Move-In Dates Equal Contract Dates

Your contract date will be shown in Axess.  Please verify your contract date before making travel plans.  If the contract date shown is not what you requested/expected, please contact the Housing Assignments office or your Housing Front Desk.

Undergraduate Housing

Student Housing sets move-in dates to correspond with the beginning of academic terms. However, you may be able to move in early if you need to attend orientation programs, take qualifying or placement exams, or take special classes before the general opening of the residences.

* Students need to move in within two days of the posted arrival date unless alternate arrangements have been made with Housing Assignments. Contact your Housing Front Desk if you need to check in at a time outside of Front Desk hours.

Notes for Undergraduates

• Freshmen and Transfer Students. For Autumn Quarter, you will receive your keys and Stanford ID cards during check-in on the first day of New Student Orientation unless you already have a Stanford ID from a previous program.  If you have an ID, another will not be issued, so please bring your original.
• All Other Returning Students. Pick up your key during check-in hours from your Housing Front Desk. If you arrive after hours, your roommate or RA may let you into your room, but you will need to check in and pick up your key at your Front Desk the next day.

Graduate Housing

The general opening dates of graduate residences for each quarter are listed on the housing calendar. There are multiple move-in dates available to single graduate students, couples without children and students with children for the autumn. Depending on your academic program and residence, you can request move-in dates as early as mid-June or as late as mid-September for Autumn Quarter. Move-in dates for Winter Quarter begin in January and, for Spring Quarter, in late March. There are also multiple move-in dates for Summer Quarter, based on participation in specific academic programs.

* Please contact your Housing Front Desk in advance if you need to check in at a time outside of Front Desk hours.

* If you arrive outside of office hours, please contact the after hours hotline at (650) 725-1602 when you have arrived and someone will come out to your Housing Front Desk to assist you.

Moving in Early

• You must belong to one of the student groups that Student Housing has authorized for early arrival. This typically includes residence staff, New Student Orientation volunteers, and members of Stanford athletic teams.
• The group must provide your name to the Housing Assignments office.
• Contact your group for exact dates and instructions.
• If you move in early, Student Housing will prorate your rent for the additional days you live on campus outside of your contract dates. See Housing rates.
• If you request and are authorized for early-arrival, but change your plans, you must cancel the early arrival request.  If you fail to give two weeks’ notice that you will not be arriving early, you will be billed for early-arrival rent whether or not you move in early.

Moving in Late

• If you are unable to move in by the deadline, you must notify your Housing Front Desk of your expected arrival date in writing, either by email, fax, or U.S. mail, at least two weeks in advance. (Phone calls are accepted only if you experience a travel delay on your way to Stanford.)
• Student Housing will hold your space for up to seven days if you are registered and in good academic standing. Please email Housing Assignments if you anticipate arriving more than seven days late.
• If you miss the move-in deadline without notifying your Housing Front Desk, your housing assignment will be cancelled, your room will be reassigned to another student, and you will be charged a cancellation fee of $550.

Picking up your key

• When checking in and picking up your key, you will need to present your Stanford ID card or government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license or passport. You can pick up your room key(s) from your Housing Front Desk during check-in hours.
• If you want a friend to pick up your key(s), you must email your Housing Front Desk with a signed proxy letter authorizing the release of your key(s) to this person. You can also mail or fax the letter, but you cannot provide authorization by phone or email. When your friend comes to pick up your keys, he or she will must provide an approved photo ID and sign his or her name in your place.
• Before you arrive, check Axess to verify that no holds (for unpaid bills, for example) have been placed on your account. You will not be able to check in if you have a hold or other enrollment problem. Exception: International students may check into housing before removing a hold placed by the Bechtel International Center.
• If you find that a hold has been placed on your account, contact the office that placed it to learn what you need to do to have the hold removed. For other enrollment problems, contact the Student Services Center at 650-723-7772.