University Housing

University Housing seeks to foster an environment that promotes opportunities for students to become civically, socially, and academically responsible persons who are engaged members of their current and future communities. Research shows that living in a community with people from different backgrounds and interests is an integral part of the college experience. Our goal is for students to learn and grow from their experience living in University Housing, so it is important to understand that a space change is not be the first consideration when issues arise between roommates.

Roommate conflict can be difficult and uncomfortable to deal with. However, there are benefits to experiencing conflict; these types of situations provide us with opportunities to strengthen our communication skills, better understand our values, and learn to compromise and negotiate all of these are necessary real-world skills.

Space changes are a last resort in dealing with roommate conflict. except in emergency situations, may take place beginning the third week of the semester (after two full weeks of classes). This gives University Housing time to assign students that need assignments, process cancellations, and identify open spaces. Space changes typically are not granted during the summer due to our facilities maintenance schedule.

University Housing has very few open spaces during the academic year, so the opportunity for space changes is limited and not guaranteed.

If a request to change space is the result of difficulties with current roommate(s), the student will first have a conversation with his/her roommate(s) and communicate his/her concerns and needs. This conversation should take place in person (not by text or social media) in a manner that seeks to resolve, not escalate, the conflict.

If a student is unable to successfully address the conflict with his/her roommate, he or she should consult with their Resident Assistant (RA). The RA will help try to improve the living environment by mediating the conflict and facilitating a written roommate agreement (Roommate Connections). Students should not wait until the situation escalates; they should be proactive in appropriately addressing roommate concerns when they arise.

If consulting with the RA does not adequately address the concerns, the next step is for the student to consult with his/her Community Director (in the hall office or the Commons Building). The Community Director will assist with mediating the conflict by scheduling a meeting with all roommates.

If residents have made good-faith effort to address the conflict in a mature, respectful, civil manner, the Community Director will allow a resident to fill out a Space Change Request Form. University Housing is not able to grant all space change requests due to space availability. Priority goes to students living in temporary assignments and then emergency situations (determined by Housing staff). Residents are able to participate in an approved room swap if no open spaces are available.

Before a resident receives a list of available spaces, he or she will need to complete an online module. The purpose of the module is to provide students with information about how to successfully live with a roommate.

After the resident completes the module, the Community Director will email the resident a list of open spaces via to his/her SIUE email account. It is the student’s responsibility to meet with potential new roommates before choosing a new space.

Residents will have three business days to pick a space from the list and to begin the space-change process (check out of old space, check into new space). If a resident does not identify a new space within 3 business days, his/her Space Change Request Form becomes null and void and they drop drops to the bottom of the list to change space.

We ask parents to understand that University Housing needs to work directly with the student(s) when problems arise. It is a valuable growth opportunity for students to learn to successfully address conflicts themselves. All students involved in the conflict must be part of the conversation to find a mutually beneficial solution. University Housing staff members will not address an issue until all sides have been heard. If your student needs assistance, encourage him or her to contact the RA first, and if necessary, the Community Director.

All residents can choose between Meal Plans A, B, and C.

Plan A: $1,945/semester

Plan B: 2,305/semester

Plan C: $2,685/semester

Cougar Village and Evergreen Residents can choose between three different amounts of Cougar Bucks a semester; $100, $250, and $500.

Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C are an "a la carte" structure, meaning you pay for what you eat. The selected meal plan will be loaded on to the SIUE Cougar Card at the beginning of the semester and the Cougar Card is used like a debit card at campus dining locations.  

Students selecting Residential Meal Plans A, B, and C pre-pay a percentage of the meal plan cost to fund fixed costs in dining services (i.e., supplies, utilities, labor, and maintenance). The full meal plan cost MINUS the amount that was pre-paid is then loaded onto the Cougar Card. The remaining meal plan amount on the Cougar Card is available to spend for food purchases.  

Since students have pre-paid a portion of their costs, food prices at the register, when purchased with Meal Plans A, B, or C, are substantially discounted by the percentage of the fixed costs already taken off the top. Also, students using Residential Meal Plans A, B, or C do not pay sales tax on their food purchases. 

Our students are able to eat wherever they want on our campus using their meal plan. Discount pricing is not available at Union Station. 

Any balance remaining on the meal plan at the end of the fall semester rolls over to the spring semester for use.

RAs and Front Desk Managers should always be the first line in answering any resident question. These employees are trained to serve as resources. They are proficient in policy knowledge and know how to appropriately refer residents.

The hall secretary can help students with questions they may have about the laundry, vending machines and general concerns. The secretary will refer the resident to the Community Director if necessary.

The Community Director can best assist residents with questions about policy, situations where residents may have been documented for policy violation, roommate concerns and general housing questions. Community Directors have offices in the building they are responsible for. These staff can be seen in attendance at many of the events that take place in their area of responsibility. Any student is welcome to make an appointment with the Community Director – through the secretary – if he or she would like to.

If your student does not answer your phone calls for a prolonged period of time, to the point that you are concerned for their well being, contact the Hall/Cougar Village Commons number, and the secretary will forward your concern to the appropriate staff member. If this is an emergency and you cannot get hold of staff, please contact the SIUE Police Department at 618-650‑3324.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an application product of the U.S. Department of Education (that includes SIUE). Basically this means that without the properly signed documentation, we cannot discuss your student’s records with you. That includes their housing bill and assignment, roommate information, enrollment status, and more.

In order to gain access to the housing-related information, your student can come to the Central Housing Office and fill out a form allowing you access to their housing information and records. When you call or come into the office, you will have to provide a password that the student provides us on the form. We will keep that form on file.

If you know of a student you believe may be at risk of harm, or who may intend to harm others, please use the Care Report to communicate your concern to someone at the University. We especially encourage you to contact the office of the Dean of Students, because in many circumstances, Counseling Services may not be able to intervene due to issues of confidentiality.

Bicycles may not be stored inside the residence halls, Evergreen Hall, or Cougar Village. In addition, bicycles may not be stored in Cougar Village breezeways, hallways or balconies. Bicycles must be locked to bike racks located near the buildings. Bikes locked to lampposts, benches or trees will be removed.

Swank Residence Life Cinema provides residents with access to top Hollywood movies and shows on a customized streaming platform. Viewable on any personal device, the service makes it easy for students to catch up on the latest movies and TV shows in between classes, with friends on the weekends, or as they wind down for the night in their room.

 The library features a variety of content from the very best studios, so students can always find a title that meets their interests. It also means there’s no need for residents to pay for additional streaming services – perfect for students on a budget!

 The platform includes custom communication features, which allow us to keep students connected on campus.

Once you are on campus, connect to the campus WiFi then visit movies.siue.edu to start streaming!

Our University Housing employment site provides information about the campus climate, job description, department culture and much more.

Edwardsville is just 20 minutes northeast of St. Louis. St. Louis Lambert International Airport is just 30 minutes from campus. Many faculty and staff who work at SIUE live in St. Louis and commute across the river to campus.

Twelve professional staff members share duty: six community directors and six assistant community directors. Each is on duty 2-3 times per month. Two professional staff members are on duty during peak times such as opening and closing. While on duty, professional staff members are allowed to be off campus as long as they are able to respond within 15 minutes.

Each assistant community director directly supervises a student staff and assists in the development of the resident assistant staff under direction of the community director. Each community director directly supervises one assistant community director (graduate assistant) and 11-16 resident assistants.

Live-in staff members are supervised by an assistant director of residence life who is committed to work/life balance. In addition, SIUE offers a state-of-the-art fitness center, miles of Madison County Transit outdoor trails, and professional massages for staff at a reduced rate. Community directors are strongly encouraged to use their vacation time.

University Housing welcomes your fish.

Each residence hall has a laundry room with both washers and dryers. Beginning Fall 2024, washers and dryers are FREE to University Housing Residents. Laundry detergent pods can be used. 

Guests are permitted in University Housing. Check the Living Guide for details.

Visit What to Bring/What Not to Bring for a comprehensive list. And make sure to follow up with your roommates to check what they are bringing – you probably do not need two TVs in the residence hall.

Every student is provided their mail-stop number with their room assignment in StarRez (where you applied for Housing). The mail stop number will be listed under “Street 2” and will read as “Resident Hall Stop #0000”. When sending mail to a resident, use the format below:

Resident’s Name

Building Address

Mail Stop #

Edwardsville, IL 62025

All building addresses can be found at the Housing Contact. 

No, you cannot ship items to housing communities prior to move in. Housing does not have the storage for belongings or the staffing to accept all packages in the summer. Housing is not responsible for belongings that are shipped before the resident has an active contract and has moved in. We encourage students to ship items or order things to arrive after they check in.  

Register your device, game console or other web browser-less system, on the SIUE network in order to connect it to the Internet. In order to register your device, ITS needs the following information: where you live, your e-ID, and the MAC address of your device. If you do not know how to find the MAC address, please use the links below or contact the manufacturer.

Connect Smart TVs, Game Consoles, or Streaming Devices to Wi-Fi

If you need further assistance, please contact the ITS Help Desk at (618)650-5500 or at help@siue.edu.

Yes! The SIUE Experience is the second half of the orientation process and is held prior to the start of fall classes. Visit the SIUE Experience for more information. 

All early arrival requests must be submitted to the Associate Director of Housing for review and approval. An early move-in request is a request by any student to move in before their assigned move-in day as designated in his/her assignment email/letter. There is no guarantee you will be able to move into your assigned space early, regardless of the requested reason. We do our best to accommodate all students, but we are also balancing preparing spaces for new residents, a cleaning schedule and staff availability.

• If a student wishes to move in before move-in day, the student must complete the Housing Early Arrival Request Form found under Housing Forms in MyHousing.
• Requests for fall semester will not be accepted after August 1. Early move-in requests are not accepted for spring semester. Requests for the summer term will not be accepted after May 1.
• If a student is permitted to move in early, the student will be assessed a daily fee based on the type of assigned space until their designated move-in day. This fee will be placed on the student’s account.

If you have any additional questions, please contact the Central Housing Office at 618-650‑3931 or housing@siue.edu.

Visit Textbook Rental for information.

A living learning community (LLC) is a broad term that encompasses a variety of living environments on college campuses. LLCs are based on students who share a major (eg: nursing) or are part of a program (eg: Honors).

Learning Living Communities is the preferred name SIUE gives to our specific living-learning opportunities. The campus community shortens the name to “LLC.”

Students who choose to live in an LLC do the same things that any student does — go to class, make friends with people on your floor and attend events sponsored on campus. The only difference is that if you live in an LLC, the people around you will share some similar interests, and the residence life staff and faculty will plan special events targeted toward the topic of your LLC. Additionally, some LLCs are coordinated so that everyone in that LLC takes a class together. This can improve your academics by promoting study sessions and group accountability for succeeding in class. The experience of each student living in an LLC is in their control. Students may choose to work together to increase their experiences by planning service projects or immersing themselves in topics of interest to improve their own educational experience and goals.

A large body of research shows the following benefits for students who live in learning communities such as the LLCs at SIUE. For example:

• Enhanced academic and social opportunities
• Improved GPA
• Improved connection to faculty
• Greater involvement in learning
• Increased satisfaction with your SIUE experience
• Increased persistence to graduation

Anybody who has a housing contract can live in an LLC. Simply browse our website to see which LLCs are available and make your selection on the housing application. Some LLCs are designated for first-year students and some are for upperclass residents, so make sure to select the right one for you.

Incoming first-year students apply for their LLCs by marking their selection on their housing application. Upperclass transfer students also can select an LLC preference on their new housing application. Current residents who are interested in upperclass LLCs will be informed of opportunities by campus emails and the reservation process.

There is no additional cost to live in an LLC. It is offered as a value-added component intended to augment the services already provided by University Housing.

In addition to general assignments, there are LLCs in each of our housing communities. You can look at the list below to see if you have been assigned to a particular LLC. Typically a LLC is filled with all students who have requested to be part of that community, but in some cases, students with similar majors who did not make a specific request to that community are assigned to a LLC, as well. All programs and events held within the LLC are voluntary, so participation is not required, but is often an excellent opportunity and a very fulfilling and engaging experience. 

First Year LLCs

Bluff Hall

• Engineering - 101-116, 325-348, 376-399
• Honors - 250-274, 275-299

Prairie Hall

• Health Professionals - 201-224, 225-248
• Education - 101-116
• Social and Human Behavior - 351-375

Woodland Hall

• Business - 201-225
• Nursing - 351-374, 376-399
• Math and Science - 106-120

Upperclass LLCs 

Cougar Village

• Health Professionals - Building 519
• Transfer - Buildings 528, 529

Evergreen Hall

• Engineering - 102-115
• Honors - 327-339

First, congratulations! Living in an LLC is a valuable opportunity. Your RA (Resident Assistant) will be knowledgeable about the topic of your LLC and likely have some experience in similar courses or organizations. Some programs in your wing will be connected to the LLC topic and, as a resident, you will have a voice in those programs.

Faculty members also are an essential part of each LLC. You will have the opportunity to interact with faculty members who are knowledgeable about the LLC topic and may even be faculty members in your area of study. When possible, you may take a class that connects to the topic of the LLC and is a course requirement for your academic program.

Like many other programs and activities, your level of involvement will greatly impact your success and satisfaction with your LLC. Successful members participate in the majority of events sponsored by and for the community. By voicing your input, sharing your own knowledge, and assisting in planning programs and events, you take part in creating the LLC experience for yourself and other residents. As a responsible and active community member, you will see a positive impact in your community.

Students who have a connected course will be placed in that class. When you arrive to schedule classes at New Student Orientation, your selection should already be on your schedule.