Housing & Residence Life

Year-Long Housing Contract

How will this work?

The year-long Housing Contract will bind you for the entire academic year (fall and spring semesters) when you apply for and receive a housing assignment for the fall. If you apply after the start of the fall semester, you will be bound for the remainder of the academic year — through the spring semester, essentially. If you apply for the spring semester, your contract binds you for the entirety of the spring semester, but does NOT roll into the fall.

Fall housing assignments will automatically roll to the spring semester if you remain enrolled at WCSU. This means there will be no need to pay again in October for your spring room assignment.

Does this contract include breaks like intersession?

No. The year long contract refers only to the normal “open/close” schedule developed by the Housing Office each year. Students will check in and check out of the buildings, as has always been the case, according to this schedule. (You can check out a current schedule on our FAQ page for an example.)

The residence halls are closed and students must vacate them during all University breaks (i.e., Thanksgiving, Winter, and Spring breaks). Specific dates of University breaks will be published on University and/or Housing & Residence Life calendars.

The year long Housing Contract will end at the conclusion of the spring semester on the date publicized on the University and/or Housing & Residence Life calendar for residence halls to close.

Application Process

As we said, the Housing Deposit is paid once each year, when a student applies for housing for the following year. The deposit is non-refundable, and will cover the entire year for which you applied. Once you have paid the deposit, submitted evidence of having received a meningitis vaccine, and submitted a Housing Application, you will be assigned to a residence hall pending space availability. Once an assignment has been made, you will be notified by our department prior to arrival on campus. We will make every effort to accommodate your request for specific residence halls and/or roommates, but there is no guarantee that you will receive your specific request.

Once assignments are made, a charge will be placed on your account on a semester-by-semester basis. Essentially, although it is a year long contract, the bill will reflect only one semester’s charge at a time.

Contract Cancellation

Because the contract will cover the entire academic year, there may be reasons a student would need to cancel the contract. Here is some additional information specific to contract cancellation. Students who request to cancel their Housing Contract and/or Assignment will be automatically released for the following reasons:

  • the student is participating in an internship, study abroad, co-op, student teaching or other academic obligation that reduces or eliminates the need for on-campus housing
  • the student has medical reasons for cancellation that are verified by University Health Service staff
  • the student has graduated from the University prior to the end of the contract period
  • the student is academically suspended prior to the end of the contract period
  • the student has officially withdrawn from the University

** Requesting a release from your contract in order to move off-campus is not generally considered a reason to be granted a release without substantial information and evidence of financial hardship. **

Requests for cancellation of the Housing Contract made by June 30th for the academic year, or December 1st for those planning to enter housing for the spring semester, will be granted without penalty or question.   If you have a need to cancel your Housing Contract after these deadlines for any reason, including those listed above, you will make a written request to do so, which will be reviewed by a Housing Cancellation Review Committee.

If the committee approves cancelling the contract, you will forfeit the Housing Deposit if the cancellation is before or during your initial contracted term of occupancy.

If the committee approves the cancellation of the Housing Contract for reasons other than those noted in the list above, you may be charged a $250 Cancellation Fee if the cancellation is for or during the second (spring) term of occupancy. Should your Housing Contract be cancelled for administrative purposes, you will not be subject to a cancellation fee.

Students who request cancellation after the first day of classes, if they are approved for cancellation, will receive a pro-rated refund for their meal plan.  However, there is not a refund for housing costs when a student cancels housing after the start of classes.

If the Housing Cancellation Review Committee does not approve the request to cancel a student’s housing contract, the room will be maintained in the student’s name, and the student will be responsible for paying all associated fees for the duration of the Housing Contract.

If a Housing Contract is cancelled for judicial or disciplinary reasons, the student remains responsible for paying fees for the duration of the semester in which the contract was cancelled, and is entitled to no refund.

 

Housing Contract Cancellation Review Committee

A committee of University staff will be assembled by the Vice President for Student Affairs or designee to review Housing Contract Cancellation requests that are for reasons other than those listed above. This committee may include staff from Housing & Residence Life, Student Financial Services, Bursar, Counseling, Health Services, Academic Affairs, or any other staff who may have insight regarding the student’s ability (or lack thereof) to fulfill their Housing Contract. Students who have requested to have their Housing Contract cancelled will have a written decision related to the outcome of their request within 10 business days of submitting the request.