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Residential Life & Housing > Residence Hall Handbook > Procedures

Apply for Housing

Barnard is dedicated to promoting an inclusive and respectful community. The College makes room and roommate assignments without regard to race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, religious practices, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, dietary preferences, abilities, and/or age.

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Instructions for setting up your Barnard & Columbia computer login accounts are emailed to students by the Admissions office after enrollment is confirmed (it can take a week or more for accounts to be generated).  Applications are not sorted by submission date, so there is no need to worry if you have not yet received your account info to log in and submit the housing application!  

Room & Roommate Assignment information will be emailed to students on Monday, August 9, 2021. Please refer to our calendar for move-in dates

* Instructions for setting up your Barnard & Columbia computer login accounts are emailed to students by the Admissions office after enrollment is confirmed (it can take a week or more for accounts to be generated).   Applications are not sorted by submission date, so there is no need to worry if you have not yet received your account info to log in and submit the housing application!

While the College's goal is to provide housing to as many applicants as possible, space in campus housing is limited and unfortunately cannot be guaranteed for Transfer students (during their first or following years at the College).

As incoming Transfers, students who apply for housing are prioritized by a combination of enrollment deposit date and geographic distance from campus. Transfers who apply for housing for their following years would be prioritized after the new entering Transfer student class.

Typically the College does not know until early August (or late December) how many Transfers can be assigned to campus housing. If students are not able to be assigned, they can remain on a Wait List in case any additional space opens up for the semester.

Because housing is not guaranteed, Transfers are encouraged to explore options for off-campus housing. Some links to help students start their search are available at http://barnard.edu/reslife/housing-options/off-campus.

While housing for students in the VISP program is guaranteed and students may request singles on their applications, most students will be assigned to shared multiple occupancy rooms (i.e. with roommates). Rooms will not be available in every residence hall, so we ask that students to please rank order all of the residence halls on their application. Some students may be required to live in Hewitt, which requires a higher cost meal plan.

Room & Roommate Assignment information will be distributed via email in early January (early August for full-year VISP students). Please refer to our calendar for move-in dates.

Eligible returning students take part in the Room Selection process in early spring to secure housing for the following academic year.

Students who do not take part in Room Selection (or were not eligible) and wish to apply for housing should submit the online Housing Application, by no later than June 1 (or by November 1 for housing starting in the Spring), in order to be on the Non-Guaranteed Wait List (see below)

Please note that while the College always hopes to be able to assign as many applicants as possible, housing cannot be guaranteed for students who do not take part in (or were not eligible for) the Room Selection process.

Students who take a leave of absence before or during an approved study abroad program must request to "Return from a Leave of Absence" and unfortunately cannot be guaranteed a housing assignment (see section below for more information).

Returning for Spring (i.e. abroad during the Fall)

If there is a specific room/suite with a vacancy you would like to request to live in, please specify on your application. Application preferences may be edited/updated through December 1. Please note that assignment to a specific requested room cannot be guaranteed.

Assignment information is distributed via email in early January. Please refer to our calendar for move-in dates.

Returning for Fall (i.e. abroad during the Spring)

Eligible students will register to take part in the Room Selection process (which includes the Housing Lottery, disability housing accommodation requests, RA pull-ins, CU Greek & Special Interest Communities, etc).

Students who did not live in campus housing before going to their Study Abroad program are not guaranteed campus housing. They may submit an application on the Housing Portal to be on the non-Guaranteed Wait List.

  • Housing Application (requires log in with your Columbia UNI)
  • Deadlines:
    • Fall: June 1
    • Spring: November 1

Reminder: the deadline to submit the Request for Return form to the Dean of Studies office is also June 1 for the Fall and November 1 for the Spring.

Please submit the application even if you are still waiting for official confirmation of your approved return (assignments will be held until return status is confirmed).

Please note that while the College always hopes to be able to assign as many applicants as possible, space in campus housing is limited and assignment cannot be guaranteed after returning from Leave of Absence. Students returning from a Medical Leave will receive extra priority upon applying for housing; however, assignment is depend upon available space and cannot be guaranteed.  In cases where there is not enough space for all applicants, students are prioritized by geographic distance from campus.

Assignments, pending the availability of space, are typically made in mid-August for the Fall and early January for the Spring. Please refer to our calendar for move-in dates.

  • Housing Application (requires log in with your Columbia UNI)
  • Deadlines:
    • Fall: June 1
    • Spring: November 1

Students who previously lived off-campus or did participate in the Room Selection process (or were not eligible) may submit a housing application to be on the non-Guaranteed Wait List.

Because there are a limited number of rooms available, assignment to campus housing cannot be guaranteed. Applicants are typically prioritized by distance from campus.

If there is a specific room/suite with a vacancy you would like to request to live in, please specify on your application. Please note that assignment to a specific requested room cannot be guaranteed.

Assignment information is distributed via email in mid-to-late August for the Fall semester and early January for the Spring semester. Please refer to our calendar for move-in dates.