Frequently Asked Questions
Each of our traditional residential hall rooms provide:
- 2 loftable or bunkable twin beds
- Mattresses for each bed
- 2 desks with chairs
- 2 five-drawer dressers
- 1 waste paper basket
- Free cable television access through the campus cable network
- Free internet access
In addition, each residential floor has the following:
- A furnished floor lounge
- A microwave
- A vacuum
Our mattresses are 36” by 80” and require extra-long twin sheets.
Living in a residence hall is similar to any other type of community living. It requires respect for others, patience, and a willingness to communicate for it to be a great experience. Most times in the hall you’ll love being a part of the community—hanging out with friends, studying, watching a movie or playing video games, participating in a floor program—all contribute to making your living experience in the halls a great one. Other times might be more challenging—a disagreement over noise level, a conflict between roommates and the breakup of a relationship—all are likely realities of life that you will encounter in a community setting. The secret to success in the hall is how you choose to address these issues. Living in the halls can be one of the most rewarding times of your college experience if you invest the proper energies into it.
All our halls, except Concordia Hall and David and Jonathan (DJ) halls, have community bathrooms; however, even in these arrangements you are sharing a bathroom with three to four other students. Even though you are sharing a bathroom, be aware of what the "community" style means. You will not be in a group shower like you might recall from high school gym class, or using doorless toilet stalls. Privacy continues to be available in our bathrooms, with separate shower stalls and toilet stalls.
The beds provided by the University are both bunkable and loftable. We do not allow students to build their own lofts for this reason. The decision to bunk or loft beds must be agreed upon by both roommates. Bunking/Lofting pins are available from your Resident Assistant. Residence Life does not provide assistance in bunking or lofting the beds. Although it has been our experience that if you ask, you'll find a ready supply of individuals that are willing to help. If you choose to bunk or loft your bed, you will be required to unbunk or unloft your beds at the time of hall close at the end of the year.
Each student, when applying for housing, is required to make a housing deposit. For new students the deposit is $200, and for returning students the deposit varies depending on the promotional window. During the returning student reapplication process for the current academic year, the deposit for returning students is $1 through January. As of February 1, the deposit increases to $50. On May 1, the deposit for returning students increases to $200. Returning students will receive emails, flyers, and information from the Department of Residence Life and Housing regarding upcoming deposit price changes and deadlines. The deposit is applied to the final cost of the room and board and is not an additional charge to the student's account.
The University cannot assume responsibility for loss of, theft of or damage to the personal belongings of residents. Each resident is urged to make sure that his/her property is adequately insured against such perils.
New students are eligible to apply for housing as soon as they have submitted their tuition deposit to the University. The application for housing is available on the Concordia Connect portal on the "Welcome" page.
Returning students can apply for housing during the housing reapplication process taking place during the spring semester. During this time, returning students may access the Concordia Connect portal and apply for housing under the "CUC Experience" tab. To help students prepare and guide them through this process, several notifications will be distributed.
If a withdrawal from housing occurs, the reimbursements occur according to the following timeline:
- New and returning students that withdraw from housing prior their move-in date, who have only deposited and have not agreed to the terms of the Housing Agreement, will be refunded their housing deposit in its entirety. Anyone that withdraws from housing, in violation of their housing agreement, after they have made a Housing Agreement may be assessed a $500 cancellation fee. Any student that is removed from campus housing and must withdraw due to a conduct-related issue or sanction will not receive any refund for housing unless approved by the Dean of Students.
- Reimbursement: As established by the housing agreement, students that withdraw their housing application prior to occupancy, or the by the end of the first week of classes for either semester, will have their stay prorated. If any meals or Cougar Cash was used, then students would be charged for that usage accordingly.
- 50% reimbursement: As established by the housing agreement, any student that withdraws from housing after the first week of classes, but prior to the end of the 8-week mark of the semester, is eligible for a 50% reimbursement of room and board charge for the semester, minus the $500 cancellation fee.
- No reimbursement: As established by the housing agreement, any student withdrawing from housing, after the 8-week mark of the semester (the exception being for hardship situations) will have no reimbursement in their room or board charge for the semester and will be charged a $500 cancellation fee.
Meal plans are selected during the housing reapplication process. Meal plans may be modified through the second week of each semester. To change your selected meal plan, simply email Housing@CUChicago.edu and indicate your Student ID number (H number) and preferred meal plan.
Every effort is made during the housing application process for both first-year and returning students to accommodate their housing requests, space permitting. New students will have the option of living in a first-year community or mixed-class community. Returning students will have the option of living in a mixed-class community or a returning-student-only floor.
Freshmen are given preference on a first-come, first-served basis for space in both the first-year and mixed-class communities. From time to time, a need to change housing setup might require us to change the preference list to reflect housing accommodation.
Returning students receive preference based on credit hour completion and completed application date. Several lottery windows will occur based on application date. Returning students with the most number of credits will have first selection in each lottery window.
Anyone planning to have a vehicle parked on campus overnight needs to register their vehicle with Campus Security. Street parking is prohibited by the Village of River Forest and will result in ticketing and possibly towing at the owner's expense.
All full-time freshmen, sophomore and junior status students are required to live in Concordia-Chicago residence halls. Degree-seeking students taking less than 12 semester hours in a 16-week semester (part-time students) are considered ineligible for campus housing, but exceptions will be considered (subject to housing availability) on a case-by-case basis. Concordia University Chicago, under its parietal rule (for bond revenue projects), reserves the right at any future dates to require all students to live in University housing.
Exceptions from the University Housing Policy
All students seeking an exception to the University Housing Policy must submit to the Department of Residence Life and have approved an Commuter Card. The document is available for pick up in the Department of Residence Life and Housing Office (2nd Krauss) and at each Jump Start session. Exceptions to the required housing policy are:
- Full-time senior students (90 or more credit hours earned at or before the first day of the semester of enrollment),
- The student is living with parent(s) or legal guardian(s) and commuting to campus from that residence (within a 45-mile radius, a parent/legal guardian signature is required),
- The student can claim “independent” designation as defined by federal aid requirements and standards,
- The student is married,
- The student, because of a disability, provides the college with appropriate documentation for reasonable accommodations that the University is unable to provide,
- The student is 22 years of age at or before the first day of the semester of enrollment,
- The student has children or is the one that provides direct care for a legal guardian,
- The student has extreme financial hardship condition based on similar guidelines for Financial Aid, or
- Student has experienced personal hardship that will be aided by an exemption to housing.
Married student housing is not available on campus.
Single Rooms
Due to high demand, single rooms (aside from designed single rooms in Concordia Hall) will not be issued unless medically warranted. A housing consolidation process will occur each semester during the third week of each semester. If available, the Department of Residence Life and Housing may offer a sign-up for single rooms at a single premium rate. All students that do not have a roommate during the consolidation process may either select a room with another resident who does not have a roommate or will be assigned to another room with a resident that does not have a roommate.
Medical Accommodations
Students that require medical accommodations, including but not limited to: single-room living options, air conditioning, modified meal plans, and ADA-accessible rooms are at the request of their physician, for existing health issues. Prior to receiving an accommodation, the student in need must have the appropriate documentation completed by their attending physician on file with and approved by the Center for Accessibility and Resource for Excellence. These documents are available in the Concordia Connect Portal and are to be submitted to Mary Wink, Academic Support Coordinator at Mary.Wink@CUChicago.edu. Accommodations will be awarded based on appropriate ADA guidelines. Medical accommodations do not have an additional charge associated with them.
Each floor on our campus has a Resident Assistant (RA). An RA is a student that was selected and trained to serve as a community builder, assistant, and director on a floor and in our residence halls. Their primary role is to build community among floor residents. This is done through intentional activities and programs that aid students in developing socially, spiritually, physically and mentally. RAs also are a part of a revolving "on-call" duty schedule that is shared by all RAs in a building. In this capacity, sometimes RAs have to help educate our students on policies and conduct in the halls, aid in a crisis response, or assist a student in need. Your RA is one of the best resources that you have on campus and they are there to help you in any way necessary.
Every student is issued a free mailbox, which is located in the basement of the Koehneke Community Center. Students are able to receive a mailbox when they show their Concordia ID card. Packages and mail can be sent to:
Student's Name
7400 Augusta Street (Box #____)
River Forest, IL 60305
Residence Life and Housing allows students to choose whom they will be rooming with using the application process. When completing the housing application or reapplication process, you may declare a roommate that has similar lifestyle expectations and/or by selecting a roommate based on a web name. The deadline to select and verify a roommate is June 25. After June 25, assignments are made based on room availability.
New students will receive communication about their housing placement and roommate information by mid July. Those that apply for housing after the initial housing placement will be emailed on the Monday following the completion of their application.
The Department of Residence Life and Housing offers a "No Questions Asked" room change period during the third week of each semester. After this time residents will need to consult with their Resident Director on any move. Roommate disputes do occur, and at times, a difference in living preference or personalities might be so great that issues arise. IN ALL CASES, Residence Life and Housing first encourages a discussion between the two roommates regarding the issues that might be creating conflict. If you experience difficulty with your roommate, discuss all the issues, share your thoughts and opinions, listen, and try to stay open minded. Residence Life staff can serve as a third-party mediator in these discussions. At no time should it be assumed that simply because issues have arisen, a move can occur. Moves are the last choice. The intention of the department is to instead encourage the growth in our students to work out issues and address concerns with each other. Furthermore, space may not be available for a move. If, however, all other avenues have been attempted and no compromise can be made, then either one or both students might be moved from their room or hall.
Sharing a living space can be a challenge for some. Here is a basic guide of some topics to discuss with your roommate:
Sharing of Property
- Do we share use of the television and refrigerator? Do we share use of gaming systems?
- If we both pitch in and split the cost of something in our room, what happens at checkout time or if one of us leaves school?
- Is it allowed to borrow clothes?
- What about letting others borrow your property without you in the room?
- What about purchased food?
- What about using your bed if you’re away for the night?
Telephone Etiquette
- What time is too late to receive a phone call?
- Does it bother you if I’m talking on my cellphone while you study?
Guests
- What about having guests in the room if one of us is ill, sleeping or trying to study?
- How many guests at one time are acceptable in our room?
- Do you have expectations of spending alone time in the room?
- How do you handle same-sex overnight guests?
- Are you comfortable with opposite sex guests visiting during inter-visitation hours?
Room Condition
- What are our expectations concerning neatness of our room?
- How are cleaning duties going to be shared?
- What a about damages to our room?
Additional Questions to Consider
- Are you a morning or a night person? How will we work this out if we are opposites?
- What about music (types, volume, when is it OK to play it, etc.)?
- How are we going to handle disagreements?
- What about room decorations, such as posters, setup, etc.?
The Department of Residence Life and Housing, Department of Public Safety and the University Physical Plant have taken many precautions to limit the danger of a fire in the residence halls, but the main responsibility falls on our students. All policies regarding fire safety should be adhered to at all times. Department of Public Safety does regular walk-throughs of our communities with a member of the River Forest Fire Department. In addition, please do not tamper with fire safety equipment and treat all fire alarms as if they are real.
A tornado watch means that conditions are right for the possible formation of a tornado. A tornado warning means that a funnel cloud has been spotted and that shelter should be sought immediately. In the case of a tornado warning, hall staff or Public Safety officers will make rounds to notify students of the warning. The basement and tunnels are made available for shelter. Students should act immediately in seeking proper shelter, moving away from windows and seeking out interior rooms on the lowest level of the building. If response time is not available, students should move immediately to the hallway, shutting their room door, face the wall, and kneel, covering your head with your arms and hands. Oak Park and River Forest have an active tornado warning system siren—if this goes off, students should act immediately. Remember that simply because the siren stops, students should not leave shelter until the all-clear on campus is given, which is the ringing of the chapel bell for two minutes or direction from Public Safety personnel. Students are encouraged to sign up for text safety alerts in the Concordia Connect Portal.
Theft is a relatively easy thing to prevent in our halls since most thefts occur due to a lack of attention by our residents. Always lock your room door and take your keys with you whenever you leave. Never lend your keys out to anyone else. Any guest in the hall should be escorted by their host. Do not leave your laptop, book bag, school books or other personal items unattended in a non-secure location. Report any suspicious activity to the Department of Public Safety immediately.
Concordia University Chicago has a long and wonderful history. Accordingly, so do many of our residential halls. Although the University and our Physical Plant team work hard to upgrade our facilities, sometimes, unexpected issues arise. If any damage should occur within your room you should immediately report this via work order. To submit a non-emergency work order, log into your Concordia Connect portal and select the "Resources" page to lead you to the work order submission page. You may also report work orders to your Resident Assistant or Resident Director. Please be aware that at times, certain things need to be prioritized in addressing of issues. Physical Plant employees work hard to address any issues with immediacy and concern. If damage has occurred due to actions of a student, additional charges or penalties may apply.
In the event of an emergency, please reach out to University Switchboard at 708-771-8300 to report an emergency repair. Dispatch will take note of the issue and relay this information to the Physical Plant member on call and the staff member will respond immediately.
The Department of Residence Life and Housing at Concordia University Chicago is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the residence halls. We work to support our academic mission by creating environments that are supportive of the development of academic success. This is not something that can be done without the support and civility of our students. In a group living situation, guidelines exist to ensure the rights and privileges of each member of our on-campus community. Students are expected to adhere to these standards. Any student that is found in violation of these standards will be directed through the Student Conduct Process as a result of their violation. In addition, the Department of Residence Life and Housing have established policies for the residential halls. Not all issues that arise can be addressed by specific policy, and therefore, community members should act in creating a policy together for their floor that will address an issue. This involvement is critical to the success of a community standards approach.
Your RA or hall staff members are always willing to assist with any issue that arises. Furthermore, they are able to make proper referrals to other services on campus for your assistance if they cannot help.