Transfer Student Housing
As a transfer student, you will bring a number of unique college experiences to the Hilltop. While those experiences were impactful, a whole new set of opportunities and experiences await you at Cornell. Residence Life offers a number of different housing options and programs to aid in your transition to Cornell and help foster connections with faculty, staff, and students.
Transfers who've earned fewer than 7 course credits
If you’ve earned fewer than 7 course credits you will join other first-year students at our New Student Orientation.
Transfers who've earned 7 or more course credits
If you’ve earned 7 or more course credits you will join other students at our Transfer Student Orientation.
Housing assignment process
Housing placements are determined by the date your housing preference form was originally submitted. This date is saved regardless of changes you make, so you’re welcome to update your form at any time. Preference forms lock the morning of the last Monday in June, so please be sure to submit or update your form by this time. Your housing assignment along with your roommate contact information will be emailed to you by mid-July at the earliest.
If you have fewer than 7 earned course credits, you will be placed in first-year housing along with your roommate. Students with fewer than 7 earned course credits who will be 20 years of age or older by September of that academic year may request to be placed in housing for sophomores, juniors, and seniors.
If you have 7 or more earned course credits you will be placed in housing for sophomores, juniors, and seniors. We will try to place you with other transfer students before placing you with a current student.
A Resident Assistant will be available to plan social events and other programs to encourage connections with your peers.
Transfer Themed Living Community
Themed Living Communities are specific housing areas assigned to new students who wish to share a similar experience. In addition to placing transfers together as roommates all over the residence halls, the specific transfer community invites students who are older than 21, or have lived three or more years already in college housing, or are seeking a housing experience more independent than the residence halls. This community primarily consists of non-traditional students and seniors and may be housed in a special wing of a residence hall, an entire floor, or an apartment-style housing option depending on availability.
Roommate requests
During the housing assignment process you will be paired with a roommate based on the information provided on the housing preference forms.
If you have fewer than 7 earned course credits you can request a specific roommate who is also part of the incoming first-year class.
If you have 7 or more earned course credits you can request a specific roommate who is also a transfer student with 7 or more earned course credits. When selecting a specific roommate, you both must indicate the other's name on your housing preference form. If both names are not mutually listed, we will assume there is a reason for this, and will not honor the request.
If you’ve earned 7 or more course credits, you can also request a current Cornell student as your roommate. That student should be someone you have a prior relationship with, and they must be in a housing assignment with an available bed space. (Please note Residence Life will not authorize a split between current Cornell students who chose to live together during housing selection in order to accommodate your new roommate request). You will need to list the current student's name on your housing preference form. Your requested roommate will need to message the Residence Life Office from their Cornell email account confirming they would like to live with you. If any step in this process is not completed, we will assume there is a reason for this, and will not honor the request.
All-gender housing
Cornell offers several options for all-gender housing, including the transfer specific floor, that are available to all students. Residence Life will do its best to accommodate any mutual all-gender housing roommate requests; however, we cannot guarantee that we will always be able to do so.