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Residential Life & Housing > Housing Options

Off-Campus Housing

Barnard students are not required to live in campus housing (with the exception of visitors from Spelman and students in the VISP program). Students may choose to commute from home or find an apartment off-campus.

Students considering moving off-campus should check out the information below for how it could impact their financial aid and/or guarantee of campus housing for the future.

Note: Housing options like The Bayit and International House are not considered part of campus housing nor part of the Barnard/Columbia Housing Exchange. Student who live in these locations are considered to be living off-campus.

The NYPD has noted a recent increase in fraud reports for rental listing scams. For more information, check out the links below:
-- https://streeteasy.com/blog/nyc-rental-scams
-- https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0079-rental-listing-scams 

Columbia's Off-Campus Housing Assistance (OCHA) office provides resources to aid Barnard & Columbia students in their search for rental housing in the metro area. OCHA manages a database (the Housing Registry) which includes available rooms and apartments in non-Columbia-owned buildings and sublets of units in Columbia-managed housing. Prospective roommates can also post and search profiles to connect with other students looking for off-campus housing. In addition, OCHA offers housing search counseling and is supported in these efforts by their cooperative relationships with two New York City real estate/relocation agencies. OCHA is located at 401 West 119th Street (between Amsterdam Avenue and Morningside Drive) and can be called at 212-854-2773. More info is available at https://residential.columbia.edu/ocha.

Note: Barnard students are not able to directly apply for Columbia campus housing. A limited number of continuing students only may live at Columbia each year as part of the BC/CU Housing Exchange (available only as part of the Room Selection process).

Additional information about how to start a search for off-campus housing can be found at nyu.edu/students/student-information-and-resources/housing-and-dining/off-campus-living.html.

Other options for off-campus housing may include:*

* Barnard College assumes no responsibility or liability in connection with any rental agreement or services provided by the listed resources. The listing of any resource does not constitute an endorsement of the service or guarantee of availability.

For information about the Commuter Lounge, renting a locker in Barnard Hall, etc. please visit https://barnard.edu/studentlife/commuterresources.

For the 2020-2021 academic year only, students living off-campus will not be required to enroll in a meal plan.

Typically, commuter students are required to enroll, at minimum, in the Convenience Meal Plan.

For more information about available meal plans and prices, please visit the Bursar's website.

As a one-time exception for 2020-2021, eligible-Juniors & Seniors only may request to use funds from their financial aid package to pay for an off-campus apartment. For more information, please contact the Barnard Financial Aid office.

Typically, students who live off-campus are packaged as a "commuter" instead of as a "residential" student by the Financial Aid office (which may result in up to $12,500 less available grant aid). Students who are planning to live off-campus are strongly encouraged to discuss with the Financial Aid Office how it may affect their financial aid package.

Continuing students who were eligible for the 2020 Room Selection process but will be enrolled and living at home or off-campus for the entire 2020-2021 academic year will be eligible to participate in the Room Selection process for 2021-2022. New 2020 First Year students will also be eligible.

Other students (including transfers, commuters, and students who take a leave of absence) may apply for 2021-2022 campus housing, but will not be eligible for the Room Selection process. Please note that while the College is always hopeful to provide housing to as many applicants as possible, housing cannot be guaranteed for students not eligible for the Room Selection process.

Typically, Barnard students have a guarantee of housing for the following academic year if they are currently living in campus housing (or lived in campus housing immediately before going to an approved study abroad program). Students who live off-campus are not eligible to participate in Room Selection (i.e. pick a room in the Housing Lottery, live in CU Greek housing, apply for a Special Interest Community, apply for a CARDS housing accommodation, or be a RA- or CARDS-pull-in).

Students who wish to apply for campus housing (after living off-campus or cancelling housing) may only do so as part of the Non-Guaranteed Wait List.

Incoming transfer & visiting students who do not receive campus housing when they start at the College may submit new housing applications to be on the non-Guaranteed Wait List for subsequent semesters and/or academic years.