<p>Does anyone know where students end up if they get a bad draw number? Does Stanford absolutely guarantee housing? I don't understand the system where now he has to be put on a waiting list as a single and will learn where he is going to live sometime over the summer.</p>
<p>There were six of them in his housing "draw" and all of them are now waiting to get a room somewhere, all separated. Crazy system, if you ask me.</p>
<p>momomom: yes, Stanford does guarantee housing for all four years of undergrad. After freshman year, it’s a three-tier draw system. You can choose which of your three tiers to use for any given upperclass year. So, it sounds like your son and his draw group probably were using their Tier Three(i.e., lowest) levels this year, and got a low enough number in the draw that they couldn’t be accommodated as a group of six in any of the housing choices they designated. In that case, their group will split back into six individuals needing housing, and they will all get assigned to housing in various residences once the Res Ed dept. knows what is available for Fall. Post-draw room availability depends on various factors such as numbers of students planning to go abroad next year, students who file to take a leave for another reason, etc. It’s not really crazy, but it’s a fairly complicated effort to keep the playing field level for all the types of housing options. This way, pretty much everyone who wants to live on the Row, or in suites, or any other type of housing they consider most desirable, will have the opportunity to do it at some point during their undergrad years.</p>
<p>Thanks for your prompt (and informative) reply, zenkoan! Still sounds kind of crazy to me, but that’s ok, as long as he has somewhere to live! :)</p>