Summer Placement is for students without an on-campus room assignment for the fall semester.

You will apply through HouseCat for the 2024-2025 Academic Year. If you are interested in living on campus for the summer, you should consult the Summer Housing page.

Who is part of Summer Placement?

If you were unable to choose a room in the housing selection process, you will need to apply for Summer Placement. This could happen if you missed the general housing selection, were unable to select your first choice of room type (single/double), did not select a space in the Remaining Room Process or you applied after the general housing deadline.  This application will open at the beginning of June.

I’m unsure if I am studying abroad. Can I apply for Summer Placement?
No, only students that have formally canceled their plans with the Office of Global Education will be considered for Summer Placement. Please formally cancel your plans ahead of applying for summer placement. Applications from students that have not formally canceled will not be considered in placement.

Where do I access the Summer Placement Application?

The application is electronic and through our HouseCat Portal. Please select for the Academic Year 2024-2025.

Commitment to Campus Residency

Because we value community and the residential college model, Bates works hard to ensure all students have access to college-provided housing. In years when there is concern about capacity for students, additional solutions are utilized such as overflow housing.

Application and Preferences

Application
The Summer Placement application via HouseCat collects important information from students that are returning to campus. Our office will then assign housing via a lottery system by class year in August. We will do our best to place you in accordance with your preferences, but that may not always be possible. We thank students for welcoming their fall room assignments as a new opportunity on campus. We will begin accepting housing applications after graduation each year with assignments being released in mid-August.

Return from leave approval (only for students returning from leave)
Students who were on leave must initiate a return from a leave of absence by June 1 for a fall semester return. Students may initiate their return by completing the online Leave of Absence Return Request form. Requests to return from a leave of absence will be reviewed by the college’s Return Review Committee. This is NOT for students who studied abroad.

Timing of Application
The application will be available at the start of June following commencement. All eligible students apply during the application period and there is a lottery for placement. There is no advantage in filling out the application earlier. All students that apply during the application period are housed via a lottery placement system by our office.

Housing Accommodations
If you need to request a Housing Accommodation, please contact the Office of Accessible Education. It is recommended that students initiate the process before December 1st for the winter semester.

Preferences
We will work to accommodate your preferences; not all students will receive their top choices. Please use the “additional information” page of the application to outline your preferences in as much detail as possible including buildings, roommates, and other pertinent information. We appreciate your understanding that preferences may not be met as we work to fulfill the housing needs of all of our students. If none of your preferences are available when you are being placed, you will be assigned in a building outside of your preferences.

Common Requests

• Requesting to fill a shared space: If you have arranged to take a space in a partially occupied double, triple, suite, block, or have agreed to live in a theme house, you should indicate the exact room and any roommate(s) in the additional information page of the application. Whichever students are remaining for the fall semester, should email housing@bates.edu to indicate that they want you to fill the bed in their shared space. Students may not arrange to take a single, vacant double/triple, or vacant suite/block from students leaving for the winter semester. Theme House coordinators will work with our office to fill all the beds in their houses.
• Requesting to live with others on summer placement: If you do have a roommate(s) in mind, you can request your roommate(s) in the “additional information” section. You should list possible breakdowns of the group in case your top preference is not available. Examples are listed on the “additional information” page of the application.
• Requesting a single room If you do not have a roommate(s) in mind: you may request a single in the “additional information” section, but if no singles are available, you should expect to be matched with a roommate(s) and to be placed in a double or triple. You should also provide us with the name of a potential roommate in the “additional information” section even if you are requesting a single room, in case we are not able to offer you one. Our office can not guarantee that any student will have a single. If you have a diagnosed disability and need a single as a housing accommodation, you should contact the Office of Accessible Education.
• Requesting to live with students currently on-campus in a new space: The summer placement process is only for students who do not have a room assignment for the fall semester. Students may not form a roommate group with students currently living on-campus as part of the summer placement process. Returning students can only live with currently housed students if they are filling an empty bed in a shared space.

FAQs

When do I find out my room?

You will be emailed your assigned space in mid-August. Over the course of the upcoming months, including the summer, we frequently see a variety of changes to which rooms are open, based on other students’ plans changing. By waiting till August we are able to gather the most accurate number of spaces that will be open and have much more variety to meet students’ preferences.

How are rooms assigned during the Summer Placement?

We assign rooms by class year and then by taking into account the preferences listed on your application. The more preferences you list in your application the more likely we are to place you in a space that works for your needs.

If I applied for a single in general housing and was unable to select one, will singles be available during summer placement?

Every year singles do open up for this process, but the number of singles that will be available is unknown. We highly encourage students, especially rising sophomores, to list options that involve a roommate, in case a single is not available.

If I don’t get a single will I get a “random roommate”?

Because enough singles may not be available to meet the demand during the placement process, we highly encourage students, especially rising sophomores, to consider students they are willing to room with. On the “Additional Info” page, you will be able to list names of students on the Summer Process that you might be interested in living with. Our office prefers to match students to identify others students to be paired with rather than have to place roommates using only their housing profile information if no singles are available.

Summer Placement Dates

April 2024	Spring Room Selection concludes
June 2024	Summer Placement Application opens for those without a housing assignment
Friday, July 26, 2024	Summer Placement Applications close
Mid-August 2024	Summer Placement Assignments released