In previous years, UMD added a Housing/Meal Plan form to the portal when decisions were released. I do not know if that is still the case. If so, I would like to provide some info.
Completing the form does NOT require the payment of any money
Completing the form does not constitute any commitment to attend UMD
Excluding any medical needs, Freshmen cannot select the dorm that they want.
If you have been admitted to an LLC, that will be the dorm you get
Honors and Scholars students will get the dorm associated with the Honors.Scholars program they are in.
If there is no LLC/Honors/Scholars assignment, then a dorm will be randomly assigned,
If you have some reasonable expectation of attending UMD, then fill out the form sooner rather than later. If you decide not to attend, you need to inform ResLife at UMD, I think the end date for that is June 1, but I’m not 100% sure.
Students can request roommates by mutual requests to ResLife,
If you do not submit the Housing form, UMD will assume that you will be commuting to campus
As for the meal plan, pick the cheapest one and set up a TerpExpress account.
@SoofDad We are going to admitted student day on April 5th at UMD so was going to fill out housing with my son. He was admitted to Carillon communities LLC but he doesn’t think it’s something he wants to do & he needs to let them know that by 3/15 . On the housing form there isn’t anywhere to request dorms – but I have a friends who’s daughter is a freshman there & she got to pick her top 3 dorm choices. You mention it’s random above…is this a new thing this year? Wanted to get him signed up asap in case he decides to attend. Any info is helpful thanks!
@babysweetpea - As far as I know, freshman cannot request a specific dorm, unless there is some compelling reason, such as a medical condition. I am not sure how your friends daughter was able to pick her top 3 choices. The only thing that I can think of, is that she was admitted into the Honors College or the Scholars Program and within each of those, students can select their top choice of programs. Each Honors College program and Scholars program has their own specific dorm (LLC).
I looked at the housing form with my son last night and it seemed pretty basic. Am I correct in concluding that it doesn’t really matter if you do it early - you just have to do it by May 1? It also wasn’t clear whether they expect you to pay the enrollment deposit before signing up for housing.
My son was accepted to the Arts Scholars community but may change his mind should he decide to go to UMD - he didn’t see a place on the form to request or indicate an LLC. (The info from the scholars program said they recommend living in a certain dorm, but how do you request it?)
He’s a music student and I do hope they don’t put him on the opposite side of campus from the music school, but he’s not sure he needs the extra work from the scholars program while trying to cram in 30 hours of practicing per week, adjust to college, and keep his scholarship.
He probably won’t make his decision until closer to the May 1 deadline so I just want to make sure that he’s not missing something.
@eh1234 - You do NOTneed to pay the enrollment deposit prior to submitting the housing form. If your son decides not to attend UMD you must notify UMD ResLife before June 1? (I’m not sure of the date, it may be on the form).
Dorm Rooms are assigned on a first come/ first serve basis.
Freshmen do not get to select their own Dorm (with possible exceptions for medical reasons)
Students are assigned to Dorms based on the LLCs that they are in. It looks like the Arts Scholars students are assigned to Bel Air Hall. You can check the location of that Dorm, relative to his classes by googling a UMD Campus map.
I cannot comment on any extra work that may be required. I believe that your son can start in the Arts Scholars program and then drop it, if it turns out to be too much. Or, he can drop it in advance, in which case ResLife will assign him to a Dorm of their choosing.
I assume that you and your son have looked at the following link. Perhaps you could arrange a phone call with the Director or Associate Director to resolve some of your concerns
Thanks for your reply @soofdad. I was confused, in part, because the email from the scholars program made it sound like he should select Bel Air, which is obviously not possible.
He is signed up for an Admitted Students day where he can learn more about the scholars program, but not until April 12. I’ll have him reach out to the program director if he wants to make his decision before then.
If students who aren’t in LLCs can’t express dorm preferences, is it just done fairly randomly? I’m not sure what “first come, first served” entails if the students can’t rank their preferences. It sounds like they randomly put you somewhere.
@eh1234 - My “first come/first serve” comment applied to Rooms, not the Dorms. This is most beneficial to freshmen in LLCs. Yes, Freshmen not in any LLC are randomly assigned to dorms. If Bel Air Hall is close to his classes, I see no harm in submitting the housing form sooner rather than later.
Bel Air Hall is not too far from the Music school, so he may want to stay in the LLC for now. If you sign up too late for housing, he may be placed in a triple or a quad. Res Life explains that on their site. I don’t know if students in LLCs would be placed in converted lounges or forced triple/quads as has been done for those not in a LLC.
Thanks @reads2222 - I forgot about that whole forced triple/quad possibility. I’ll have him sign up this weekend and decide about the LLC placement before May 1.
Looking at the scholars program requirements, plus the suggested program for his major, it looks like it would mess up his plans to use certain AP credits and leave him with 18 credits some semesters. He’ll need to give it some thought.