their housing for next year in order of roommate group size, and then by enrollment classification.
Beginning on March 30th, 4 person roommate groups will be able to log into the Housing Portal during their Selection timeslot and choose from among available 4 person spaces. Within 4 person roommate groups, rising seniors will receive the earliest timeslots, followed by rising juniors, then rising sophomores. The next day, 3 person groups will be able to select their space during their respective timeslots. Again, rising seniors will choose first, then rising juniors, then rising sophomores. 2 person groups will choose their housing beginning April 1st in the same fashion, followed by 1 person groups on April 2nd.
The roommate group leader will select the space and will pull in each of their roommate group members.
To prepare for their selection timeslot, students will want to have an idea of their top few housing options. 4 person groups will be able to select from double room suites (two rooms connected by a bathroom with two people in each room) in our traditional residence halls, full Eagle Landing apartments (two people per room), and a select number of 4 person UMW Apartments (two single rooms and a double room within an apartment). 3 person groups will be able to select from triple rooms (three person rooms) in Bushnell and Westmoreland Halls as well as 3 person UMW Apartments (a single and a double room within an apartment). 2 person groups will be able to select from double rooms (two people to a room) in traditional residence halls, double rooms in Eagle Landing (half of the apartment), and a select number of 2 person UMW Apartments (one double room within an apartment). 1 person roommate groups or single students will be able to see all available spaces during their timeslot. These options will include single rooms as well as open spaces in double and triple rooms. Most single rooms are located in Jefferson Hall.
Room and board rates for the current academic year can be viewed here however rates for 2020-2021 have not been released by the Board of Visitors yet. Triple rooms are the most cost effective, followed by double rooms in traditional residence halls, then double rooms in the UMW Apartments and Eagle Landing, and finally UMW Apartment singles. Students in Eagle Landing or UMW Apartments will have the option to select a lower meal plan than those in traditional residence halls; students with 90+ credits are also given this option, regardless of which hall they choose to live in.
Timeslots for the 4-3-2-1 process will be delivered to students’ UMW email accounts on March 27th.
Meal plans
Once a student has selected a room space and all Housing Selection processes have ended, they will be able to select a meal plan within their Housing Application. Available meal plans including the Eagle Unlimited Plan, 250 block, and 150 block can be viewed here. Please note that a lower meal plan (85 meals) is available to residential students with more than 90 credits or who live in Eagle Landing or the UMW Apartments.
What if my student misses their timeslot?
If your student does not select a room space during their timeslot, they will be able to re-enter the Housing Portal and select a space until the Selection process is over. Once Housing Selection has ended, if your student does not have a housing assignment, they will be placed into the first available room space by our office. Students should keep an eye on their UMW emails during the coming weeks to ensure they don’t miss any updates regarding the Selection process.
What if my student doesn’t get the space they want?
In certain cases, a student’s first choice for housing location or room type may not be available. We suggest that students prepare a few different desirable options as they head into the housing process.
Students are always welcome to reach out to our office with any questions or concerns that may arise. We will work with students after Housing Selection has ended and over summer to mitigate any continuing concerns regarding housing placement.