OT: UConn doesn't guarantee on campus housing for freshmen?

[aburks41]

I think it's pretty unacceptable to admit freshmen if you don't have available housing for them (especially if you're housing soph/juniors/seniors on campus). That should be a 100% guarantee. There are enough people working at UConn that are making $200K+ a year that they should be able to figure out this very difficult math problem. I'm still a few years away from having kids in college, but I'd be pissed if this happened to my kid.

It's almost an impossible math problem to solve. Colleges rely on metrics that historically show the accepted:enrolled ratio. Anticipating a much higher enrollment than usual is a total guess and not realistic to calculate. The other side of the coin is accepting too few students and then your enrollment drops and so does your revenue which = higher costs for current students to offset it. It sucks for the new students, but colleges would MUCH rather be on the side of having too many enrollees than too few.

 

[temery]

It's almost an impossible math problem to solve. Colleges rely on metrics that historically show the accepted:enrolled ratio. Anticipating a much higher enrollment than usual is a total guess and not realistic to calculate. The other side of the coin is accepting too few students and then your enrollment drops and so does your revenue which = higher costs for current students to offset it. It sucks for the new students, but colleges would MUCH rather be on the side of having too many enrollees than too few.

That depends. A few too few, and they can tap the wait list. Too many and they can't say sorry, we changed our mind.

Incoming freshman should ALWAYS be offered on campus housing. If anyone needs to be bumped it should be grad students first, then seniors, ...

 

[Chuck]

That depends. A few too few, and they can tap the wait list. Too many and they can't say sorry, we changed our mind.

Incoming freshman should ALWAYS be offered on campus housing. If anyone needs to be bumped it should be grad students first, then seniors, ...

And if you do have push some off campus, then help them out. Don't just say, so sorry, good luck. Freshmen (and parents) are stressed enough and deserve some support. Work with some of the landlords and provide some options, make intros to people that need roommates.

I also think UConn is behind the times with the admissions process and that hurts their yield determination. They are the only peer school that I know of that didn't have either an early action or early decision process (or both). You can get a good read on how your yield might go based on how many EA kids are accepting their offers.

Separate topic from the dorms, but even without EA/ED, UConn was the last school we got a decision from. I think that costs them some good candidates. We know some kids that decided to go to Maryland, Penn State, Pitt, Indiana that had been interested in UConn, but they moved on after hearing from all those schools months before.

 

[aburks41]

And if you do have push some off campus, then help them out. Don't just say, so sorry, good luck. Freshmen (and parents) are stressed enough and deserve some support. Work with some of the landlords and provide some options, make intros to people that need roommates.

I also think UConn is behind the times with the admissions process and that hurts their yield determination. They are the only peer school that I know of that didn't have either an early action or early decision process (or both). You can get a good read on how your yield might go based on how many EA kids are accepting their offers.

Separate topic from the dorms, but even without EA/ED, UConn was the last school we got a decision from. I think that costs them some good candidates. We know some kids that decided to go to Maryland, Penn State, Pitt, Indiana that had been interested in UConn, but they moved on after hearing from all those schools months before.

I remember I heard from Indiana first, at least 3-4 months prior to UConn's letter showing up in my mailbox. It is a bit ridiculous that we don't have EA or ED. What is the rationale behind a large public university not offering EA/ED? Seems like a no brainer for me, especially to help with the yield calculation so incoming freshman don't get screwed like this

 

[huskymedic]

UConn desperately needs to keep expanding the housing in Storrs.

UConn (South Campus) and the community as a whole are making progress on a few fronts:



Assisted access <<

-> In possibly the biggest expansion ever of privately owned apartments and dorm rooms in Mansfield, developers are constructing more than 430 and have recent approvals to put up another 800 or so.

The single biggest element, The Hub, is a two-building complex planned for the edge of the University of Connecticut campus at the plaza where Sgt. Pepperoni’s and other small commercial businesses operated.

The eight-story buildings will have a total of more than 1,100 bedrooms designed as a privately run dormitory. <-

 

[CL82]

And if you do have push some off campus, then help them out. Don't just say, so sorry, good luck. Freshmen (and parents) are stressed enough and deserve some support. Work with some of the landlords and provide some options, make intros to people that need roommates.

Yep, and maybe give them a temporary partial tuition credit to offset the difference in cost between on-campus and off-campus housing.

 

[husky8273]

a comprehensive summary of all the Mansfield development, see Mansfield, CT Development Activity

 

[huskymedic]

 

[Kolumbo]

Everyone claims the Mansfield folk would never allow an on-campus stadium because it would affect their lives 6 or 7 days of the year. Maybe a few more days depending on other events. Yet there is all this massive development which affects everyday life. Maybe we underestimate the younger generation up in them parts.

 

[BigTenFan]

Yep, and maybe give them a temporary partial tuition credit to offset the difference in cost between on-campus and off-campus housing.

Purdue just had the same issue this year. The yield on acceptance rate was 8% higher than anticipated so they didn't have enough on campus housing. In addition to putting 3 kids in rooms meant for two....
They just offered $4000 credit if students chose to move off campus to help alleviate the shortage.

 

[HooperScooper]

Quick update. So I found out that my friend’s daughter missed the deadline to submit her housing survey. She got mixed up and thought it was due June 29 (when something else was due) but it was due June 22. So it’s all on her that she’s in this predicament. You figure there would be some leeway with UConn but they’re in a bind with housing so they need to make some hard and fast rules.

Sorry for the OP here. But it did bring out the question if she missed the deadline as someone posted and that was indeed the case.

 

[Chuck]

Quick update. So I found out that my friend’s daughter missed the deadline to submit her housing survey. She got mixed up and thought it was due June 29 (when something else was due) but it was due June 22. So it’s all on her that she’s in this predicament. You figure there would be some leeway with UConn but they’re in a bind with housing so they need to make some hard and fast rules.

Sorry for the OP here. But it did bring out the question if she missed the deadline as someone posted and that was indeed the case.

Still feel bad for the kid. She must feel horrible.

We're keeping on top of deadlines for our kids, but we probably shouldn't be. We have one that will be fine on their own and another that would be the kid that shows up with a couple days worth of clothes and nothing else.

 

[dvegas]

Stamford added some housing a few years back and now this Surging enrollment at UConn Stamford leads to housing crunch: 70 on waitlist and 120 turned away

 

[Urshurak]

Texas A&M is the same way, and they even give freshman priority.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Sucks in general for intended incoming frosh at any school, and a hard/beneficial lesson learned for those who missed deadlines, failed to submit required info at all, etc. On the other hand, it’s not cancer, a a bullet to the temple, etc.

One bizarre scenario, media articles report some Hartford branch students are allowed to live in Storrs. Even with a bus now running to/from Hartford or students driving, main campus students should always have first shot for Storrs dorms. Just can’t imagine this long ago frosh, or current frosh, wanting to commute from Storrs, Or, intentionally adding more challenges while adapting to college life.

For kids laser locked on UConn and accepted for Storrs (historically based on higher credentials than most branch students), help pair them with others without a dorm searching for an apartment, and provide some dinero credit/incentive to either live home or in an apartment.

Alternatively, some may reasonably take a leap semester, work some to save dinero, complete a few generic classes at a branch or community college, then move in a Storrs dorm in January. Ideally, enough rooms will open up after some students lucky to get a Fall ‘24 dorm room will be homesick, flunk out, hate UConn (blasphemy), unfortunately off themselves, etc. Or, regrettably some without a dorm will go to some less desirable school.

Bottom line: hope things work out in the end for the daughter of OP’s friend and too many others in her situation.

 

[huskymedic]

Record enrollment at UConn leaves hundreds of students without housing

It’s move-in weekend at the University of Connecticut, but hundreds of students who sought on-campus residency won’t be settling into their dorms after a housing crunch slammed Storrs and Stamford.…

www.courant.com

-> According to data from the university, at the start of the week, nearly 300 students, including more than 220 freshmen, were on waitlists for housing at UConn’s Storrs and Stamford campuses.

The university offered new and returning students thousands of dollars in tuition discounts, parking passes and free meals in exchange for their coveted on-campus beds. Many turned the incentives down, leaving their less-lucky classmates scrambling to secure off-campus apartments or surrendering to the commute.<-

-> “All students who accepted enrollment and met the deadline to apply for on-campus housing at Storrs have been accommodated with a room assignment, regardless of whether they were from Connecticut or out of state,” Reitz said. “Students who applied past the deadline have been added to a waiting list. It changes almost daily as some students give up their housing assignments and others are moved off the waiting list and offered those rooms.”

According to copies of emails from July that students shared with the Courant, UConn’s Department of Residential Life offered $2,000 to the first 100 students who agreed to cancel their fall housing. All students who accepted the offer would receive a free commuter parking pass and 25 meal swipes, according to the emails. <-

 

[Chuck]

My son just started at a liberal arts school that guarantees four years of housing. We went to a new student event last month and a woman from the school was telling us how damaging a bigger than expected class is. She said people think it's a money grab, but the school hates it. It also take four years to work through the excess.

The school had 50 extra last year and 75 the year before (the school wants about 1,000 freshmen). She explained that while that sounds like nothing, it's an extra 60 rooms that they don't otherwise have. They have a new apartment dorm opening next year, and they rented out a local hotel for some kids this year and last. This year they dropped their acceptances more than they thought the needed to, just to be safe and had a bigger wait list to get the right number.

I feel bad for the UConn freshmen that don't get a spot on campus, but I also feel for the kids that get put in a lounge, or a converted double to a triple. UConn is going to need to adjust its admissions process. I think they need to announce decisions earlier to give them time to work through a wait list if they need.

 

[UConnJim]

For the upcoming school year, UConn has added an early decision process which should help them manage yield.

 

[huskymedic]

UConn (South Campus) and the community as a whole are making progress on a few fronts:



Assisted access <<

-> In possibly the biggest expansion ever of privately owned apartments and dorm rooms in Mansfield, developers are constructing more than 430 and have recent approvals to put up another 800 or so.

The single biggest element, The Hub, is a two-building complex planned for the edge of the University of Connecticut campus at the plaza where Sgt. Pepperoni’s and other small commercial businesses operated.

The eight-story buildings will have a total of more than 1,100 bedrooms designed as a privately run dormitory. <-

 

[alphasigko]

Wow! A bit bigger than Willington Oaks!

 

[HuskyHawk]

Curious where this is on 195.

 

[huskymedic]

Curious where this is on 195.

Pretty sure this is the one up by 4 Corners. There is a boatload of construction going on up there: Apartment complex on Storrs Road to open Fall 2025

 

[HuskyHawk]

Pretty sure this is the one up by 4 Corners. There is a boatload of construction going on up there: Apartment complex on Storrs Road to open Fall 2025

I always believed that should be "downtown" for Storrs. Run campus shuttles there every 15 minutes. Put in shops, apartments, restaurants, medical offices, whatever else is needed.

 

[huskymedic]

I always believed that should be "downtown" for Storrs. Run campus shuttles there every 15 minutes. Put in shops, apartments, restaurants, medical offices, whatever else is needed.

Ya mean like the current Downtown Storrs?

Maybe it can be Uptown Storrs. I think the other large housing/retail development up that way is called the Hub.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Ya mean like the current Downtown Storrs?

Maybe it can be Uptown Storrs. I think the other large housing/retail development up that way is called the Hub.

I mean like a real downtown. Something about 8-10X downtown Storrs. Build these apartments. Build retail. Add brick streets parallel to 44 for about 2-3 blocks, with no vehicle traffic. Put in restaurants with outdoor seating, have live music (no shortage of acts looking for attention near a university).