As we look toward the next academic year, University Housing has given returning students both good and bad news.
Unfortunately, it won’t be any easier for returning students to receive a room on-campus next year, given the fact that three dorms are closing with a total loss of 543 beds. But luckily, they’ll get to sign up and receive housing assignments earlier, so upperclassmen who pull a short straw will have more time to make other arrangements.
Another improvement to the system — until now, returning students had to pay just to be placed in a lottery and were often left hanging if they weren’t chosen for a room. Not anymore. Gone are the days when you had to pay a $50 application fee and a $100 advanced room payment just to be considered for on-campus housing. Now students will only have to pay the $150 if they’re awarded a housing assignment and they accept it. This marks a stark change from the past, one that we applaud. It was unfair for the university to effectively gouge students for housing they might not even receive. This will no doubt lose USC some money, but we’ll all be happy to see more of that in our own pockets.
In addition, the process for requesting a room has improved tremendously. Students will only have to fill out an interest form for one of the living and learning communities, or a general learning community if they wish, instead of a complicated and often confusing application form.
Our university has exploded beyond its capacity with students and we know it can’t adequately house us all, but we’re through the roof that Housing is listening to our feedback and bettering the process for all of us.