Room Selection

How Room Selection works | Start times | Roommate groups

Gender and Room Selection | Waitlist info

Room Selection: April 7

Start times emailed April 2

Room Selection is when eligible students have the chance to select their university housing for the 2026-27 academic year. If you’re eligible, you’ll receive a start time that tells you when you can log in and search for a space. We’ve designed this page to help you understand how the process works and feel ready when your start time arrives.

How Room Selection works

Room Selection takes place on a single day (April 7) through the Housing Portal. Available spaces are expected to fill up quickly, so it’s important to log in as close to your start time as possible.

When you log in:

The Housing Portal only shows spaces you can actually select at the community where you applied. To select a space, every bed in the room or every bedroom in the apartment must be assigned to someone in your group. You can’t select only part of a space.

If you’re participating as an individual:

You’ll have access to single residence hall rooms or single rooms at The Village (depending on where you applied).

If you’re in a roommate group:

You’ll have access to shared spaces (multi-person rooms or apartments) that match your group’s exact size and gender composition at the community where you applied. For example, a group of four students will only have access to 4-person spaces, and a group of six will only have access to 6-person apartments.

First-come, first-served based on your start time

Room Selection works on a first-come, first-served basis—as the day goes on, fewer options will be available. Unfortunately, space availability is not certain.

If you log in and don’t have any spaces to choose from, it means the options that match your group size and gender composition at your community have already been selected by other students. If you’re in a roommate group, you may need to disband and try again with smaller groups or as individuals. Learn more about backup plans in the forming a roommate group section below.

Start times

Your start time is the earliest moment you can access the Room Selection process on April 7 to start searching for available housing. Start times are emailed to eligible students on April 2.

How are start times determined?

Start times are based on your current class level and the community you apply to.

Students who apply to their affiliated college, the University Town Center, or The Village:

Current first-year students (rising sophomores) who entered UCSC in Fall 2025 or Winter 2026 receive earlier start times.
All other continuing students receive start times after the first-year students.

Students who apply to the Delaware Apartments:

Transfer students (including those who entered UCSC in Fall 2025 or Winter 2026) and students who entered UCSC before Fall 2025 receive start times.
First-year students (rising sophomores) who entered UCSC in Fall 2025 or Winter 2026 do not receive start times for the Delaware Apartments.

Start times are randomly generated and cannot be changed.

Will I receive a start time?

Whether you receive a start time depends on whether you are eligible for Room Selection and where you apply during the application period.

Eligible students receive Room Selection start times if they apply to:

Their affiliated college
University Town Center
The Village
Delaware Apartments (Students who entered UCSC before Fall 2025, or students who entered UCSC as a transfer student)

What if I don’t receive a start time?

You will not receive a start time if:

You are not eligible for Room Selection or
You applied to a college you’re not affiliated with
You applied to the Delaware Apartments as a current first-year student (rising sophomore)

If you’re eligible for Room Selection but not for a start time, you could still be assigned to housing. If you’re part of a group and at least one other person in your group receives a start time, they can select housing for the entire group (including you) if a space is available.

What if you don’t have a start time and aren’t in a qualifying roommate group? In that case, you won’t be able to select a space during Room Selection. But you’ll still have the opportunity to join the housing waitlist, and housing staff work throughout the spring and summer to assign spaces to as many students as possible.

Not sure if you’re eligible for Room Selection? Review the eligibility requirements.

Forming a roommate group (if applicable)

Prerequisites for your group:

All group members applied to the same college/community during the application period (Feb. 19–26).
All group members are eligible for Room Selection and not already assigned to housing through preassignment.
Each person selected “Include me in Roommate Search Results” in their housing application.

Create your group in the Housing Portal:

Click the Roommate Request icon in the Housing Portal.
Select the option to create a group.
Search by UCSC email and send invites.

Before you begin

Consider your options: Learn about housing options at the college/community your group applied to that would work for your group. Remember to take into account your group’s size and everyone’s gender.
Plan together: Discuss what room types each person is willing to accept and who will share a room with whom.
Choose a leader: Appoint the person with the earliest start time as your group leader. This person will log in and search for available housing. If possible, have all group members available at the leader’s start time so you can discuss options together.
Understand the commitment: By joining a group, you’re authorizing your group leader to select housing for you and accepting their decision as final.
Have backup plans! Housing options for groups, especially larger groups, may fill up quickly. Have a plan to separate into smaller groups and search for housing with your new group or participate as individuals if your preferred option isn’t available.

Remember: Forming a roommate group doesn’t guarantee there will be a space available for your group’s size and gender makeup.

Gender and Room Selection

Available spaces are filtered by gender. For roommate groups, spaces must match your entire group’s size and gender composition.

Room assignment rules:

Students can assign themselves to vacant rooms or rooms shared by students of the same gender. Apartments can be mixed-gender, but individual bedrooms are single-gender.

Need to update the campus record of my gender designation?

You can view and update your gender designation through MyUCSC (changes can take 24 hours to appear in the Housing Portal).

Room Selection note:

During Room Selection, if you have a hold on a space and are having difficulty completing a selection because of a gender designation issue, please immediately contact your Housing Coordinator for assistance.

Learn more about gender and room selection

What if I don’t get housing during Room Selection?

While some students select housing during Room Selection, many others are assigned housing by a Housing Coordinator. If you don’t select a space during Room Selection—either because nothing was available or you chose not to select what was available—you will have the opportunity to add your application to the housing waitlist.

To improve your chances of being assigned from the waitlist, update your application preferences to include all room types and communities you agree to accept. The more flexible you are and the more preferences you include, the more opportunities housing staff will have to find a space for you.

Housing staff work throughout the spring and summer to accommodate as many students as possible. To stay active on the waitlist, you’ll need to periodically verify your interest in university housing.

Learn more about the waitlist

Continuing student housing process: