Students hurry for housing

By NIKKI VELISARIS
and DANA IRWIN
Collegian Staff Writers

Students hurried to the Office of Housing and Food Services in Shields Building early Monday morning, hoping to be among the first to turn in requests for next year's on-campus housing assignments.

There are 12,000 spaces on campus and 5,000 of those are reserved for freshmen, said Lynn Dubois, assistant director of Housing and Food Services.

"You must be in the first 7,000 to apply to be guaranteed a spot. Last year, space for women ran out in a week," she said.

Once the first 7,000 contracts are received, they are put in a prioritized order, said Kathy Krinks, manager of the assignment office.

Students requesting the same room have first priority, Dubois said. Displaced students -- students whose current buildings will change to co-ed or house honor students next year -- are next on the list.

Off-campus students and transfer students from other universities complete the list, Dubois said. Students who submit contracts after the first 7,000 will be placed in temporary housing.

"They are then given the choice whether to accept supplemental or find another place to live," Dubois said.

For students with preferences, such as specific roommates or buildings, there is a weeding out process to determine housing placement.

If students select a roommate as first priority on their request and the roommate is of lower semester standing, the student with seniority would be moved down to remain with their lower-standing roommate, Dubois said.

If a student's building is the most important factor, his roommate would most likely be placed there as well, she added. Students with the most seniority often get their first choice.

"I agree that seniors should get first pick, and it should go by seniority simply because the older students have been here longer," Jason Rogers (senior-environmental resource management) said.

Students who wish to live in high-demand housing areas such as single rooms, suites and Nittany Apartments can fill out lottery cards. Lottery cards are chosen at random and put in order by selection, Dubois said. The selection list is compared to the list of available rooms, with the people at the top getting rooms first.

Students who are not selected first are placed on a waiting list and then notified when their desired choice becomes available, Dubois said. Those who wish to live in triples or quads do not need to enter a lottery, she added.

Notification of lottery winners will be in early summer, and all other students will be notified of their assignment near the end of July.

Students who need to change their housing contract can do so until March 19. Students can cancel contracts until April 2, but they lose the $100 deposit. After that date, contracts cannot be canceled unless there are extenuating circumstances.