Residence Life FAQs

New applicants are encouraged to submit their applications by May 1. Our office guarantees a space in campus housing to all new applicants who have submitted an application by this date.

Returning students receive housing selection information through their Elmhurst email in January Term, with instructions on how to apply and select their assignments for the following academic year.

We anticipate having space available beyond this date and will do our very best to accommodate your housing request.

After you have submitted your housing application, log on to the myElmhurst Portal and go to My Housing. Send a request to your potential roommate using the menus at the top of the page.

Both roommates must request each other and accept each other’s roommate requests. Students will only be able to send their friend a request if that individual has also already submitted a housing application.

Contact Student Accessibility Services (SAS) to initiate the housing accommodation process at [email protected]. The SAS office is located in the Learning Center in the A.C. Buehler Library. Requests may be submitted at any time, but we ask that new students send their requests by May 1.

Cureton Hall is accessible on all floors and is available for all students. Schick Hall is accessible on the lower level and is available for all male students. West Hall is accessible on all floors and is available for students with 8 or more credit hours.

Residence hall information (room, building and roommate) will be shared by email in mid-July. All information will be viewable on the My Housing page on the myElmhurst Portal in mid-July.

Bring what you need to feel comfortable and at home on campus. Check our packing list for suggestions.

Linens are not provided for students. Students should purchase Twin XL bedding sheets to fit the bed provided.

Students wishing to bring in a small refrigerator unit can, as long as it does not draw more than 1.5 amps of electricity. We recommend that you communicate with your roommate before you move in to avoid duplicates.

Yes, we encourage you to insure your personal property as the University cannot assume responsibility for loss. If you live with your family, you may be covered by your family’s home insurance policy. Another source available is GradGuard which is conveniently offered during the housing application process. GradGuard is a company that is independent from Elmhurst University, but is a convenient option for those interested.

Niebuhr and Stanger Halls have only gender-specific community bathrooms, one on each floor. Cureton and Schick Halls have gender-specific and gender-neutral bathrooms, one on each wing or floor. Each shower is enclosed with a curtain in all community restrooms. Dinkmeyer Hall, except for the lower level, has a suite-style arrangement, with two rooms sharing a connecting bathroom/shower. In the lower level of Dinkmeyer Hall, there are two gender-specific community bathrooms.

In West Hall, each suite of students has one bathroom shared among the members of the suite. Campus apartments have one bathroom per apartment, and campus houses contain one or two bathrooms.

Every residence hall room on campus includes:

• Extra-long twin bed and mattress
• Desk
• Desk shelf with light and tack board
• Desk chair
• Bookshelf with three shelves
• Dresser with three drawers
• Blinds
• Built-in closets or a wardrobe

View the individual residence halls and housing options for building-specific details.

Yes! Our furniture uses a pin-and-hole design that makes the furniture very easy to rearrange. You don’t even need special tools—all you need are pins (available from your RA or HR) to hold the furniture together when it is stacked.

• View furniture specs and configuration options.

Room dimension information can be found below for each of the residence halls:

Yes! Take a video tour of each hall on our Housing Options page (click on the name of the hall you would like to see).

If you are living in the residence halls or campus apartments, internet service is provided through the residential technology fee.

If you are living in a campus house, you are responsible for your own internet, and you won’t be charged the residential technology fee.

Cureton, Stanger and West Halls are air-conditioned. Cureton and West Halls also have elevators.

Use this format:

Student Name
Elmhurst University
Frick Center – Mailroom
190 Prospect Avenue
Elmhurst, IL 60126

Learn more about the campus mailroom.

You will not be able to see a specific hall or room, but most of our regular campus tours include stops in at least one residence hall.

Every residence hall and apartment building has its own laundry facilities. There is no charge for laundry. Students in campus houses are provided access to a nearby hall to use its laundry facilities.

Room changes can be made throughout the year. Please contact your RA for more details.

We do provide housing for graduate students, who are welcome to apply in the same way that new students do for the Fall Term. We do not currently offer family housing, but please reach out to our office and we will be happy to provide information about local options.

The University does not provide storage space over summer break.

The housing prepayment is nonrefundable. To cancel your housing agreement, send us an email notification by the cancellation deadline of Friday, August 22, 2025, by 4:00 p.m.

For cancellation requests after Friday, August 22, 2025, by 4:00 p.m. (Fall Term), or Friday, January 30, 2026, by 4:00 p.m. (new Spring applicants only), you must formally request a release from the housing agreement.

Students wishing to withdraw from Elmhurst need to do so at the following link: myElmhurst Portal withdrawal page.

The proper departments will be notified when the withdrawal is processed.

Your dining plan is loaded onto your student ID, or Jaypass. Use your Jaypass for Meal Swipes at the Main Café or for one Meal Exchange per day at The Roost. Dining Dollars can be used for purchases at any Elmhurst Dining location. Refer to the Elmhurst Dining FAQ page for more details about your plan.

Any unused Dining Dollars will carry over from the Fall Term to the Spring Term. Dining Dollars included with Fall and Spring dining plans cannot be used during J-Term. Any balance remaining at the end of the Spring Term will expire and will not be refunded.

Students residing on campus during January Term (J-Term) are required to purchase a separate J-Term dining plan. Any unused Dining Dollars from a J-Term plan expire at the end of J-Term, do not carry over to the Spring Term and will not be refunded.

You may add Bluejay Bucks to your Jaypass at any time through the myElmhurst Portal. Bluejay Bucks are separate from Dining Dollars and may be used at any Elmhurst Dining location.

Bluejay Bucks added to a resident or commuter student’s account expire at the end of the academic term in which they are purchased. They do not roll over, and unused funds are nonrefundable and nontransferable. We do not recommend adding funds during the final three to four weeks of a term unless you expect to use the full amount before the term ends.

Students have until Sunday, September 6, 2026 to change their dining plan, which should be submitted in writing to the Office of Housing and Residence Life. Changes to a student Spring Term meal plan should be submitted by Sunday, February 7, 2027. Students living in campus apartments or houses must indicate this request in writing by the previously mentioned meal plan change dates.

Dining plans are required for all resident students. Students living in residence halls select a traditional resident dining plan. After receiving an eligible apartment or house assignment, students may opt out of a traditional plan and select the apartment dining plan instead.

Commuter students may purchase a commuter dining plan or add Bluejay Bucks to their Jaypass through the myElmhurst Portal.

Unused commuter-plan Meal Swipes and Dining Dollars roll over between terms but expire on the last day of the Spring Term. Bluejay Bucks expire at the end of the term in which they are purchased and do not roll over. All expired balances are nonrefundable and nontransferable.