Frequently Asked Questions

Here you will find answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about the pre-assignment process. If you have a question about an application or the residential requirements of a specific house, we recommend contacting the house leadership or Resident Fellow(s) directly through our house pages. If you do not see an answer to your question, please feel free to contact us directly. 

Pre-Assignment FAQ Quick Links

Eligibility

• Can I pre-assign to a house that is not in my neighborhood?
• If I plan to go abroad or take a leave of absence during Autumn Quarter, is it still possible to pre-assign?
• If I plan to go abroad or take a leave of absence during Winter or Spring quarters, is it still possible to pre-assign?
• Can I pre-assign and participate in fraternity or sorority recruitment?
• Can I pre-assign as a 5th year?
• Can I pre-assign with a group?
• Can I pre-assign into a house with one quarter of guaranteed housing remaining?
• Can I pre-assign and apply for a residential student leader position (RA, ETA) as well?
• Can I pre-assign and still be a participant in the OAE accommodations process? If so, what steps do I need to follow?
• Do I need to submit a Housing Application if I apply for Pre-Assignment?
• If I pre-assign into a house, but decide afterwards that I am no longer interested, can I withdraw from the house?

Application Process

• What are the pre-assignment deadlines?
• How do I find out more about pre-assignment requirements?
• How do I find out about the criteria for each theme house?
• Can I apply to more than one theme house? 
• Can I pre-assign with a roommate or a group?
• Can I edit my application after submission?
• Can I withdraw my application?
• Are late applications accepted?

Pre-Assignment FAQ

Eligibility

Can I pre-assign to a house that is not in my neighborhood? 

Yes, Pre-assignment is available to students regardless of neighborhood affiliation. 

If I plan to go abroad or take a leave of absence during Autumn Quarter, is it still possible to pre-assign? 

No, only students who will be on campus in Autumn Quarter can be pre-assigned.

If I plan to go abroad or take a leave of absence during Winter or Spring quarters, is it still possible to pre-assign? 

In general, houses prefer that applicants intend to remain on-campus and in the theme house for the full academic year in which they are chosen for pre-assignment. This is so that students participating in these programs have the full benefit of the year-long program designed by the house leadership. Additionally, as pre-assignment is an annual process, houses generally have little control over who is assigned to fill mid-year vacancies. For the 2023 process, a question is included on the application to provide house leadership insight into applicants’ intent to remain on-campus for the full year so they may consider this information in their decision-making.

That said, there are various reasons students may choose to take a leave or go abroad in Winter or Spring after living in a theme house the previous quarter(s). Students choosing to do this should consider that students returning from Winter abroad are not guaranteed a placement back into the theme house they lived in during the Spring; placement is based on availability. Spaces will not be held vacant in theme houses when students go abroad. 

Can I pre-assign and participate in fraternity or sorority recruitment? 

Yes, you are more than welcome to apply for Pre-Assignment and go through fraternity/sorority recruitment. However, submitting your Pre-Assignment application is a binding commitment to live in that theme house for the following year if you are selected. So, if you wish to retain your eligibility to live in a fraternity/sorority house for the following year instead, you must withdraw your Pre-Assignment application by the submission deadline. 

Students who are selected for pre-assignment are not eligible to live in a fraternity/sorority house for the following year, but they may join a fraternity/sorority if that fraternity/sorority allows newly recruited members to live outside their Greek house. 

Can I pre-assign as a 5th year? 

You will need to confirm with Housing Assignments that you are eligible to live in undergraduate housing and have at least 3 quarters of guaranteed undergraduate housing remaining. 

Can I pre-assign with a group?

For the 2023 process, all Pre-Assignment applications will be individual with no group applications or assignments as a group. 

In recent years, various theme houses have allowed for students to apply for Pre-Assignment as groups– generally this was to address concerns about filling their spaces that have substantially decreased. The Pre-Assignment process and application system does not have the capability to manage group applications, and the additional step allowing for group applications required manual data entry, which lead to errors and substantial negative impacts on applicants. Returning to individual applications will ensure the process is equitable for all applicants.

Can I pre-assign into a house with one quarter of guaranteed housing remaining? 

You must be eligible to live in undergraduate housing and have at least 3 quarters of guaranteed undergraduate housing remaining. 

Can I pre-assign and apply for a residential student leader position (RA, ETA) as well? 

The residential student leader selection process occurs before pre-assignment.  If you are selected as a student leader, you cannot pre-assign.  If you are not selected as a student leader then you are welcome to apply to pre-assign.

Can I pre-assign and still be a participant in the OAE accommodations process? If so, what steps do I need to follow? 

Students who have special housing needs due to a disability or documented medical condition can apply for a housing accommodation through the Office of Accessible Education (OAE). Any student needing an accommodation who has not registered with the OAE previously should do so immediately. Registration and submission of the Housing Accommodation Request Form will be online through OAE Connect. If your pre-assignment application is accepted and your medical needs can be accommodated in your chosen residence, OAE will facilitate a medical accommodation for that residence.  If you cannot be accommodated in that particular residence, OAE will contact you about obtaining an assignment through the OAE assignment process.  Please make sure you are aware of all OAE deadlines and processes; you can find those here.

Do I need to submit a Housing Application if I apply for Pre-Assignment? 

Yes, you need to submit both a Housing Application and a Pre-Assignment application if applying for Pre-Assignment.

If I pre-assign into a house, but decide afterwards that I am no longer interested, can I withdraw from the house? 

All pre-assignment placements are binding, and once a student has applied and been accepted to a pre-assignment placement, they become ineligible to participate in the regular housing assignments process. If you would like to withdraw from the Pre-Assignment process, you must do so before the application deadline by visiting the Submit Application page and clicking “Withdraw Application.” 

Application Process

What are the pre-assignment deadlines? 

Please check the pre-assignment web page for deadlines.

How do I find out more about pre-assignment requirements? 

Please visit the Pre-Assignment website  for the full requirements.

How do I find out about the criteria for each theme house? 

Please  visit the application website and view each house’s application to view their criteria.

Can I apply to more than one theme house? 

No, our University Theme Houses support very different themes, and the leaders of those communities are looking for students who have demonstrated interest in that particular theme. In our current process, applicants apply to one house, the house leadership reviews their applications, and then decides on which applicants to offer placement in the house using their unique criteria.

For many years, students applied to only one theme house (ATH, ETH, or co-op). For 2021-22 and 2022-23, to address concerns that these communities would struggle to fill bedspaces due to COVID and the neighborhood model launch, we split our formerly single process into two processes, with a rank/match process for co-ops and an alternate process for academic/ethnic theme houses. While these changes somewhat helped address the filling concerns initially, data from 2022-23 suggest the supplemental steps are not needed to support these communities’ filling– in general, these communities had more applications than spaces last year. Returning to the single house application process provides a simpler and more efficient experience for both applicants and house leadership.

Can I pre-assign with a roommate or a group?

No - the pre-assignment process requires each person to submit an application separately, and applicants are considered as individuals. Group applications are not supported and will not be considered. 

Can I edit my application after submission? 

Unfortunately, applications cannot be edited after submission. If you've already submitted the application, you'll have to withdraw the application, make your edits, and submit again.  As long as you do this by the deadline, your application will be counted. 

Can I withdraw my application? 

If you would like to withdraw from the Pre-Assignment process, you must do so before the application deadline by visiting the Submit Application page and clicking “Withdraw Application.”   Applications cannot be withdrawn after the application deadline.  All pre-assignment placements are binding, and once a student has applied and been accepted to a pre-assignment placement, they become ineligible to participate in the regular housing assignments process.

Are late applications accepted? 

To preserve equity among all applicants and in fairness to those who submitted by the published deadline, we cannot accept late applications.

If you have any questions about the application process, please contact the Pre-Assignment Team.