December 2011 Room Changes

Note: Each spring, students from Australia, Denmark, Italy, China, South Korea, Singapore, Ghana, and South Africa come to Barnard for the Visiting International Student Program.  If you have a space opening up in your room or suite and would like to request an international student as a roommate / suitemate, please email housing@barnard.edu.

Note: Due to the increase in size of the VISP program (see above) and quantity of other spring assignments, it will not be possible to request to "buy out a double room as a single" for the Spring.  Students who have spaces open up in their room / suite should expect to have a new roommate or suitemate assigned for the Spring unless they recruit a new roommate or suitemate through the December Room Change process (see below) or mutually request a student returning to campus returning for the Spring by submitting a Roommate/Suitemate Request Form (see below).   On rare occasions, Residential Life & Housing may give a student a room change to an empty double as a single (at the single room rate), if there are no competing room change requests to fill that room; however, it is not possible to specifically request this.

Forms

• 2011 December Room Change Request Form (PDF)
• Roommate / Suitemate Request Form (PDF)

Important Dates

* Students who receive a room change are required to pick up their new room keys (before 4pm on Thursday, December 22) and be completely moved out of their old room / suite by the start of Winter Break (9am on Friday, December 23).  If you wish to leave for Winter Break before moving your belongings into your new room, you may do so as long as you have completely vacated your old room / suite (i.e. all your belongings).  You may choose to take your belongings home for break, move them into a friend's off-campus apartment, or move them into the room of a friend who is not moving or leaving for the Spring (note: Res Life cannot provide you access to your friend's room when you return from Winter Break -- they will have to open their room for you to get your belongings). The important thing is that you will have vacated your old room and not held up other students' room changes.

Room Change Request Process

• This process is for Barnard Sophomore, Junior, and Senior students only (first-year students who may be experiencing difficulties with their roommate(s) should speak to their RA).
• Columbia University students living in Barnard residence halls are not eligible to participate in this process and there is no switching permitted between BC-designated and CU-designated spaces (please consult CU Housing for information about room change requests for CU students) .
• Students who submit a Room Change Request form are expected to inform their roommate(s)/suitemates(s) of their request, in order to give them an opportunity to either submit a Room Change Request form of their own or try to recruit a new roommate/suitemate.
• Students with diagnosed disabilities who may need some form of disability-related housing consideration as part of their room change request should contact the Office of Disability Services to complete a Disability-Related Housing Request (DRHR) no later than December 8. More information about the process is available at http://barnard.edu/reslife/disability.
• Room change requests & preferences based upon race, ethnicity, religion, religious practices, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, physical characteristic, or national origin cannot be accommodated.
• Once submitted, request forms may not be altered unless they are withdrawn (in writing) and/or then resubmitted as a new application.  Request forms may not be withdrawn after the due date (Tuesday, December 6, 4pm).
• The RL&H staff will review all submitted Room Change Request forms.  Decisions made by this group are final.  There is no guarantee that all applicants will receive a room change as a result of submitting a Request form.
• You may request to make a 1-for-1 swap with another student OR you may specify a set of criteria for which types of rooms or locations they would be willing to move to. 
• If you wish to move into a specific vacant space, you may specify that on your Request form.  The roommate(s)/suitemate(s) of that vacancy should also submit a Roommate/Suitemate Request Form (available above) requesting you.  This can improve your chances of receiving the room change but does not guarantee it.
• You must complete the room change if granted, as other room changes will be dependent on the room you are vacating.
• If you are granted a room change, you will be responsible for coordinating your move (if applicable) with both the person moving out of the space you are moving into and the person moving into the space you vacate.  Email addresses will be provided.
• You must be willing to stay through the end of exams to move into your new room if necessary (based on coordination with the person vacating the room you would be moving into, if applicable).  
• If you are granted a room change and you receive permission to stay in housing for Winter Break, please note that you will be living in your new room, not your old room (i.e. room changes must be completed before the start of Winter Break).
• If granted a room change to a more expensive room type (i.e. moving from a multiple to a single), you will be responsible for submitting payment to the Bursar for the the increase in room rate.  If you are moving to a less expensive room type (i.e. moving from a single to a multiple) and have already paid your room charge for the semester, you will receive a credit on your Bursar account.
• If granted a room change to a location that requires a more comprehensive meal plan (i.e. moving to floors 2-8 of the Quad), you will be required to complete paper work with the Bursar office to change to the Quad Upperclass Meal Plan.  If you receive a room change to a location outside floors 2-8 of the Quad and wish to change to a less comprehensive meal plan, you will need to complete paper work with the Bursar office.

Questions?

Please visit barnard.edu/reslife/roomchanges#faqs for a list of frequently asked questions (and answers) about Room Change Requests.

If you have any questions after reading the above link, please contact Matt Kingston, Associate Director for Housing Operations, at mkingston@barnard.edu.