Off Campus Living

Colleges and Universities A-Z George Washington University
1

Hi,

I recently applied to GW and (in the chances that I do get in) was wondering how expensive it is to live off campus after freshman year. Do most students live in dorms on campus for all 4 years? Is it easy to find affordable living off campus in DC?

Thanks.

2

Beginning with the class of 2018, Undergraduates are required to live on campus through junior year. I guess they’re hoping seniors will choose to live on campus for their last year rather than moving off campus for just one year.

3

Wow…but after freshman year do students live in the traditional dorm room or does it change by the years to apartment style or suite style? What kind of housing options do they give their students?

4

After freshman year most, if not all are suites/apartment style (although I think Lafayette is now an upper classman dorm and it does not have kitchens in each room). Most are very nice apartment style, for example in Amsterdam you can get a two bedroom two bathroom with living area, kitchen and small dining area. District house is the new dorm and supposedly is very nice, all suites or infinity housing.

5

You can apply for off-campus housing after your freshman year. It’s lottery-based I believe. Every housing option is expensive, but some are pricier than others. Living in Fulbright, for example, will be much cheaper than living in Varsity on K as a sophomore/junior.

6

“Affordable” is a relative term, lol. If you decide to live off campus after junior year, price will depend heavily on whether or not you have roommates and how far you’re willing to commute. If you still want to be walking distance and not have roommates, I believe many places’ rent starts around $1500/mo. If you live in northern VA and take the metro in (a 20min ride, approx) you’ll save a couple hundred a month.

7

During freshman year, you basically have three housing options:

  1. The majority of rooms through out campus are a double with a bathroom connected with another double.
  2. West Hall has single rooms and each four single rooms have a common space between them. Mitchell Hall also has single rooms, but it is the only dorm on campus with communal bathrooms.
  3. You can live in a Thurston 4-person, 5-person, or 6-person. However, the 6-person room style is basically three rooms combined together for six people.

After freshman year:
There is a huge variety. Every dorm after freshman year (besides Mitchell Hall, which is all grades) has a kitchen in it. You share a bathroom with three other people or less.

Check out more info: https://living.gwu.edu/first-year