Housing Demand Above Standard Occupancy
Campus Residences is a premier choice for many of our students. In recent years, we have built additional buildings to meet increased demand from our students. As a campus, we prioritize all newly admitted students who meet deposit and application deadlines for their first year of housing. For continuing students, we prioritize those with current housing agreements. Current students who do not live with us must join the on-campus housing waitlist to see if they can be housed. For more information on how to apply to a waitlist, see our Waitlist Application Website.
Radius Policy Procedures
For the 2026-2027 academic year:
- New first-year students, regardless of home address, will be able to apply as part of our standard processes. If there is a sudden increase in demand beyond capacity, shortly after the May 1 deposit deadline, individuals will be notified if we need to implement a radius policy. If a radius is implemented, students with a farther home address from campus will be assigned first as cancellations are received. See additional details below.
- New graduate students, regardless of home address, can apply as part of our standard processes. Graduate housing utilizes timeslots so that those with a farther away home address select first. In the event we have no spaces available, students with a farther home address from campus will be assigned first as cancellations are received.
- New transfer students can pay the housing deposit by May 1 to indicate interest in on-campus housing, but they are not prioritized to live on campus. Spaces are assigned to new transfers based on undergraduate student cancellations. Students with a farther home address from campus will have priority for housing.
General Radius Policy: If we see an unexpected increase in demand for on-campus housing around the deposit deadline and a radius policy has to be implemented, new students whose home address is within a certain distance from campus may be restricted from housing until space permits.
The radius will be the shortest distance possible to meet housing demand. The mileage is based on a direct line to 100 Circle Rd, Stony Brook, NY 11790. If Campus Residences cannot provide housing, your housing deposit will be refunded, and you will be added to a priority list to be assigned housing as soon as possible.
The image below provides an example of various approximate locations that may be impacted if a radius policy is implemented at the listed distance.
If and when space becomes available, residents excluded from receiving housing due to the radius policy would be prioritized to have on-campus housing during the same agreement period over individuals on our general on-campus housing waitlist. Additionally, continuing residents in corridor-style buildings may be reassigned before arrival to suite-style vacancies to create additional spaces in first-year housing.
Click Here for Radius Policy FAQs
Class Enrollment Policies
Undergraduate students must be enrolled in at least three (3) credits by the following deadlines:
- Fall Enrollment: Three (3) Mondays before the start of fall semester.
- Spring Enrollment: Thursday prior to the start of spring semester.
Newly admitted students who have taken action steps towards enrollment, such as submitting immunization records, completing the writing placement exam if applicable, and completing the Advising Planning Form, are considered in progress and will not be cancelled. Any undergraduate student not meeting the above criteria will have their housing canceled. Intensive English Center Students are exempted from this policy.
All residents are expected to maintain full-time enrollment, 12 credits for undergraduate students and nine (9) credits for graduate students. This policy is enforced when there is more demand than available housing, and is typically only enforced for fall semesters. Students who are graduating at the end of the semester or are on approved academic underloads are exempt from this policy.
On-Campus Housing Semester Limits
As interest in campus housing exceeds available space, a maximum occupancy limit is enforced. The following limits are in effect for the 2026-2027 agreement:
- Undergraduate students admitted as first-years are eligible to reside on campus for a maximum of eight semesters.
- Undergraduate students admitted as transfers are eligible to reside on campus for a maximum of six semesters.
- Graduate students are eligible to reside on campus for a maximum number of 14 semesters.*
Notes:
- Summer semesters are not included in these totals.
- Undergraduate students re-admitted for a second degree or other reasons are subject to maximum semester limites from their first admittance.
*Graduate Student Residency Notice: Please be advised that the graduate residency limit may fluctuate to accommodate demand. While the limit remains 14 semesters for the 2026-2027 agreement, it will decrease to 12 semesters beginning in the 2027-2028 academic year. Graduate students will be notified of the specific limit for each upcoming cycle at the start of the Returning Resident Room Selection process.
Temporary Tripling
The need for on-campus housing is growing, and despite the additional 3000 beds that were added over the course of the last 15 years, temporary housing is necessary to accommodate the number of students who are prioritized for housing. In addition, housing renewals from returning students and enrollment into Stony Brook has increased.