Housing Accommodations
CARDS Disability Housing Accommodation Requests
The Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services (CARDS) works closely with Residential Life & Housing to respond to the individual needs of Barnard students with disabilities.
Housing options for Barnard students include rooms in traditional corridor-style and apartment suite-style residence halls in the neighborhood surrounding campus. Students in campus housing are expected to follow all College and Res Life policies.
Housing accommodations must be re-requested each academic year and/or summer. Previously approved accommodations are not automatically renewed.
Housing Accommodation Request Form
The 2023-24 Pre-Lottery Housing Accommodation Request process is now open. Students who are new incoming VISP or Spring Transfer students who need accommodations for the Spring '23 academic term should submit the request form for Continuing, Transfer, and Visiting Students (see below).
Housing Accommodation Request Form -- Pre-Lottery Process (open as of 11/28/2022)
- Priority Deadline: January 27, 2023
Requests are open to students who are eligible for participation in the 2023 Room Selection process. Please see additional information about the Pre-Lottery accommodation request process on the Res Life website.
Students must submit supporting documentation by the January 27 priority deadline. Please note that students must also be registered with CARDS in order to be eligible to receive housing accommodations.
Students must re-request any housing accommodations each year (even if they have been approved in the past).
Please read Procedures for Requesting Disability Housing Accommodations below for additional information.
Housing Accommodation Request Form - Continuing, Transfer, & Visiting Students (NOW CLOSED for Fall 2022)
Priority Deadlines:
- Fall Housing Applications
- Students on the Guaranteed List (Housing Lottery) - June 1, 2022
- Students returning from a leave of absence - June 1, 2022
- Other non-guaranteed continuing students - June 1, 2022
- New-enrolling Fall Transfers & Visiting Students - June 13, 2022
- Spring Housing Applications
- Students returning from Study Abroad - November 1, 2022
- Students returning from a Leave of Absence - November 1, 2022
- Other non-guaranteed continuing students - November 1, 2022
- Visiting International Student Program - November 1, 2022
- New-enrolling Spring Transfers - December 1, 2022
There are additional late priority request deadlines for students who may be requesting a Fall Room Change, Mid-Year Room Change, or Spring Room Change (check each link for more information & the deadlines).
Please make sure that you additionally submit a Housing Application (or Room Change Request form) on the Housing Portal.
Students must submit supporting documentation by the priority deadlines listed above. Please note that students must also be registered with CARDS in order to be eligible to receive housing accommodations.
Note: While the College always hopes to be able to provide housing to as many students as possible, space in campus housing is limited and unfortunately cannot be guaranteed for all applicants. CARDS is not able to provide a guarantee of housing as a Housing Accommodation, but students may be able to receive application priority based on their documented needs.
CARDS will review and approve accommodation requests based on the submitted supporting documentation. However, assignments to housing are contingent upon available space. Approval of a housing accommodation request does not guarantee that housing (or a room matching the specified needs) will be available. Typically the College will not know until early August (or late December for the Spring) how much space may be available for non-guaranteed applicants.
Please read Procedures for Requesting Disability Housing Accommodations below for additional information.
Housing Accommodation Request Form - New-Enrolling First Year Students (NOW CLOSED for Fall 2022 - Spring 2023)
- Priority Deadline: June 6, 2022
Please make sure that you also submit the Housing Application Form.
Students must submit supporting documentation by the June 6 priority deadline. Please note that students must also be registered with CARDS in order to be eligible to receive housing accommodations. Please note: CARDS will begin conducting incoming first year Class of 2026 intakes after May 19th, 2022.
New enrolling Class of 2026 students will receive their matriculation information, including their Barnard email address and UNI, in mid-to-late May. Once received, you can register with CARDS and submit a CARDS First Year Housing Accommodation Request application. Please note, First Years should also schedule your intake appointment by June 30th, 2022 to complete your registration with CARDS.
Please read Procedures for Requesting Disability Housing Accommodations below for additional information.
Housing Accommodation Request Form - 2022 Summer Housing (CARDS PROCESS NOW CLOSED)
- Form Opens: March 23, 2022
- Priority Deadline: April 8, 2022 (NOW CLOSED)
Please make sure that you additionally submit a Summer Housing Application on the Housing Portal.
Students must submit supporting documentation by the April 8 priority deadline. Please note that students must also be registered with CARDS in order to be eligible to receive housing accommodations.
Students who already received housing accommodations for the upcoming academic year as part of the "Pre-Lottery Request Process" do not need to apply again for Summer 2022, unless you need additional accommodations for the summer that were not approved as part of your academic year request.
All summer rooms will have air-conditioning and kitchen access, so it is not necessary to request accommodations if those are your only needs. If you have other housing accommodation needs (ex. single room, strobe alarm, ESA), please submit the Summer Housing Accommodation Request Form and supporting documentation by the April 8 priority deadline.
Please read Procedures for Requesting Disability Housing Accommodations below for additional information.
Procedures for Requesting Disability Housing Accommodations
In addition to filling out the Housing Accommodation Application linked above to request an accommodation, students must register with the Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services by having an intake meeting and supplying CARDS with supporting documentation of their need for a housing accommodation from a current doctor or treatment provider prior to their respective deadline.
Please note: accommodations must be re-requested each academic year and/or summer. Previously approved accommodations are not automatically renewed (unless they have been previously approved for the same academic year). Updated documentation will be required.
Students must submit disability documentation that follows the CARDS Disability Documentation Guidelines (DDG) requirements. Please remember that documentation must meet the guidelines to be accepted.
- Documentation should be submitted to CARDS@barnard.edu or faxed to 212-280-8768. We highly recommend scanning and/or emailing documentation to cards@barnard.edu.
- Documentation must be recent within the past 4 months for housing applications
- Updated and/or additional documentation may be required on a case by case basis
- It is important that the documentation establish a direct connection between the disability and the requested housing accommodation(s).
- Students with Service Animals or requesting permission to have a Support Animal within their designated housing assignment should refer to our Service Animal Policy or Support Animal Policy. Information about the distinction between the two can be found on our Policies & Procedures page.
The Disability Housing Committee evaluates housing applications and the necessity of the requested accommodations(s). The Committee includes staff from the Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services, Counseling Services, Residential Life & Housing and Primary Care Health Services.
Assistance in Emergency Evacuations
All students are expected to evacuate immediately upon the sounding of the building fire alarm. Students with disabilities who need assistance evacuating from their residence hall are asked to self-identify to CARDS by filling out our Disability Evacuation Assistance Registration Form.
If you do not have a physical, visual, or hearing disability, but also still have a need for assistance in an emergency situation (i.e. unable to hear fire alarm as a heavy sleeper), please contact CARDS to discuss. Students with temporary disabilities are also strongly encouraged to fill out the Disability Evacuation Assistance Registration Form if there is any anticipation of difficulty with exiting the residence hall in the event of an emergency.
All students unable to self-evacuate will be required to meet with Barnard Public Safety for an individual training and drill. In an emergency situation, students unable to evacuate must call Barnard Public Safety at (212) 854-3362 at the sounding of a fire alarm and provide their name and location. In the event of an actual life-safety emergency which necessitates total evacuation, trained New York City Fire Department (NYFD) personnel will be dispatched and take responsibility.
Dining Accommodations
Barnard Dining Accommodation Process:
Students who are requesting dining accommodations must first register with CARDS. This process involves submitting an application, supporting documentation, and having an intake meeting with a CARDS coordinator. Documentation should be from an allergist or an ENT for food allergies, or from a licensed medical specialist (such as a gastroenterologist) for other dietary restrictions. More information on our process for dining accommodations can be found on our Policies & Procedures page.