Returning and Transfer Student Room Selection

Eligibility:

• Eligible: Only students who graduated from high school in 2024 or earlier, or are 21+ years old at the beginning of fall 2026 classes, are eligible for South Fork Suites.
• Group Leader: Any eligible UWRF student can form a group and serve as the Group Leader. By the deadline, the Group Leader will be responsible for logging into the Housing Portal and using the Roommate Search page to invite group members. Then on the designated Room Selection day, they will assign all group members to a suite. Group members will need to log in and accept the Group Leader's invitation. Group leaders are not required to be a student currently living on-campus during spring 2026.

Items to Note:

• Roommate groups of four, then two, are given priority. You must have a confirmed group of four or two in the Housing Portal by the deadline in the timeline shown below to enter the lottery. Groups of three and individuals without a group will be included only if space allows after groups of four or two have been selected.
• Review roommate group instructions below to learn how to create a group of suitemates and designate a Group Leader.
• Mixed gender suites are permitted. Please review the instructions below to learn how to create a mixed gender group (groups of four are required, no exceptions). This must be completed in the Housing Portal by the deadline shown in the timeline.
• Suites are awarded through a random lottery. Groups of four are given first priority and first pick of suites in the lottery (see timeline for order). If all beds are filled by groups of four, then no smaller groups will be awarded.

Instructions:

• Create a Roommate Group (Coming):
  • Same Gender Group: Creating a group of suitemates (Groups of four or two given priority)
  • Mixed Gender Group: Creating a group of suitemates (Groups of four required)
• Room Selection:
  • Guide to select a room in South Fork Suites (coming soon)

Timeline:

• Wednesday, Feb. 4-Tuesday, Feb. 10, noon: Sign up for the lottery in the Housing Portal (see instructions). A South Fork Roommate Search feature will be available in the portal, allowing you to confirm roommate groups of four or two. Mixed gender suite groups of four must also be confirmed by this date within the Housing Portal.
• Thursday, Feb. 12: Email sent notifying lottery winner groups accepted to live in South Fork Suites
• Tuesday, Feb. 17: Room Selection (see instructions). Group Leaders will perform this task.
  • Groups of four: 7-11 a.m., Those awarded a suite by lottery, the Group Leader can assign the group to any available suite
  • Groups of two: 1:30-5:30 p.m., Those awarded a suite by lottery, one roommate can assign the group to any available suite
• Thursday, Feb. 19: If beds are still available, room selection for the following:
  • Groups of three students: 7-11 a.m., Those awarded a suite by lottery, the Group Leader can assign the group to any available suite
  • Individuals without a group: 1:30-5:30 p.m., Those awarded a suite by lottery can choose any available suite
• Thursday, April 9-Friday, May 15: If there are any spaces available in South Fork Suites at any time during this timeframe, you may view and choose those spaces without having a confirmed group of suitemates, provided that you qualify to live in South Fork Suites.

Eligibility:
Any current UWRF student or incoming transfer student for fall 2026 who graduated high school in 2025 or earlier and is interested in a traditional double room as a single room for the 2026-2027 academic year should add themselves to the Single Room Lottery in the Housing Portal. Students approved for accommodations should read details further below under "Accommodations."

Single Room Types:

• Designed Single Room: Ames suites only, designed for one student with one set of furniture. 
• Double as Single: All halls except Ames, room designed for two students with two sets of furniture.

Halls:
There will be a small number of single rooms available in each of the below halls.

• Hathorn Hall
• Johnson Hall
• May Hall
• McMillan Hall (1st and 2nd floors only)
• Prucha Hall (traditional rooms only, not quads)
• Stratton Hall

Cost:

• Students are responsible for the additional cost for a single room. See the 2026-27 Room Rates, subject to the Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents annual approval.

Instructions:

• Add yourself to the Single Room Lottery (instructions coming)
• Winners: How to Select a Single Room (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Wednesday, Feb. 18-Sunday, Feb. 22, 11:59 p.m.: Sign up for the single room lottery.
• Monday, Feb. 23: Those awarded/not awarded a single room are notified. The lottery is random.
• Wednesday, Feb. 25, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Single room lottery winners choose a room.

Accommodation Single Rooms: 

• Students who have already been approved by UWRF's Disability Resource Center for a single room through the accommodation process have no need to apply for a single room through this lottery. 
• Special instructions will be emailed to students (to their UWRF email address) with accommodations prior to room selection day.
• Room selection will begin for accommodation students on the same day and timeframe as room selection for single room lottery winners shown above.
• Specific single rooms will be set aside only for accommodation students to select on a first-come-first-served basis. There are a limited number of accommodation single rooms in each hall, available to the first accommodation students who select them.

About: Neighborhood groups provide an opportunity for groups of 6-10 friends to be assigned to the same floor, wing, pod or quad in a preferred hall by forming a group in the Housing Portal. 

No Themed Communities: 
Students wanting to live in one of the Themed Communities should not create a Neighborhood Group. Follow instructions for that specific community.

Eligibility:

• Group Leaders who create a Neighborhood Group must have graduated high school in 2025 or earlier.
• Signed contracts required by the Tuesday, March 3, noon deadline. All neighborhood group members must have their 2026-27 housing contracts signed by this deadline.
• Eligible: Any student. First year students who graduate high school in 2026 are not eligible for Hathorn Hall and Ames Suites.

Halls: A block of rooms will be set aside in the following halls:

• Ames Suites (Eligibility: Graduated high school in 2025 or earlier)
• Hathorn Hall (Eligibility: Graduated high school in 2025 or earlier)
• May Hall
• Johnson Hall
• Stratton Hall

Items to Note:

• Group Leader: Each group must choose a Group Leader who will create a list of names, Falcon Account numbers (commonly referred to as "W numbers") and pair of roommates in the Housing Portal for the Neighborhood Group. The Group Leader must have graduated high school in 2025 or earlier.
• Group Size: Groups can range from a minimum of three rooms (six students) to maximum of five rooms (10 students).
• Group Details: Groups must consist of roommate pairs. If you have four or more rooms, you may have one room that doesn’t have a confirmed roommate pair. The empty space in that one room can be chosen by any random student during room sign up or Residence Life will assign a student there. If you have a group member who won the single lottery, or has an accommodation single room, please indicate that (their ability to be part of your neighborhood may depend upon single room availability in your assigned hall)
• Roommate Genders: Group members may be of any gender but roommate pairs must be the same birth gender.
• Lottery: A random lottery system will be used to determine winners if there are more groups interested in a specific hall than rooms available there.
• Room Placement: Residence Life staff will hand-assign group members to a building and individual rooms within the building, then notify all members of the group by email once they are assigned. Room and roommate details will be shown on the "My Room Assignment" page in the portal once assigned to a room.

Instructions:

• How to create a Neighborhood Group and Enter the Lottery (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Neighborhood Group Lottery.
• Thursday, March 5: Neighborhood Group winners are notified of their building assignment - they will be hand-assigned to rooms by Residence Life.
• Monday, March 9, noon: Deadline for Neighborhood Group members to decline their building assignment if they want to live somewhere else.
• Friday, March 13: By the end of the week, winners will be hand-assigned to rooms by Residence Life and notified about their room assignment.

About: Prucha Hall has 21 "quads" scattered throughout its three floors. Each quad comprises three rooms. Two rooms are bedrooms where roommate pairs reside and those bedrooms surround a shared center room, using interior doors to gain access to that room. The shared center room contains two micro-fridge units but is otherwise empty and may be configured by residents of that quad as a shared living room, game room or other shared space of their choosing.

No Themed Communities: 

• Students wanting to live in one of the Themed Communities on this page should not create a Prucha Quad Neighborhood Group. They should follow instructions for that specific community.

Eligibility:

• Eligible: Students who graduated high school in 2025 or earlier.
• Signed Contracts Required: By the Tuesday, March 3, noon deadline, all Prucha Quad group members must have their 2026-27 housing contracts signed.
• Not Eligible: Students who graduate high school in 2026 are not eligible for Prucha Hall.

Items to Note:

• Prucha Quad Details: Visit the Prucha Hall webpage to see a visual design of the Prucha Quads and view room rates to see the additional cost to live there.
• Group Leader: Each group must choose a Group Leader who will create a group of four students in the Housing Portal, including their names and Falcon Account numbers (commonly referred to as "W numbers")
• Group size: Groups of four students are required. You cannot create multiple quad groups.
• Mixed-gender groups: Roommate pairs in each bedroom must be the same legal sex at birth, but the second bedroom in the quad may contain a roommate pair that has an opposite birth gender. All members of these mixed-gender groups will be required to agree to a Mixed Gender Agreement.
• Meal plan: Students who graduated high school in 2024 or earlier are not required to have a meal plan in Prucha Quads.
• Lottery Winners: A random lottery system will be used to determine winners.
• Room Placement: Residence Life staff will hand-assign winning groups members to a quad in Prucha Hall building and individual rooms within the building, then notify all members of the group by email once they are assigned. Room and roommate details will be shown on the "My Room Assignment" page in the portal once assigned to a room.

Instructions:

• How to create a Prucha Quad Neighborhood Group and Join the Lottery (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Prucha Quad Neighborhood Group Lottery.
• Thursday, March 5: Prucha Quad winners are notified of their building assignment - they will be hand-assigned to rooms (including Prucha Quads) by Residence Life.
• Monday, March 9, noon: Deadline for Prucha Quad members to decline their room assignment if they want to live somewhere else.
• Friday, March 13: By the end of the week, winners will be hand-assigned to rooms by Residence Life and notified about their room assignment.

About: Where Falcons can come together in community to support sustainable living and focus on caring for the environment, each other and personal growth. 

Location: May Hall 2nd floor.

Eligibility:

1. Eligible: Available to all students.
2. Add Community Preference: In the Housing Portal, visit the Community Preferences page and add the Eco Nest Community, then save the page.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the Monday, March 23, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions:

1. Add yourself to the Eco Nest Lottery instructions (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in this community (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Eco Nest lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Thursday, March 5: Email sent to notify lottery winners accepted to live in the Eco Nest Community.
• Wednesday, March 11, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection is available for the Eco Nest Community.

About: Designed to help transfer students transition smoothly into life at UWRF by exposing them to campus resources and a network of fellow transfer students. 

Location: Hathorn Hall

Eligibility:

1. Eligible: Available to students who graduated from high school in 2025 or earlier.
2. Add Community Preference: In the Housing Portal, visit the Community Preferences page and add the Falcon Transfer Experience Community, then save the page.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the Monday, March 23, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions:

1. Add yourself to the Falcon Transfer Experience Lottery instructions (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in this community (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Falcon Transfer Experience lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Thursday, March 5: Email sent to notify lottery winners accepted to live in the Falcon Transfer Experience Community.
• Wednesday, March 11, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection is available for the Falcon Transfer Experience Community.

About: For students who have a shared interest in these areas. 

Location: McMillan Hall, 2nd Floor.

Eligibility:

1. Eligible: Any student.
2. Add Community Preference: In the Housing Portal, visit the Community Preferences page and add the Fitness, Wellness and Outdoor Recreation Community, then save the page.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the Monday, March 23, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions

1. Add yourself to the Fitness, Wellness and Outdoor Recreation instructions (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in this community (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Fitness, Wellness and Outdoor Recreation lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Thursday, March 5: Email sent to notify lottery winners accepted to live in the Fitness, Wellness and Outdoor Recreation Community.
• Wednesday, March 11, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection is available for the Fitness, Wellness and Outdoor Recreation Community.

About: This community will help to provide an inclusive and welcoming space for casual and competitive gamers to live collectively on campus. Additionally, this community will provide an outlet and home for individuals to seek a path into the competitive side of video games and will foster a better education from a structured residence hall environment. 

Location: May Hall, 3rd floor.

Eligibility:

1. Eligible: Available to all students.
2. Add Community Preference: In the Housing Portal, visit the Community Preferences page and add the Gaming and Esports Community, then save the page.
3. Agree to Community Agreement: Students must agree to the Gaming and Esports Community Agreement to live in this community. After adding the Gaming and Esports Community as a preference on the Community Preferences page, the agreement will appear on the next page.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the Monday, March 24, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions:

1. Add yourself to the Gaming and Esports Lottery instructions (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in this community (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Gaming and Esports Community lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Thursday, March 5: Email sent to notify lottery winners accepted to live in the Gaming and Esports Community.
• Wednesday, March 11, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection is available for the Gaming and Esports Community. 

About: Provides students a safe space and the flexibility to accommodate the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual (LGBTQIA+) students, Allies and others for whom cultural or identity considerations are needed. Provides the option for two students share a room regardless of students' sex, gender identity or gender expression (meaning students can live in the same room with a person of a different assigned sex at birth).

Location:

• Johnson Hall 1st floor

Eligibility:

1. Add Community Preference: In the Housing Portal, visit the Community Preferences page and add the Pride Community, then save the page.
2. Agree to Community Agreement: Students must agree to the Pride Community Agreement to live in this community. After adding the Pride Community as a preference on the Community Preferences page, the agreement will appear on the next page.
3. Roommates with opposite birth gender: Must add each other's names on the Pride Community Agreement page in the appropriate field. All other roommates must use Roommate Search to pair up as roommates.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the Monday, March 23, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions:

1. Add yourself to the Pride Community Lottery instructions (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in this community (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Pride Community lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Thursday, March 5: Email sent to notify lottery winners accepted to live in the Pride Community.
• Wednesday, March 11, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection is available for the Pride Community. 

About: Residents living in the Substance-Free Community agree to observe a standard that prohibits the possession or use of alcohol and illegal drugs, as defined by Wisconsin law and university policy, by themselves or their guest(s) in the Substance-Free Community. Residents agree that the use of any of these substances by themselves or their guest(s) outside the hall that disrupts the community within the hall is also prohibited. By living in the Substance-Free Community, residents acknowledge that they may be reassigned and/or restricted from the community if standards are not met.

Location: Ames Suites, 2nd Floor North.

Eligibility:

1. Eligible: Any student who graduated from high school in 2025 or earlier.
2. Add Community Preference: In the Housing Portal, visit the Community Preferences page and add the Substance-Free Community, then save the page.
3. Agree to Community Agreement: Students must agree to the Substance-Free Community Agreement to live in this community. After adding the Substance-Free Community as a preference on the Community Preferences page, the agreement will appear on the next page.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the Monday, March 23, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions:

1. Add yourself to the Substance-Free Community Lottery instructions (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in this community (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday afternoon, Feb. 26-Tuesday, March 3, noon: Sign up for the Substance-Free Community lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Thursday, March 5: Email sent to notify lottery winners accepted to live in the Substance-Free Community.
• Wednesday, March 11, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection is available for the Substance-Free Community. 

Hall Eligibility: 

• Students living in Ames Suites and Hathorn Hall must have graduated high school in 2025 or earlier.

Roommate Deadline:

• By the March 23, noon deadline, roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See linked instructions below.
• FAQ: If I have an accepted roommate in the portal, do both of us need to win the lottery to get into our preferred hall? No, only one roommate needs to win and they will assign themselves and their accepted roommate to a room. When both roommates enter the lottery, they are doubling their chances of winning.

Instructions:

1. How to add yourself to the Ames Suites and Hathorn Hall Lottery (instructions coming)
2. Step-by-step guide to select a room in Ames Suites and Hathorn Hall  (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Thursday, March 12-Monday, March 23, noon: Sign up for the Ames Suites and Hathorn Hall lottery.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before the noon deadline.)
• Tuesday, March 24: Those awarded/not awarded a room are notified. The lottery is random.
• Thursday, March 26, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Lottery winners choose a room.

About: Any UWRF student who has not yet chosen a room and graduated high school in 2025 or earlier may log into the Housing Portal to reserve a space from among the halls available below. 

Halls: 

• Johnson: Any student
• May Hall: Any student
• McMillan Hall:
  • Floors 1 and 2: Available to any student
  • Floors 3 and 4: Eligible: students who graduate high school in 2026
• Prucha Hall (traditional rooms): Eligible: students who graduated high school in 2025 or earlier
• Stratton Hall: Any student

Communities in each hall:

• View details on the first page of the step-by-step guide linked below.

Roommate Deadline:

• By April 1 (the day before room selection), roommate pairs must have accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal. See instructions.

Instructions:

• Step-by-step guide to select a room in the above halls (instructions coming)

Timeline:

• Tuesday, March 31: Students without a room are emailed with a timeslot for when they can log into the Housing Portal and begin choosing a room.
  • (Note: Roommate groups of two must be completed in the portal before choosing a room.)
• Thursday, April 2, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.: Room selection for any available space in the above halls, beginning at the assigned timeslot.

About: Any UWRF student who has not yet chosen a room and graduated high school in 2025 or earlier may log into the Housing Portal to reserve a space from any of the remaining available spaces. 

Roommates: Rooms with two empty beds will be either few, or not available at all, by this room sign up phase. If you are unable to find an empty room for yourself and your roommate, then each of you should assign yourselves to an empty bed in your desired hall with random roommates. You may coordinate with those random roommates, asking if they would be willing to do a Room Swap so that you can be roomed with your desired roommate. 

• By Wednesday, April 8 (the day before room selection): If you have a desired roommate, make sure that you have mutually accepted each other as roommates in the Housing Portal.

Instructions:

• Step-by-step guide to select a room (instructions coming)

Items to Note: If empty beds are available in the following halls and you are eligible to reside in that hall, then you may select a room. If a residence hall is full or you aren't eligible to reside there, the residence hall will not be shown to you within the Housing Portal.

• Ames Suites: Graduated high school in 2025 or earlier
• Hathorn Hall: Graduated high school in 2025 or earlier
• Johnson Hall: Any student
• May Hall: Any student
• McMillan Hall:
  • Floors 1 and 2: Any student
  • Floors 3 and 4: First year students graduating high school in 2026 only
• Prucha Hall: Students must have graduated from high school in 2025 or earlier
• South Fork Suites: Graduated high school in 2024 or earlier, or are 21+ years old
• Stratton Hall: Any student

Timeline:

• Thursday, April 9, 7 a.m.-Friday, May 16 at 10 a.m.: Choose any available space on campus.
  • (Note: After you have chosen a room, if you are interested in moving halls or rooms, or changing roommates, then daily you may use Room Swap to log in and view empty beds and move to a desired empty bed at any time until May 15.)

About:
Room Swap is for any student who has already selected a room during Room Sign Up but would like to select a new room. Each individual student interested in swapping rooms must do this independently. A student cannot do this for a roommate. 

• First year students who graduate high school in 2026 will be unable to use Room Swap, if they had previously been assigned to a room by their roommate.
• You may room swap as many times as you would like while the Room Swap feature is live in the Housing Portal.

Roommates:

• Each student must log in and use the Room Swap feature in the Housing Portal to move rooms - a student cannot move their roommate.

Instructions:

• Step-by-step guide to do a room swap (instructions coming)

Items to Note:

If empty beds are available in the following halls and you are eligible to reside in that hall, then you may use Room Swap in the portal to select a new room. If a residence hall is full, or if you are not eligible for the hall, then the residence hall will not be visible in the Housing Portal.

• Ames Suites: Graduated high school in 2025 or earlier
• Hathorn Hall: Graduated high school in 2025 or earlier
• Johnson Hall: Any student
• May Hall: Any student
• McMillan Hall:
  • Floors 1 and 2: Any student
  • Floors 3 and 4: First year students graduating high school in 2026 only
• Prucha Hall:
  • Any student traditional rooms
  • Prucha quads: must have graduated from high school in 2025 or earlier
• South Fork Suites: Graduated high school in 2024 or earlier, or are 21+ years old
• Stratton Hall: Any student

Timeline:

• Thursday, April 9, 7 a.m.-Friday, May 16 at 10 a.m.: Room swap is available for any student who graduated high school in 2025 or earlier.