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The Housing Lottery now runs as a single process by Point Value priority (instead of the previously separate 4, 5, 6, and 123 Lotteries).
The Lottery remains similar for students participating as individuals.
Students in Groups may pick entire empty suites and/or individual rooms (in corridor-style housing or available partial suites).
Lottery Numbers & Time Slots will be generated for each Point Value group after the previous group has finished selecting. This will help students make informed grouping decisions based on the spaces still available to select.
Students are encouraged to form groups before the priority deadlines, but can also regroup after receiving Lottery Numbers for maximum flexibility.
Room rates and meal plan prices are usually finalized by the College in June or July and will be posted on the Bursar’s website.
The deadline to cancel your room (or remove yourself from the Guaranteed List) without incurring a cancellation fee is Thursday, May 7, 2026.
Cancellation Fee Schedule (will be posted by the end of Spring Break)
Please see the Eligibility Guidelines.
No. Groups cannot "pull in" students who are not eligible (or who did not submit the Intent Form). Groups cannot save a space for someone not taking part in the Lottery.
Failure to submit the Intent Form results in the loss of guaranteed housing. Students who miss the deadline may apply to the Non-Guaranteed Wait List and will only receive housing if space becomes available over the summer.
Please come to the Residential Life & Housing office (110 Sulzberger), call Residential Life & Housing at 212-854-5561, or email housing@barnard.edu immediately. Please submit the form well in advance of the deadline! If you wait until the last minute, Res Life staff may not be available to assist you.
Yes. You lose your guarantee if you:
Fail to submit the Intent Form or Guaranteed List Form by the deadlines.
Indicate you are not returning to housing.
Cancel housing to move off-campus.
Check the Google Sheet linked on the Available Rooms page (available starting in mid-March). You can also see lists of picks from previous years.
Singles are not guaranteed. Historically, students pick all of the Single rooms before all of the Doubles or Triples are picked. Students participating as Individuals often cannot pick a room once all Singles are gone; they must either join a group (to pick a Double/Triple or into a suite) or join the Guaranteed List.
There is no "squatting" right. However, you may be able to pick your current room if available when your Selection Time starts
If your current room is part of a empty suite, it must be picked by a group filling the entire suite.
If your current room is a Double or Triple, you must fill the entire room.
If you current living in First Year housing, that will not be available for continuing students to pick.
Note: If you pick the same room for next year, you still need to move out completely in May. Belongings cannot be left on campus over the summer. For summer storage options, please visit https://barnard.edu/reslife/services/storage.
Sulz Tower: Gender-Inclusive bathrooms are on the 10, 12, 14, & 16th floors
Elliott: Gender-Inclusive bathrooms are closest to rooms numbered 1-10
Hewitt: Gender-Inclusive bathrooms are on the 2, 4, 6, and 8th floors
More students take part in the Lottery each year than the number of rooms & suites that are available to select.
Why? Many students pick a room but later cancel (for study abroad, moving off-campus, etc).
Result: If no rooms remain when your Selection Time starts, you must submit the Guaranteed List form to be assigned a room over the summer.
No. There are a limited number of rooms and suites of each size. After all of the empty suites are picked in the Lottery, groups will need to select rooms instead (which may not be located near each other). If all the rooms have been picked (or students don't want to pick from what's still available), students will need to submit the Guaranteed List form to be assigned over the summer.
No. Lottery Numbers and Selection Times are non-transferable.
No, group size (or being an individual) does not impact the lottery number or selection time. Lottery Numbers are generated randomly within each Point Value group. Point Values ensure that students graduating earlier pick before students graduating later.
Note: Being in a Mixed Point Group can affect Selection Time. Any group with a 200 Point member will select during the 200+ Point Lottery round (so that groups with 400 or 300 point members only get to pick first).
No. The "Must Fill" rule applies. Individuals cannot pick into a Double by themselves, and groups cannot pick a suite larger than their group size.
You will receive a new roommate. Spaces that open up over the summer will be assigned to students on the Guaranteed List and/or Non-Guaranteed Wait List (ex. incoming Transfers, students returning after a leave of absence, etc).
Spaces that open up during the academic year will likely be filled by room changes or assignments to new Spring students.
While the College always hopes to alert students to a new assigned roommate with as much advance notice as possible, students with vacancies in their room must keep the space open and ready for assignment to another student at all times.
Students should not give their passwords to other students to log in & pick for them on the Portal.
If you are an Individual and will not be available to pick when your Selection Time starts, you can designate a Proxy. You will need to submit the completed Proxy form at least 24 hours in advance of your Selection Time (before 5pm Friday if your selection time is on a Monday).
Proxy Form (PDF)
If you are in a Group, only the Group Leader will be able to pick rooms when the group's Selection Time starts. If the Group Leader will not be available, they must make another member be the new Group Leader on the Housing Portal before the group's Selection Time starts.
Log into the Housing Portal immediately. If rooms are still available, you may pick. If not, you must fill out the Guaranteed List form.
No, but it is encouraged. Individuals can only pick if Single rooms are available. A 2-person group can pick a Double if Singles run out, whereas an individual cannot.
No. Students must form their own groups. Students looking for other students to form a group with are encouraged to:
Talk with other students in your classes.
Post on the Facebook group for your Class Year or student clubs/activities.
No, you cannot leave a bed empty. Rooms cannot be saved for students not in the Lottery Group (or who are not eligible for Room Selection).
The Group Leader assigns specific rooms to each member during the selection process.
Discuss preferences beforehand, as the Leader has limited time to finalize assignments when selecting. Ex. who will live together in doubles, who will get the biggest room, etc.
After the Group Leader assigns the rooms during the Lottery, those assignments cannot be changed until the Post-Lottery 1-for-1 Room Swap Request process.
If you want to swap into the vacant room, you must complete the 1-for-1 Post-Lottery Room Swap request before the student cancels their housing. Once they cancel, the room is released and will be assigned to someone else.
Only the Group Leader can pick rooms. If they are unavailable, they must designate a new Leader on the Housing Portal before the Selection Time starts.
The exchange must balance bed-for-bed between Barnard & Columbia. If more Columbia students register for the Barnard Lottery than the number of Barnard students living at Columbia, the number of CU students allowed to pick is "capped." See Housing Exchange for more information.
As long as students in Columbia housing as part of the Housing Exchange stay in housing (i.e. don't cancel to live off-campus, take a leave of absence, etc), they will remain eligible for Room Selection the following year.
No. If the Cap is reached, CU members must be dropped from the group. See Housing Exchange for more information.
Groups with Male CU students must pick an Entire Empty Suite. If no suites match the group size, the male students must be dropped.
Yes. The Group Point Value is the average of all members, including Columbia students.
Yes! As long as you submit the Guaranteed List form by the deadline, you are guaranteed a space for the upcoming year.
Assignments are made based on Point Value and Lottery Number order. You will be assigned to spaces that open up due to other students cancelling their housing (more information).
We wait until August 1 to send assignments to ensure we have received the majority of summer cancellations. This allows us to provide the widest array of options to match student preferences.
Yes. When you submit the Intent Form, choose the category of "Guaranteed List." After you finish the Intent Form and sign the Housing Agreement for next year, you'll be able to submit the Guaranteed List Form and provide ranked building and room preferences for next year.
However, we encourage students to take part in the Lottery first. Students who pick the Intent Form category of "Guaranteed List" cannot switch to be in the Lottery later, but students in the Lottery can switch to the Guaranteed List if they aren't able to pick a room or don't want to pick from what's available.
No. Students with room assignments (including students with CARDS Pre-Lottery or pull-in spaces, etc) cannot switch to be on the Guaranteed List.
Only students with 400 points may submit a Post-Lottery Room Change request. Students with 200, 300, and 400 points can look for a 1-for-1 Post-Lottery Room Swap.
Selections are final. Students cannot switch to a different room in the Lottery or fill out the Guaranteed List form if they already have a room.
Post-Lottery Room Change: Available only to students with 400 Points.
Post-Lottery 1-for-1 Swap: Available to all students (requires finding a direct trade).
Fall Room Change: Students may also apply for a room change after classes start in September.