Winter Placement Process
The Winter Placement Process is for students without a winter semester housing assignment – typically because they are returning to campus from abroad or from a leave – and is required for students to receive a room assignment. We will begin accepting housing applications in early November each year with assignments released in mid-December.
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 winter semester room assignments as a new opportunity on campus.
Looking for housing over winter break instead? See Break Housing.
Winter Placement Timeline for Winter 2025
You must submit your winter placement application via the HouseCat portal by the deadline noted below. You will be notified by email of your assignment in December.
| Event | Date |
| Return from leave approval form due (only for students returning from a leave of absence) | Tuesday, October 1, 2024 |
| Winter placement applications opens on HouseCat | Monday, November 4, 2024 |
| Winter housing accommodations applications suggested deadline | Friday, November 15, 2024 |
| Winter placement applications due | Monday, December 2, 2024 at 11:59pm |
| Notification of assignment | Mid-December 2024 |
| Move-in for winter semester begins | Sunday, January 5, 2025 |
Spaces for Winter Placement
Spaces used in the Winter Placement Process fall into one of the following categories:
Rooms fully vacated from the fall semester
Any rooms (including those in suites and blocks) or suites that will be entirely vacated for the winter semester will be available to returning students through the Winter Placement Process. To ensure fairness and transparency in housing access, our office prohibits departing students from transferring their room to any other student. Fully vacated rooms will be filled by our office only.
Open beds in shared rooms
If a bed opens up in a room between the fall and winter semester, the student(s) that will remain in that space for the winter semester can request to fill the remaining bed with an upper-class student coming back for the winter semester (see also “Maximizing fully vacant spaces” below). Students already in-room should email housing@bates.edu to indicate who they want to fill the bed in their shared space. In addition, students going through the Winter Placement Process should indicate the exact room and roommate(s) they are interested in. If the current in-room student does not take the opportunity to fill the space, the bed will be assigned by our office.
Open beds in blocks and suites
If a bed opens up in a suite or block housing, the student(s) who will remain in that space for the winter semester can request to fill the remaining bed in the suite or block with an upper-class student coming back for the winter semester. Students already in-room should email housing@bates.edu to indicate who they want to fill the bed in their shared space. In addition, students going through the Winter Placement Process should indicate the exact room and roommate(s) they are interested in. If the current student(s) does/do not take the opportunity to fill the space, the bed will be assigned by our office. Any completely open blocks, suites, or open rooms within suites or blocks are returned to our office for placement.
More Information
For Returning Students
Timing of Application
The application will be available on November 4, 2024. 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.
Preferences
Availability of rooms changes year to year. We will work to accommodate your preferences whenever possible and not all students will receive their top choices. Please use the the application to outline your preferences in as much detail as possible including buildings, roommates, roommate configurations, 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.
Housing Accommodations
If you need to request a Housing Accommodation or resubmit documentation, please contact the Office of Accessible Education. It is recommended that students initiate the process before November 15, 2024 for the winter semester. If you have any questions about your accommodation expiration date, please email accessibility@bates.edu.
Return from leave approval
Students who were on a leave must initiate a “return from a leave of absence” by October 1st, 2024 for a winter 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. Questions about this process should be directed to the Director of Student Support Services. This is NOT for students who studied abroad.
For Current On-Campus Students
Current on-campus students are not typically permitted to take part in the Winter Placement Process. However, in some instances, we allow for current on-campus students to move between semesters to increase the amount of fully vacant spaces on campus. This can allow for more returning students to be housed according to their preferences.
For instance, if there are two current on-campus students both living in separate doubles with open beds, allowing them to combine into one room between semesters frees up a double room for two returning students who’d like to live together.
If you are a current on-campus student who would like to be considered for this type of exception, please contact us at housing@bates.edu.
The following stipulations must be met, though it does not guarantee an exception:
- The room/suite that you are leaving must become fully vacant after your departure.
- You must fully move out of your old assignment at the end of the fall semester, to allow for the room to be cleaned and used for a returning student.
Any approved changing of rooms in this manner is final. Students will not be able to back out of the change. The Office of Residence Life has the final say on all room changes.