University of Maryland, College Park Policies Concerning Student Housing

1. No student is required by the University to live in any University-owned housing.
2. Any undergraduate or graduate student at College Park is eligible to live in the residence halls. Preference is given to full-time students. There are no facilities in residence halls for married couples or families.
3. Any graduate student at College Park may apply to live in the University owned Graduate Apartment Complexes. However, all 476 units are typically assigned to full-time graduate students who have been granted Graduate or Research Assistantships or who have approved scholarships or fellowships. One and two bedroom units exist for spouses and one or two children. Efficiency apartments are available for unmarried students or those students whose spouses and/or children will not reside with them.
4. Residence halls and dining agreements are for the entire academic year and may be renewed on an annual basis. Students may be released from these agreements during the academic year only upon withdrawal from classes, graduation, marriage, semester of study abroad or exchange, and student teaching.
5. In the Graduate Apartments, initial leases of 12 months are renewable, on a month-to-month basis, for not more than one additional year (total two years maximum residence, for those enrolled in a Master's program) or for not more than three additional years (total four years maximum residence, for those enrolled in a Doctoral program).
6. Returning students in the residence halls have absolute priority for the next year's housing spaces.
7. New students are assigned at random to spaces in the residence halls that were not chosen by returning residents. New students are newly admitted freshman, transfer and graduate students and enrolled students who had been living off-campus.
   
   When a waiting list becomes necessary because more students want residence halls space for a fall semester than can be assigned, the following priorities dictate "new-to housing" students' positions on the waiting list:
   
   1. Highest priority is given to students who live in Maryland but are farthest from the College Park Campus. These students are known as "non- commuters" on the waiting list. Second priority is given to students who do not live in Maryland. Third priority is given to students who live in Maryland and are considered "commuters" because their homes are close to campus. Commuters for purposes of the waiting list are students who can get to campus within one hour on a public bus.
   2. Students are added to the waiting list on a first- come, first-served basis, based on the date of admission/application.
8. Preferred rooms in the residence halls, including singles and spaces in renovated, air-conditioned suites and apartments, are allocated through a "priority for room selection" procedure based on seniority. The exception to this rule is that an individual resident normally can "pull-in" to a vacant space in his/her bedroom a roommate of choice from any other residence hall.
9. All residence hall students pay the same housing and dining fees, regardless of whether they live in the older, traditional "dormitory style" buildings or the renovated air-conditioned and newly furnished "apartment-style" units. These annual fees are paid in two equal installments by the first day of classes for each semester. No monthly payments or other deferred payment plan exists.
   
   Rental fees for the Graduate Apartments are collected monthly and are different for each type of accommodation.
10. Residence Halls, the Graduate Apartments, and dining halls must be self-supported by mandate of the General Assembly. No State or University funding is received, so student fees must be sufficient to pay all expenses including utilities, facilities renewal, plant maintenance and construction debts. In addition, the affected departments (Resident Life, Graduate Apartments, Dining Services) must pay a percentage of expenses to the University as overhead.
11. Students living in residence halls (except those in kitchen-equipped spaces) are required to be on the Resident Meal Plan. A student who wishes to maintain traditional Jewish dietary laws may meet this requirement by substituting an approved kosher meal plan provided by the Hillel House.

The campus is authorized and acts to maintain a comprehensive Greek community, where about 1,600 students choose to live. Registered fraternities and sororities at UMCP are self-governing and operate autonomously from the campus and one another. The Campus advises all chapter houses on matters related to fiscal viability and the promotion of responsible citizenship by individual members. For those chapter houses whose structures are owned by the Campus, the Campus provides necessary maintenance and works closely with elected officers and advisory boards to assure their budgeting and fees collection processes result in continued viability.

Resident juniors, seniors, and graduates may register to park on campus. No freshman or sophomore students who live in residence may register. Exceptions to this rule can be made when the student provides proof of an off-campus job or personal situation that warrants the need for a vehicle. Resident upperclassmen and graduates are assigned to park in the lots closest to their residence halls. Freshman and sophomore residents who are given parking exceptions are assigned in selected perimeter lots.

1. The Campus does not own, operate or have any role in the development or management of rental opportunities for students in the communities that surround the College Park campus.
2. The Campus maintains an off-campus housing locator service which helps students who want to find rental apartments, homes or rooms. Only properties in which the owner makes the facility available to students in conformity with all pertinent federal and State laws on non-discrimination in housing are listed.
3. The Campus maintains its own transit system which by day shuttles students to and from their off-campus residences within a several mile radius of the campus, and by night provides a security shuttle service for on-campus residents. Off-campus daytime routes connect to the Metro system thereby facilitating transportation to the Campus for students who live in the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and extended distances from campus in Montgomery and Prince George's counties.