First Year Students and Transfer Students

Housing application materials are mailed to first year & transfer students when they are accepted to SMU. The housing application & contract must be returned to SMU Enrollment Services, along with the $550 matriculation fees ($100 of which is the housing deposit.) First year students are required to live on-campus and are guaranteed a space on-campus. Students from the Dallas area may request permission to live at home with parent or guardian. Requests to live at home should be returned in lieu of the housing application & contract when paying the matriculation fees. Transfer students are not required to live on-campus.

Assignments are made during the summer for the upcoming academic year and students are notified of their hall assignment in late June or early July. Assignments are made in application date order. (Application date is the date the contract was received in our office.) Students may request up to three preferred residence halls. Requested halls are not guaranteed. The housing contract is for the academic year and is for space on-campus, not a particular hall or living arrangement.

Roommate information is mailed the first of August. Specific room assignment information is not available until the student checks in. Roommate requests must be mutual to be granted. First-year students may request a roommate, but we do not accept suitemate requests from First-years.

New Graduate Students

Graduate students who wish to live on-campus may request a graduate housing application and contract by contacting our office. Housing for graduate students is limited and submission of application materials does NOT guarantee an assignment. Graduate students are housed in Martin Hall (single or married couple in efficiency apartment) and Hawk Hall (family housing in one bedroom apartment).  Deposit is required.

Returning & Upperclass Students

Students living in the residence halls may participate in the Housing Reapplication process held in March for the following academic year. Students participating in reapplication will be able to select an assignment from available space. Complete instructions on reapplying for housing are distributed to current residents in late January.

Students living off-campus may apply in the RLSH office. Upperclass students are placed on the waiting list for assignment and are assigned as space is available, usually during the summer.

Special Housing Needs

Students having special housing needs because of a disability should contact the Department of Residence Life and Student Housing prior to submitting the housing application. Whenever possible, the housing staff will work with that student in adapting the facility to meet special needs.