Housing Assignment Process

Student housing is administered through the Housing Services Office (housing.services@wheaton.edu, 630.752.5202, located in the Student Services Building). The College understands the value that students place on their housing locations and works diligently to meet students’ needs. Wheaton offers students four residence halls, fourteen apartment buildings, and twenty-three campus houses through the housing selection process in the spring. Since Wheaton is a residential campus, our desire is to house all students in campus-owned housing that is supported by Residence Life staff members. Living off-campus in non-campus-owned housing is not guaranteed and should not be expected, as that is not supported by Wheaton’s residential philosophy. However, if we are unable to accommodate our continuing and new students with our housing inventory, we will offer off-campus permission to a limited number of students during the housing selection process conducted during the Spring semester.

How and where female and male students interact and relate to each other contributes to a campus atmosphere that encourages spiritual, moral, relational and intellectual growth; this is why we have visitation policies that provide boundaries for opposite-sex interactions in campus housing. All campus housing is separated by same-sex floors, apartments, and houses.

All new students are assigned a roommate and a room in a residence hall. Our desire is to have students receive their first housing choice, but due to year-to-year changes in student preferences and limited rooms in each living area, some students will not receive their first selection.

Housing Selection Process for Continuing Students

During the Spring semester, continuing students will apply online to live in College housing for the following year, with roommates of their choice. We work hard to house students where they prefer but know that in any given year there will be a portion of each class, from rising seniors to rising sophomores, that will not get their first housing preference due to student housing requests shifting from year to year and a static number of housing units. Students select housing based on their randomly assigned lottery housing number which is calculated using the number of years a student has been in college. Lottery numbers are randomly assigned and are not based on one’s credit hours, campus leadership responsibilities, or previous lottery number. If a student is unable to select their first housing preference, they will be placed on a waitlist. The waitlist is released based on one’s lottery number. However, the Housing Services Office reserves the right to adjust and reorder the waitlist if a specific housing demand arises based on Wheaton’s enrollment throughout the year. Students on any form of probation (e.g., disciplinary, academic) may be considered ineligible for off-campus permission. Students should take the initiative to talk with the Housing Services Manager regarding any related questions.

Housing Assignment Responsibilities

All students living in campus housing agree to abide by all the policies and procedures outlined in the Student Handbook.

Failure to cancel assigned College housing five weeks prior to the first day of classes for the Fall or eight weeks prior to the first day of the Spring semester will result in a charge of $250.

Students are expected to sleep in their assigned rooms throughout the year. Sleeping in community lounges or lobbies is prohibited and continued violations will be addressed through the Student Conduct Policy.

Housing Assignment Changes

Housing and Disability Accommodations

Wheaton College recognizes that students with a documented disability or condition that may qualify as a disability based on the following definition from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), may require housing accommodations to fully participate in the residential component of campus life.

ADA Definition

• A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities (i.e., walking, performing manual tasks, breathing, learning, etc.)
• A person who has a history or record of such an impairment
• A person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment

Students who need to request a specific ADA accommodation in housing are required to submit their requests along with supporting documentation to the Learning and Accessibility (LAS) office as early as possible so that any approvals can be made prior to the spring housing application and selection process. Students who do not comply with this timeline may face more limited options or waitlists as housing assignments will have already been made.

Please note that ADA Accommodation requests do not include personal housing preferences or specific residential locations, rather just the accommodation that is required. LAS will communicate with students about the accommodation process and approval, and the Housing Services Office will communicate with students about specific housing information.

Students may reach out to las@wheaton.edu with any questions about this process.

Any Wheaton student who believes s/he has been wrongfully denied reasonable accommodations may utilize the ADA Grievance Procedure.

This grievance procedure is not intended to supersede other College policies and procedures, which may exist to address alleged violations of ADA and/or Section 504, and other issues of concern for which separate College policies and procedures exist, such as grade appeals.

College Housing Options

College Residence Halls (the number of resident spaces available is listed in parenthesis)

Williston (65), Fischer (587), McManis-Evans (288), and Smith-Traber (408) house men and women. Room assignments are made for the year; however, if changes are necessary, arrangements must be made with the residence life staff member who manages the building.

College-Owned Apartment Complexes

College Avenue (169); Michigan-Crescent (124); Saint and Elliot (92); and Terrace (232) are available to eligible third and fourth year students. Students are encouraged to plan activities and events that promote a sense of community. Students are responsible for cleaning their own apartment.

College-Owned Houses

Groups of third and fourth year students (a total of 194) may apply to live in one of the 23 houses located within walking distance of the campus. Students are expected to plan activities and events that encourage and promote a sense of community. Students are responsible for cleaning their own houses.

Off-Campus Permission

Wheaton is a residential campus and only allows off-campus permission when all students cannot be accommodated in campus housing. Wheaton views living off-campus as a privilege and not a right. The Housing Services Office will notify rising juniors and seniors if a number of students need to live off-campus in a given year.

Students who are not granted off-campus permission will need to select an on-campus housing option. Off-campus permission is granted for the following year only during the previous Spring semester for any part of the following school year; it is not granted between Fall and Spring semesters. Students living off campus are a part of the Wheaton community just as much as those living in campus owned housing.

Students living off campus will be subject to the same conduct and visitation policies as students living in on-campus apartments and houses.

The following groups of students are the only ones eligible for off-campus permission. Such permission is not automatic nor is it guaranteed. We will review each student request on a case-by-case basis.

Fifth-year students, those 25 years old or older, married students, students participating in Human Needs and Global Resources, third- and fourth-year engineering and nursing students enrolled in a 3-2 program, and part-time students (enrolled in less than 12 hours) may apply for off-campus permission.

Individual local students who live at home with their parents, or who live in a home owned solely by their parents may also request off-campus permission. “Home” in this clause does not include properties owned by multiple parents or families, nor does this clause apply to multiple students living in the same home owned by multiple parents or families. Finally, parents renting an apartment for their student does not qualify as owning a home, unless the parents live in the apartment full time.

Students who are granted off-campus permission are responsible for providing their own housing accommodations. Wheaton College does not assume responsibility for the quality and/or safety of the services provided by off-campus property owners. Off-campus students found doing their laundry in Wheaton facilities or throwing their garbage away in our dumpsters will be fined $50 per occurrence.

Finally, the College supports the local city ordinances that state that no more than four unrelated people (student and non-student) can live together. Exceptions to live off campus are very limited and will not be granted to students seeking to sign a year-long lease (for reasons such as a December graduation date, local summer internships, public health, dissatisfaction with campus housing assignment, learning to pay one’s own bills, desiring to create a space for a team or group to gather, living with a friend who has graduated or qualifies for automatic off-campus permission, accommodating an emotional support animal, or desiring to reduce expenses). Students found living off campus who did not receive permission will be charged the on-campus housing rate for each semester they lived off campus.