First-Year Student Housing

The housing application will become available to students one to two business days after the enrollment confirmation fee has been submitted. The form opens on April 1 and closes on July 1.

To submit your housing application you will need to complete the following steps: 

1. Log in to your BC Applicant Status Portal 
2. Scroll down and select the "Housing Application is Available" dropdown 
3. Follow the steps provided to submit your housing application. 

Please Note:

• If you have received confirmation that your fee was received and you are still experiencing trouble, please contact the Office of Residential Life at 617-552-3060.
• If you are unsure if you have made payment or have not received confirmation of payment, please call the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at 617-552-3100.

Housing assignments will be communicated via email during the first week of August.

• Approximately 850 first-year students (40%) live in the four residence halls on the Newton Campus and 1,300 first-year students (60%) live in the 10 residence halls on Upper Campus. 
• Newton Campus is located at 885 Centre Street in Newton, about 1.5 miles from the Chestnut Hill Campus. A continuous shuttle bus takes students between Newton Campus and the Chestnut Hill Main Campus seven days a week. There are no lofted triple rooms on the Newton Campus, and it has its own dining hall, mailroom, exercise space, and chapel. 
• Upper Campus is part of the Chestnut Hill Campus and does not require use of the shuttle bus. Students living on Upper Campus may be placed in a lofted triple room. Students who opt-in to a lofted triple are guaranteed to be placed on Upper Campus. Upper Campus students also have access to a dining hall, mailroom, and chapel.
• The vast majority of the rooms on both Newton and Upper Campus are traditional double-occupancy accommodations with shared bathrooms on each floor. There are a very limited number of single occupancy, natural triple, or quad rooms available. All students have access to laundry facilities, exercise rooms, and entertainment/recreation areas.
• First-year students may indicate up to three room type preferences within their housing application located in the Agora portal. Although we cannot guarantee that all preferences will be honored, your responses will be considered as much as possible.

Students may access previously completed steps of their housing application until Friday, July 1. 

Roommate requests may be made within your housing application.

• Requests must be mutually confirmed between students to be considered.
• The Office of Residential Life will try to honor all roommate requests, but they are not guaranteed.

Incoming first-year students must complete the Housing Application by July 1. You will not be able to make changes to your application after that time.

None of the residence halls on Upper or Newton Campus are air conditioned.

Mattresses are twin, extra-long: 36" × 80".

No. Students who have a medical need to bring their own mattress must submit medical documentation from their health care provider. This documentation should consist of a full medical history as it pertains to the condition and provide a detailed explanation of why the student should be permitted to bring their own mattress to campus. 

• Documentation must be sent to the Disability Services Office, which will review the request. 
• The student will be notified via their BC email account when a decision is made.
• If the request is approved, the student will also be required to provide documentation that indicates the mattress satisfies state and local fire safety regulations.

Each room is furnished with a bed, mattress, desk, chair, and dresser for each occupant. There are built-in closets in each room for each student (lofted triple rooms share the closet). Most rooms have wall-to-wall carpeting. All students on Upper and Newton Campus will have access to Comcast Xfinity streaming service for their TV or devices.

Use this checklist to make sure you have everything you need for your first year living at Boston College. These are just some suggestions; you should adapt this list to suit your own situation.

For a full list of prohibited items review the please read the Safety and Security Policies and the Conditions for Residency:

Residential Life Policies

You can also review our first-year packing guide for a more general list of prohibited items.

The vast majority of rooms are traditional double-occupancy accommodations with a shared bathroom on each floor. There are a limited number of single occupancy, natural triple, and quad rooms available on both the Upper and Newton Campuses. First-year students may indicate up to three room type preferences within their housing application located in the Agora portal. Although we cannot guarantee that all preferences will be honored, your responses will be considered as much as possible. 

First-year students access their buildings, bedrooms, and common bathrooms with their Eagle IDs. These cards contain an antenna that the locks read when the card is held up to them for a few seconds. Students should not punch holes in the card as this could puncture the antenna and cause the card to malfunction.

Bedroom and bathroom locks require students to both hold their card up to the lock and then to enter a unique PIN number that the student can find on their My Res Life portal page. The normal process for using these locks is as follows:

1. Hold Eagle ID up to the lower face of the lock until the light shines yellow.
2. Enter your PIN while the light is on.
3. The light should flash green and the lock should unlock.

Students need to bring their Eagle ID with them when they go to the bathroom as they will need it to get into the bathroom and back into their own room. Students should never leave their room without their Eagle ID. If a student is locked out of their room, they should:

1. Try to contact an available roommate.
2. Try to contact a Resident Director or Resident Assistant (between the hours of 8pm and 2am, there are always two Resident Assistants on-call who can unlock the room).
3. Call the Boston College Police Department non-emergency number (after 2am and during the day if a roommate or resident assistant is not available)

Check-in dates for all transition periods are published on our Hall Openings and Closings page. Information on particular transition periods, such as fall opening, is updated yearly and published a few months ahead of the transition. Students attending Orientation Session Seven will check in to their room assignment for the school year.

Each residence hall has been assigned a P.O. box number as well as a street address. 

Campus Mail Information

• About 850 first-year students (40%) live in the four residence halls on the Newton Campus, while 1,300 first-year students (60%) live in the 10 residence halls on Upper Campus. 
• Newton Campus is located at 885 Centre Street in Newton, about 1.5 miles from the Chestnut Hill Campus. A continuous shuttle bus takes students between Newton Campus and the Chestnut Hill Main Campus seven days a week. There are no lofted triple rooms on the Newton Campus, and it has its own dining hall, mailroom, exercise space, and chapel. 
• Upper Campus is part of the Chestnut Hill Campus and does not require use of the shuttle bus. Students living on Upper Campus may be placed in a lofted triple room. Students who opt-in to a lofted triple are guaranteed to be placed on Upper Campus. Upper Campus students also have access to a dining hall, mailroom, and chapel.
• The vast majority of rooms on both Newton and Upper Campus are traditional double-occupancy accommodations with shared bathrooms on each floor. There are a very limited number of single occupancy, natural triple, or quad rooms available. All students have access to laundry facilities, exercise rooms, and entertainment/recreation areas.