Q. Who is eligible for Affiliated Residential Community Housing (ARCH)?

Q. Are there priority programs for Housing?

Q. How long is the wait for housing?

Q. Are the rental rates subsidized?

Q. How do I apply?

Q. How are Housing offers made?

Q. What if I am going on leave or to study out of town?

Q. Do I have any other options for Housing?

Q. Do I have to have a roommate?

Q. If I am a secondary resident can my roommate request that I move out of the apartment?

Q. What if I am an undergraduate (couple and/or with dependents), or an eligible student with a disability and I need housing accommodations?

Q. What if I am an eligible student who has a dependent with a disability and I need Housing accommodations?

Q. I want to live in Single Graduate Apartments (SGA) and I identify as transgender.  How does this impact my housing assignment as I understand apartments at SGA are assigned by gender?


Q. Who is eligible for Affiliated Residential Community Housing (ARCH)?
A. Graduate and professional students and undergraduate students in a committed relationship or with children are eligible to reside in an ARCH community. Single graduate and professional students are eligible to reside in the Mesa Residential, One Miramar Street, Coast, and Single Graduate Apartments. Graduate and professional students in a committed relationship (and residing with their partners) are eligible to reside in Mesa Residential, One Miramar Street, and Coast Apartments. Graduate and professional students with children are eligible to reside in the Mesa Residential Apartments.  Undergraduate students in a committed relationship are eligible to reside in the Mesa Residential and One Miramar Street Apartments. Undergraduate students with children are eligible to reside in the Mesa Residential Apartments.

Q. Are there priority programs for Housing?
A. Yes.  Students, not currently residing in an ARCH community, with child/children and students who are pregnant or whose partner/spouse is pregnant are offered housing before single students and student couples. In addition, a secondary resident of an ARCH community who becomes pregnant or whose partner/spouse becomes pregnant while residing in housing are also offered housing before other single students and student couples. Housing will place a maximum of two priority offers to a student with child/children and/or pregnant.  If the student refuses both offers then he/she is no longer eligible to receive priority housing and will be offered housing based on his/her application date on the waitlist. Birth certificate and proof of pregnancy will be required at move-in. The student’s child must be 18 years or younger and residing in the ARCH apartment at least 50% of the time to be eligible for priority. This priority program was established and is reviewed on a regular basis by the Affiliated Housing Advisory Committee. For more information regarding the offering process, please refer to the Frequently Asked Question “How are Housing offers made?”

Students with 3 or more children receive priority for the nine Central Mesa three bedroom apartments.   If there are not any students on the waitlist with 3 or more children, then the three bedroom apartments are next offered to students with 2 or more children; students with one child; and to all other students on the waitlist.  For more information regarding the offering process, please refer to the Frequently Asked Question “How are Housing offers made?”

Office of Graduate Studies hosts a priority program called Student Housing Opportunity Recruitment Enhancement Program (SHORE).  New incoming graduate and professional students are nominated by their departments for this recruitment program.   SHORE students are housed at the Mesa Residential and One Miramar Street Apartments without having to wait on the waitlist.  The Rady School of Management participates in SHORE.  For more information contact the Office of Graduate Studies.

The School of Medicine and The School of Pharmacy host a priority program at the Single Graduate Apartments.  New incoming students are nominated for this program and housed with priority at the Single Graduate Apartments.  For more information contact the School of Medicine or the School of Pharmacy Admissions Offices.

Q. How long is the wait for housing?
A. The average wait for a student with children is 4-6 months.  Depending on the time of the year, some students with children have received a housing offer within 2 weeks of submitting an application.   For more information regarding the offering process, please refer to the Frequently Asked Question “How are Housing offers made?”

The average wait for single students and couples can vary greatly depending on your choice of community, apartment availability, and the time of year.  The average wait for a Single Graduate and One Miramar Street Apartment is 2 months.  The average wait for a Mesa Residential and Coast Apartment is 3 years.

Q. Are the rental rates subsidized?
A. UC San Diego Housing operates as a self-funded organization.  We do not receive Federal, State, or other funds from which to subsidize rates.  All operation costs are covered by the rents collected from residents.  The rental rates vary by community and are posted on each community’s page.

Q. How do I apply?
A. Submit a New On-Line Application at our Forms/Application page. Upon submitting your application you will receive an e-mail confirmation. Please save this confirmation for future reference.

In order to ensure that the waitlist represents interested students, you are required to update your application twice a year, in March and October.  If you do not complete the update process in March and October your application will be removed from the waitlist. If you contact the office prior to the start of the next update process to express your continued interest in housing, then we will reinstate your application with your original application date. If you do not contact the office prior to the start of the next update process, then you must submit a new on-line application.

Once you accept a housing offer and sign a rental agreement, your application is removed from the waitlist. You may submit a new on-line application if you are interested in relocating to a different apartment or ARCH community.

Q. How are Housing offers made?
A. Housing offers are first extended to students with priority (i.e. students with children, SHORE, and School of Medicine/School of Pharmacy priority students).  If there are not any eligible students with priority on the waitlist, then housing offers are extended based on the student’s application date, apartment preference, and need housing by date.  It is best to list your need housing by date as the earliest date that you can financially afford to pay the rent.  Please note that if your housing need by date is January 1st, then you will not be offered an apartment that becomes available prior to January 1st (i.e. You will not be offered an apartment that is available on December 31st.).  Also, be sure that your apartment preferences only include the apartments that you are willing to accept.  You will have the opportunity to refuse one offer.  If a second offer is made and refused, your application will be removed from the waiting list.  If you do not respond to an offer, your application will also be removed from the waitlist.

Housing offers are made via telephone. Two phone calls will be placed on two different days at different times providing you with a total of 48 hours to respond to the offer.  An e-mail will also be sent to you at the address listed on your application.  The apartment that you are offered will have a move-in date that is on or after your need housing by date.  It will also be an apartment type that matches one of your selected apartment preferences.

If you accept the housing offer, you will receive an e-mail that describes the process for signing an electronic rental agreement.  Follow the instructions included in the e-mail.  Your application will be removed from the waitlist.  If you are interested in relocating to a different apartment, you may submit a new on-line application.

If you refuse your first housing offer, your application will remain on the waitlist.  Please verify that your apartment preferences and your need housing by date reflect the apartment types that you are willing to accept and the date that you are willing to begin paying rent.  If you refuse the second offer, your application is removed from the waitlist.  You may later submit a new on-line application; however, you will not keep your original application date.  Your new application date will be the day you submit your new application.

Q. What if I am going on leave or to study out of town?
A. If you have been waiting the estimated time for your preferred apartment; have not received an offer; and are going out of town, please notify the Residential Service Office in advance so that you do not miss a housing offer.  We are happy to call you at a temporary number or call an individual that you designate to accept or refuse a housing offer on your behalf.

Q. Do I have any other options for Housing?
A. Yes.  You may become a roommate to a current resident.  Current residents are responsible for selecting their own residents.  One of the methods they might utilize is our on-line Roommate Information Application. By submitting a Roommate Information Application, residents can view your information and contact you if they are interested in interviewing you to be a roommate. You may also use this tool to search for current residents who are searching for roommates.

If a current resident selects you as his/her roommate, ask the resident to contact the office with your information (i.e. name, PID number, telephone number, and date you will start paying rent). If you haven’t already done so, submit an on-line housing application. This allows Housing to generate and send you an electronic rental agreement via e-mail. Once you sign your electronic rental agreement, your housing application is removed from the waitlist.  You may submit a new on-line application if you are interested in relocating to a different apartment.

Our Market Comparison Report provides information regarding off-campus apartment complexes in the UTC are of La Jolla.

Q. Do I have to have a roommate?
A. Yes. A single student living in a two-bedroom apartment at Mesa Residential, One Miramar Street, or Coast Apartments is required to share the apartment with at least one other eligible student. For eligibility information refer to the Frequently Asked Question “Who is eligible for Affiliated Residential Community Housing (ARCH)?” Single students have 30 days from their move-in date to find an eligible roommate.  The single student residing in an ARCH community is responsible for the total monthly rent during these 30 days.

If a student’s partner/spouse plans to reside away from the apartment for more than one quarter, then the student will be required to sublet one bedroom in a two bedroom apartment to an eligible student during the partner’s/spouse’s absence. For questions/concerns, please contact the Residential Services Office at 858.822.3291 or the Coast Apartments Office at 858.558.2886.

Q. If I am a secondary resident can my roommate request that I move out of the apartment?
A. Yes. Your roommate, the primary resident, reserves the right to ask you to move out of the apartment with 30 days notice. You also reserve the right to notify your roommate that you will be moving out in 30 days.

Q. What if I am an undergraduate (couple and/or with dependents), or an eligible student with a disability and I need housing accommodations?
A. Students with a disability requiring a housing accommodation should coordinate their need by both applying for housing online and contacting the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) at 858.534.4382 as early as possible. In order for accommodations to be provided, the student must meet all housing requirements and be referred to housing through OSD. A student referred by OSD will be contacted by the Residence Life Liaison to coordinate any applicable housing accommodation and assignment. Please be advised that a referral from OSD is not a guarantee for an immediate housing assignment.

Q. What if I am an eligible student who has a dependent with a disability and I need Housing accommodations?
A:  As a UCSD member with a dependent disability, you may be eligible to receive accommodations in your housing assignment. You will be required to initially complete and refer to a certifying professional the Housing Services Clinical Documentation For Accommodation Form. Once completed and returned, the accommodation documentation will be reviewed. This documentation and appropriate recommendations will be maintained by the Residence Life Liaison and ARCH (Affiliated Housing) Manager. When you are contacted off the waitlist for an assignment, the professional staff will work to insure that all reasonable accommodations are met prior to move-in. Please contact Leanne C. Besachio, Residence Life Liaison at 858.822.1782 to receive more information about this process.

Q. I want to live in Single Graduate Apartments (SGA) and I identify as transgender.  How does this impact my housing assignment as I understand apartments at SGA are assigned by gender?
A: As are all our residents, transgender students are valued members of the affiliated housing living community at UC San Diego. When completing your application please self-identify when asked about gender. Additionally, in order to support the needs of transgender students, we strongly encourage students to contact Leanne Besachio, the Residence Life Liaison to discuss individual and specific needs. The contact information is lbesachio@ucsd.edu or 858-822-1782. More information on transgender living and the transgender community at UCSD is available at the LGBT Resource Center website at lgbt.ucsd.edu