Quick Take
Many UC Santa Cruz students are concerned they won't get on-campus housing next year after officials eliminated its priority-based housing selection process. Campus officials say students shouldn't lose hope.
For several years, UC Santa Cruz has prioritized some returning students over others for on-campus housing, such as those from low-income households who are the first in their family to attend college.
In one of the least affordable housing markets in the country, this priority selection process brought a sense of security to students like first-year Esmeralda Hurtado that they were likely to secure another bed on campus the following year. For Hurtado, it was a dream to be admitted and to get a spot in Merrill College.
But last week, the university announced that starting next school year, it will scrap its priority system for a lottery that selects returning students at random for one of UCSC’s roughly 9,200 on-campus beds.
A first-generation, low-income student, Hurtado qualified for Educational Opportunity Programs, which provide students with academic and personal support services to help them succeed at school. As an EOP student, Hurtado was given a priority housing assignment this year and would have been given priority for the next two years as well under the current program.
While not a guarantee of housing, Hurtado’s EOP and priority status meant that she was high up in the list for housing next year. But she now finds herself in the same position as all other students who are eligible for the new housing selection lottery process. She believes the change will make it less likely for her to secure housing next year.
“I cried about it last night,” said Hurtado. “I don’t know the last time I was this stressed.”
Other priority students include military veterans and Renaissance Scholars – such as formerly incarcerated students and those experiencing chronic homelessness – among others.
David Keller, UCSC’s interim associate vice chancellor, Colleges Housing and Educational Services, said the priority process no longer worked because changes to federal student aid rules meant that far more students would have qualified for housing than beds available.
The U.S. Department of Education overhauled the Free Application for Federal Student Aid program for the coming school year, including revamping the formula used to award student aid based on need.
Keller said he did not have details on exactly which changes to the federal student aid application affected UCSC’s housing program but that the university projected it would have a shortfall of about 2,000 beds next year if it continued using the priority system.
“If we continue to talk about priority and have priority groups, it will be very misleading for students,” he said. “We wanted to be as transparent as possible and make some changes to the process, so the students will know much earlier whether or not they received campus housing.”
The university is also seeing an increasing number of first-year students and has committed to providing one year of on-campus housing to all first-year and transfer students. This past fall, UCSC enrolled 17,800 undergraduates with just 9,246 available beds but was still able to house 97% of all first-year students.
Keller said he understands that the announced changes have caused concern and confusion and hopes people will attend UCSC’s virtual town hall on Monday at 10 a.m., as well as additional info sessions Feb. 5 through 9.
He added that groups such as foster youth and Regents Scholars – who receive financial scholarships from the UC for outstanding academic achievement – will continue to have priority and receive housing. In addition, themed housing will continue to operate, including African, Black, Caribbean (ABC), International Living, veterans housing, and trans-inclusive themed housing. Themed housing is residential living with themes that range from an academic pursuit or individual background to lifestyle preferences.
The university will also still be doing assignments for resident assistants, students accepted for the UCSC Camper Park as well as students with Disability Resource Center accommodations.
First-year Nidhi Manayilakath said she’s not in a priority category and she’s applying for on-campus housing next year. Still, she thinks the decision to eliminate the priority selection process was a bad one.
“It is disappointing,” she said. “The people who are going to be most impacted by this are low-income families and they should receive priority for housing.”
Keller said while priority has been eliminated, the likelihood of getting housing is still similar to prior years. He added that UCSC was the only UC campus that used a priority system.
“It’s just as easy to get the housing type that you want in a lottery process as it was previously,” he said. “The processes are very similar.”
He emphasized that students must apply on time during the application window, and said they’ll have a better chance of getting housing if they are flexible with the kinds of housing they’ll accept.
“My big message to any student [concerned about housing] is, don’t lose hope,” he said.
Hurtado said she’s going to apply for on-campus housing next year and also apply to be a residential assistant. Her parents didn’t go to college and she’s the first among her siblings to attend university. For something that was her dream growing up, she’s starting to have doubts about continuing with her degree at UCSC.
“I get here, and it’s like, is it worth it? And that’s a question I’ve been grappling with recently,” she said. “I don’t know if I’m going to be here next year, because it’s everything. It’s not just the housing, it’s truly everything on this campus – it’s difficult to live here.”
UCSC Housing town hall information
What: Dave Keller, interim associate vice chancellor of Colleges Housing and Educational Services, will host a virtual town hall Monday morning to answer questions about the 2024-25 Continuing Housing Selection process.
When: Monday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Register via Zoom: https://bit.ly/ucsc_housingtownhall
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