Although it's only November, many students are already thinking about living situations for next year. On-campus housing contract requests will be made in a month, and for many people looking to live off-campus, leases need to be signed shortly.

As hectic as this is for University Park students, this process can become even more stressful for the more than 3,000 change-of-assignment students who transfer here each year, students say.

This can be especially difficult considering students are not notified whether they have been accepted into their majors until mid-March for fall transfers, Gary Hile, associate registrar for academic records, said.

Students wishing to transfer to University Park from Commonwealth locations must take part in the entrance to major process, usually in their sophomore years. If the students are accepted into majors that can only be completed at University Park, they are automatically granted the transfer, Hile said.

The timing of this notification can be problematic for many Commonwealth students trying to make decisions about transferring and housing.

Emily Koch, a sophomore at the Delaware County Campus, said she is not satisfied with the current transfer process.

"I wish they would change it. It's just annoying. I can't finish my program here and I need to know," she said. "This way I have to wait until the last minute until I know whether I'm going to be in the education program or if I should look somewhere else."

Koch also said the late date of notification has caused her problems in securing housing. Though she has found a house she wants to live in, she is wary about signing the lease before she knows for sure that she will be at University Park next fall.

"It's a problem because if I don't get (into University Park), I'm responsible for paying rent even though I'm not there," she said.

Robert Barry (junior-geography) remembers having a similar experience when he transferred last year.

"I wanted to get an apartment but I had to wait until I knew for sure whether I was accepted into my major. That's not a problem for everybody, but for those who don't have grades that are up-to-par, it's harder," he said.

Though Hile said "there is risk involved" for students who have to sign leases before knowing for sure, he called this risk minimal.

"Students need to have understanding early on about the requirements for entering their majors. There should be no surprises. It is pretty much assured if a student is meeting the requirements they will get into one of their three major preferences," Hile said.

Transfer students hoping to live on campus must go through the same contract request and submission process as students already at University Park. Because this process begins in December, students hoping to transfer must sign housing contracts before knowing if they will be accepted for transfer.

Kristopher Ankarlo, president of the Council of Commonwealth Student Governments (CCSG), said he would like to see "streamlining of the whole process so that students know their fate, know their environment. I would love to have change of assignment come out in the fall, but that would take massive reform."