Home > Residence Life & Housing > Incoming Students >

Room Assignment Process for Incoming Students

The residence hall in which you are placed will be determined by the date your Housing Preference Form is submitted. Acceptance into Whitworth University does not guarantee you a traditional residence hall room arrangement. For example, if there are only 30 available spaces for incoming students in the building of your choice, you must be one of the first 30 students to request this building on the Housing Preference Form in order to be housed there.

You will be sent your room assignment and roommate information after July 15.

Overflow

Occasionally we have more requests for housing than we have rooms, causing an overflow situation. The Whitworth Housing Office will notify you if this situation occurs.

The overflow rooms are chosen based on the completion date of the Housing Preference Form. The residents who complete the form last in buildings best able to accommodate overflow may be assigned an extra roommate, if additional space is needed.

Students living in overflow spaces are given permanent assignments as they become available, beginning with the student with the earliest confirmation date. Students living in overflow spaces are also given a housing credit based on the length of time they have lived in an overflow-housing assignment.

Communication Schedule

Fall Term
Students who first enroll at Whitworth for fall term will be sent roommate letters after July 15. Overflow letters will be sent after
Aug. 1.

Jan Term
Students who first enroll at Whitworth for Jan Term will be called at home and/or e-mailed the week before Christmas with room and roommate information.

Spring Term
Students who first enroll at Whitworth for spring semester will be called at home and or e-mailed after Jan. 15 regarding spring term room assignment.

Roommate Matches

• The roommate-matching process is based on the completed date of a student's online Housing Preference Form. Housing Preference Forms are sorted according to the requests for each residence hall and the date the forms were completed.
• Access to the Housing Preference Form is granted only after a student confirms with the university. The username and password for the form will be sent after the student confirms.
• All roommate matches are done by hand using the information provided in the Housing Preference Form. It is important that a student's Housing Preference Form honestly reflects his or her lifestyle.
• The Whitworth Housing Office recommends that incoming students contact their roommates after receiving their roommate assignment letter to discuss what to bring and to begin the process of getting to know one another.
• The roommate assignment letter is emailed to students after July 15.

Roommate Conflict

• All roommates experience some conflict. Conflict can be healthy and, if dealt with openly, can be a learning experience. Your resident assistant and resident director have both been trained in conflict mediation and are there as a resource to help you work through difficulties.
• If you request a room change, you and your roommate will be asked to go through a mediation process. Not all room-change requests are granted.
• The housing office staff understands that conflict can be difficult, but we have found most college students are able to learn how to mediate and manage conflict and live with differences. Parents are encouraged to allow their students to learn how to work through conflict with their roommates.
• The housing office will encourage parents to allow their students to work through conflict with the resources available on campus, i.e. resident assistants and resident directors.

Jan Term/Spring Semester Housing

Students who wish to move on campus for Jan Term or spring semester undergo a separate process for residence hall and roommate assignment. Incoming students need to contact the Whitworth Housing Office if they are interested in moving on to campus.  Please understand that while the housing office staff would like to place all new students in their preferred buildings, space around campus is very limited. On-campus availability happens only when current fall semester students choose to study abroad, transfer, graduate, etc., during Jan Term or spring semester. Because of this, mid-December is the earliest time at which the housing office can determine where spaces are available for Jan Term and/or spring semester.

Incoming students will be notified of their housing placement in late December. Please check the Residence Hall Opening and Closing Dates calendar to determine the day and time at which students are allowed to move in to the residence halls.

The Whitworth Housing Office strongly encourages you to call 509.777.3250 when you are accepted into Whitworth for either Jan Term or spring semester to make sure that you are on housing's list of interested incoming on-campus students.