The University of Connecticut (UConn) had its largest number of applications in history this year. For students either on their way here, or thinking about coming, it’s important to know that UConn truly is running out of space. It’s no surprise to anyone that UConn is becoming more and more desirable both to in-state and out-of-state applicants. It’s a high-ranking research university with a large campus and plenty of things to do. Unfortunately, high demand for spots on the Storrs campus has caused a little bit of a housing problem. This has manifested in a way I didn’t expect, with common rooms turning into quads. Currently, according to the floor plans which can be found here, the lounges in the following residence areas are being used as quads. Buckley, East, North, and Hilltop are the affected dorms currently. As the incoming freshman classes get larger and larger, this is only a temporary fix for what is becoming a seemingly permanent space problem.
New year, new rates
The UConn housing situation has changed a lot in my time here. I’m currently a junior living on East Campus in a Rate one double. I pay more to live here than I did to live in Werth Tower, my air-conditioned larger-sized double, last year. Annual room rate increases are nothing unusual, however, there has been a major change in which rooms are classified at which rates. Focusing on the cheapest on-campus housing options, rate one and rate two, UConn now separates by specific residence hall rather than the type of room. From 2022-2023 and 2022-2024 traditional doubles, triples, Northwood doubles, and quads are listed at rate one. The only thing at rate two for those academic years was a Werth Tower double. Currently, in the 2024-2025 academic year, North doubles (excluding Middlesex Hall), West campus, Towers, Sprague, Whitney, Holcomb, traditional triples, and traditional quads are all at rate one. Doubles in Northwood, northwest, Middlesex Hall, Hicks, Grange, Alumni, McMahon, Buckley/Shippee, and Hilltop are all at rate two. This is a huge change in specification for seemingly no reason.
To put this into perspective, if a student who lived in Hicks Hall for the 2023-24 academic year decided to remain there for the 2024-25 academic year, the price per semester would go from $3,820 to $4,114. In contrast, if a student lived in Holcomb for those same academic years their price per semester would only increase from $3,820 to $3,925. Both Hicks and Holcomb are all-female dorms in East campus, and there are no distinct factors that come to mind personally as to why Hicks is now more expensive. All information about current and past room rates is available here. This new housing distinction is also a problem when it comes to the UConn Honors Program which I am also a part of. UConn honors housing is limited to Buckley and Shippee for freshmen, and Snow Hall in South Campus, or Connecticut Hall for sophomores and above. Based on the current room rates, there is no available rate one Honors housing option which can be limiting to lower-income Honors students and isolate them from the rest of the Honors community on campus.
New South (Connecticut Hall)
Speaking of Honors housing, UConn celebrated the grand opening of its newest state-of-the-art dormitory, Connecticut Hall. Connecticut Hall is beautiful, it has a large dining hall on the first floor, a game room, elevators, and plenty of common areas to sit and relax. This new residence hall currently sits at rate five, at $4,992 a semester. This is 27% higher than this year’s rate one cost, which is $3,925 per semester. The high cost of Connecticut Hall makes it inaccessible to any member of the student body that does not have access to that level of funding. It may have future consequences because if incoming students can’t afford to live in that residence hall, the majority of the UConn population will continue to flood into the cheaper dorms that are already at capacity. It will also play a role in exacerbating disparity in campus living conditions. The space is still relatively new, so some time is needed to see if tensions rise among the student body, or if changes are made to improve some of the more affordable residence halls. More information about the amount of money that went into CT Hall can be found here.
Classrooms and construction
The space problem is not only affecting residence halls, but also the educational environment. UConn has recently constructed an entirely new classroom building called Science 01. This building is supposed to become part of a large science complex, features state-of-the-art research facilities, and an interactive learning space for students.
However, this new building is not in the central area of campus, and because of its STEM curriculum leanings is only used by a relatively small portion of courses when compared to the entire UConn catalog. I personally have only had two classes there since its construction finished, but I cannot speak for its usefulness for Institute of Material Sciences (IMS) students or engineering majors. The IMS department at UConn was originally housed in the North wing of Gant but has since been relocated to Science One. While the addition of the new building is a good step towards accommodating a growing student body, it has resulted in an increase in unused space on campus. The UConn Gant Science Complex is another stem-focused complex that has been revamped in the past to improve the appearance, cohesiveness, and stability of the building.
The four wings of Gant (North, South, East, and West) host several classroom spaces, lecture halls, and laboratories for student use. Because IMS has been moved out of Gant North, that entire wing of the Gant complex is still presently abandoned and appears relatively untouched by time. Posters celebrating the IMS anniversary in 2016 still hang on the bulletin boards right outside Gant North’s now-locked doors. All construction on Gant was originally scheduled to be finished this year according to an article by UConn’s Daily Campus, which you can read here. As UConn’s student body grows and space becomes even more scarce, it’s becoming increasingly important to make use of all available classrooms. Having an entire unfinished wing in a science building seems to be a bit of a waste, especially when Science 01 was constructed for the sole purpose of accommodating a growing STEM department. Here’s hoping construction plans resume soon!
Part of the pack
As Deadlines approach for the future UConn class of 2029, it’s important that incoming students stay optimistic about living here in Storrs. Although UConn is filling up quickly, UConn Residential Life is frantically trying to accommodate larger and larger groups of freshmen. The experience of living on the Storrs campus is a unique one, and I hope as many applicants get to experience it as possible. Hopefully, with enough time, UConn will have enough room for an even bigger pack of Huskies.