Current Undergraduate Students

The Interest Application & Questionnaire is the first step for all students interested in living on campus. The application assists in the assignment, roommate matching, and waitlist process, so students should make sure they complete this application honestly and accurately.

• Students are encouraged to review our communities and housing options before submitting the application.
• To access the application, students should log into the housing portal using their myUMBC username and password. Be sure to upgrade your UMBC account first before attempting to access the housing portal.

As part of the application students will be asked to:

• Provide basic demographic information
• Indicate housing preferences
• Complete the Roommate Questionnaire
• Students with 39 or more completed credits will also be provided the option select between applying for Walker Avenue Apartments or Residential Life

Depending on timing, once a student has completed the initial application they will either be permitted to complete the housing contract and reservation fee payment (Step 2) or added to the housing waitlist.

UMBC does not have a residency requirement, and as a result housing is not guaranteed for all students.  On-campus housing is only guaranteed for students who finalize their application by submitting both the housing contract and submit the reservation fee payment.

There are open contracting periods, during which students will see the Interest Application & Questionnaire, Housing Contract, and Reservation Fee Payment steps in the housing portal.

If a student is unable to apply during the open contracting period they will be added to the housing waitlist and issued access to complete the housing contract and reservation fee, if and when space becomes available.

Before completing the Housing Contract and Reservation Fee, it is important to note:

• With the exception of students who are contracting for just the Spring semester, the term of the contract is for the entire academic year, both Fall & Spring semesters.
• Students who are under the age of 18 when they complete the contract will be instructed to have a parent/guardian proxy acknowledge the contract through the Housing Portal.
• Students must pay a $200 housing reservation fee in order to be assigned to housing; this is not the same as the Admissions/Enrollment or Orientation Deposit.
• The housing reservation fee is mandatory. Students with significant financial need are welcome contact Residential Life prior to their application deadline.
• Payment must be in the form of Credit Card or ACH. Students cannot use financial aid to pay the reservation fee.
• The reservation fee money will be applied as a credit toward your first housing bill.
• Students that finalize a contract and change their mind or cancel their assignment will be assessed a cancellation fee.

Once the Housing Contract (License) and Reservation Fee are received, the student’s application status is considered Finalized and the student can be assigned to housing.

Students with a finalized application for the academic year will receive specific instructions for requesting a roommate in the housing portal. This step is optional, as students may apply for housing and select a room as an individual.

Benefits of Forming a Group

1. You know who you will be living with for the upcoming year.
2. If your selection time is in conflict with your schedule, another member of your group can pick your room.

Roommate Group Requirements

• You may form groups of 2 or 4.
• Students participating in Walker Housing Selection may form groups of 3, but will need to contact the Management Office in advance due to limited 3-bedroom apartments.
• You can only form a roommate groups with those students who have completed the same application as yourself (Walker Avenue or Residential Life).
• Due to the different housing selection cycles, current residents are not able to request incoming freshmen or transfer students as roommates during the Housing Selection process.
• Groups that do not meet size requirements and those with students who did not finalize their housing license will be considered incomplete, and may be split into individual groups of 1. 

How to Form a Roommate Group

• Students interested in forming groups, should do so in the housing portal.
• Attend a Roommate Social, hosted by RSA

Roommate Search Function

The Roommate Module in the housing portal allows you to search profiles of students with the same sex assigned at birth and same approved application and housing license type (Walker Avenue or Residential Life). You can filter based on sleep habits, room condition, allergies, and more to find a match.

Gender Inclusive Group Formation 

In order to form a Gender Inclusive Group and find other students who want to live in Gender Inclusive Housing, you must indicate interested and commitment to Gender Inclusive Housing on your Housing Application.

an request one (1) or three (3) preferred roommates who is also an incoming undergraduate student.  Students who form a group of 3, rather than a group of 2 or 4, will only be assigned together in our triple bedroom room types as space permits.

Due to our various housing application cycles, first-year students cannot request to live with a current UMBC student(s).

Students who do not request a specific roommate will be assigned one by the Residential Life Staff.  Roommate assignments are made using information provided in the interest housing application.

Students with a finalized application for the academic year will receive specific instructions for requesting a roommate in the housing portal. Selecting your room is completely optional, but strongly recommended.

Your selection time will be sent to your UMBC email at least two days before the start of the selection period.

Selection times are assigned based on your group’s average completed credits and the selection process in which you are participating, times are not prioritized by group size or class year. If you are not part of a group, your time is assigned based on your completed credits. If students are part of a roommate group, their group’s average credits will be used to determine the time (ex. Student A has 45 credits and Student B has 15 credits, their Group Average is 30 credits and they will select with other groups/individuals that also have a 30 credit average). 

Some students/groups may not receive a selection time if demand for housing is higher than the amount of available spaces. Students who did not receive a selection time but met the other requirements are still guaranteed housing, and will be assigned to housing by the Residential Life Assignments team over the summer. Typically, groups with lower individual or group credit averages may not be issued a selection time.

The group leader must log into the housing portal during the assigned selection time to pick a room from the available inventory. Some buildings or communities may not be available for you to select, as they may be dedicated for first-year students and/or emergency housing. Students have until the conclusion of the selection period to log-in and pick a room.

After selection closes, students/groups that did not select will be assigned by Residential Life during the summer.  Again, Residential Life cannot stress how important it is that students pick a room.  It’s better to pick something and contact our office after selection to see if a change can be made, then to not select anything and be assigned in the summer to whatever spaces remain.