Increase in Draw demand leads to more unassigned students

A steady increase in the demand for on-campus housing over the last decade has led to progressively lower cutoff numbers and more students unassigned in the Draw’s first round.

According to online statistics provided by Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE) Student Housing, the draw number of the last person assigned in the first round this year was 2734 for men and 2745 for women. This year, 4,287 students applied for housing and 174 students who were guaranteed housing went unassigned, with both figures the highest in the past decade.

Rodger Whitney, executive director of R&DE Student Housing, noted in an email to The Daily that a variety of factors had contributed to the rise in applications, including more unguaranteed fifth year students seeking on-campus housing, a competitive local rental market and the high yield rate of the Class of 2016.

Whitney noted that last year’s highest first round Draw cutoff number had been 2871 for men, in a year where 81 fewer undergraduates had been assigned in order to make room for the incoming class.

“While demand has increased somewhat, it is important to note that R&DE Student Housing has always met the undergraduate guarantee and will do so again for the 13-14 academic year,” Whitney wrote.

According to Whitney, the percentage of students guaranteed housing yet unassigned in the Draw this year is close to the normal rate. He expects spaces will open up over the summer due to students studying abroad or taking leaves of absences and to the smaller size of the Class of 2017.

“The incoming Class of 2017 is by design smaller than the Class of 2016 so that they will balance each other in the system going forward,” Whitney wrote.

Whitney added that R&DE has been working with campus partners to design a new student residence at Manzanita Park, which will house 125 upper class students. The project is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2014-15 academic year. A second project to add two wings at Lagunita Court is in the design phase, pending approval from the Board of Trustees.