In a departure from prior precedent, Housing and Residence Life stated it would no longer offer priority to upperclassmen, according to an email sent to current on-Grounds residents March 24. Some upperclass students have expressed anxiety about the potential of finding alternative and affordable housing options for their third and fourth years.
Under the new policy change, effective for the 2026-2027 application process, rising second-year students will be given first priority within the on-Grounds housing application cycle. This eliminates the “same area” portion of the housing application process — a policy which enabled rising third- and fourth-year students to remain in their on-Grounds housing area for the subsequent year. The policy previously meant that returning residents received first choice for their on-Grounds housing.
In a statement to The Cavalier Daily, University Spokesperson Bethanie Glover said changes to this policy reflect one of the key initiatives of the University’s 2030 strategic plan — to house all first- and second-year students on Grounds by 2030. The University has already taken steps to accomplish this goal by opening the Gaston and Ramazani houses in the Fall 2024 semester and plans to open additional housing at the Emmet-Ivy Corridor in the Fall 2027 semester.
Second-year College student Alexis Garten currently lives on Grounds and expressed both understanding and discontent with the policy change. She plans to live on Grounds for her third-year, and although she will be able to remain on-Grounds for the 2025-2026 academic year, she is unsure about her housing plans for the 2026-2027 academic year.
“This [change] makes me anxious about finding affordable housing because I had not planned to move off-Grounds,” Garten said in a statement to The Cavalier Daily.
There are many reasons why students choose to remain on-Grounds. On-Grounds lease agreements last for nine months, the duration of the academic year, while most off-Grounds housing contracts are typically signed for 12 months. Additionally, expenses such as utilities and electricity are included in on-Grounds housing contracts, and living spaces come furnished.
Despite such amenities, incoming students may not be fully informed about the housing process and the benefits of each living situation when they first arrive on Grounds.
Second-year Education student Arianna Lawton lives on Grounds and worked as an Orientation Leader for incoming students last summer. Lawton noted that as an Orientation Leader, she received many questions from incoming first-year students about housing options and their affordability.
“There's a lot of security in knowing where you're going to live and knowing that you'll be able to stay,” Lawton said. “I think this new aspect of giving the younger class priority is pushing upperclassmen off Grounds … [the policy raises] a lot more questions for Orientation Leaders and will bring more uncertainty to the table over the summer.”
Currently, older students are driving much of the demand for housing, according to Glover. She said the policy change is driven by the growing demand for housing on Grounds, especially for returning upperclass students.
“There has been an unprecedented demand for on-Grounds housing among students of all academic levels,” Glover said. “The number of rising third- and fourth-year students choosing to remain in the same area is also larger than ever, resulting in fewer remaining spaces for rising second-year students in the next phase of room selection.”
Second-year College student Shunmei Zheng expressed similar concerns about housing costs for upperclassmen students under the new policy change if they are forced off Grounds. Zheng discussed broader implications of the 2030 Plan’s housing initiatives such as the growing challenges with housing affordability in Charlottesville.
“The reality is in order to have all first- and second-years on Grounds it means that other individuals will have to move off Grounds,” Zheng said. “I think it's also going to continue to drive up the sort of housing costs that are already quite expensive in Charlottesville.”
Although Zheng said she understood the new initiatives, she raised questions about how the University plans to provide guidance to the third- and fourth-year students who will not receive on-Grounds housing under the new policy change. According to the University’s 2030 Plan website, efforts towards these accommodations will be made, but specific details about these efforts have not been released.
“We will … provide ways for third- and fourth-year students to stay connected to their residential communities,” the website reads.
In addition to uncertainty surrounding how accommodations will be made for upperclassmen students seeking on-Grounds housing options moving forward, some students say that the University has yet to address issues related to existing housing.
Third-year Education student Chloe Anderson has lived on-Grounds for all three of her years at the University, and has expressed frustrations with the new policy change, calling the new policy “disrespectful” to the students that have remained on Grounds consistently.
“My friends who are second-years right now are … freaking out because they love their on-Grounds housing … since they're going to be pushed back to the back of the line … it's going to be an issue,” Anderson said.
To resolve the current anxiety, especially with regard to cost, Garten suggested assigning housing by a method other than a student’s year.
“I can understand a priority being given for rising second-year students, but I think some type of priority should be considered for low-income students,” Garten said.
Financial aid can be awarded to students for both on- and off-Grounds housing, but it credits a student’s account for any University charges first, such as housing. Any excess aid is refunded to students and can be put towards expenses such as off-Grounds housing. For on-Grounds housing, financial aid is handled by the University and is paid directly to HRL.
Although minimal detail about the policy change has been released, according to Glover, HRL will publish details about the 2026-2027 housing application process on its website early in the Fall 2025 semester.
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