During the winter semester, most rising seniors, juniors, and sophomores will select their room for the next academic year. All students taking classes in the fall semester, whether they plan to be living off-campus, or on-campus in a theme house, suite, or any other type of housing must complete an application in HouseCat. The process begins with an application and ends with selecting your housing assignment during the room selection process.

General Application Information

Apply if you are studying at Bates in the fall
All students planning to take classes at Bates during the Fall semester will complete a housing application in HouseCat (housecat.bates.edu). Whether they are interested in off-campus, theme houses, being a JA or CA, interested in suites or blocks of various sizes, or doubles/singles, every student here in the fall needs to fill out their application. If you are studying abroad or will be on leave, you should NOT fill out an application. If you will be back for the winter semester, you will fill out a HouseCat application as part of the Winter Placement Process in November.

One application, many processes
You will start your HouseCat application and have the opportunity to form groups with other students for shared spaces, or not make a group for a single. All the processes are staggered and unique, so you and your group can participate in later processes if an earlier one does not work out. At the closing date and time of each process, any VERIFIED group (or no group for singles of March 17) will be automatically given a selection start time.

Class Year
Your class year is determined by the registrar. Please contact the registrar if there is an issue or question regarding your class year.

Know how to disband, reform, and VERIFY a group
It sounds complicated, but it is pretty easy and all takes place on the Step 6 “Roommate Group” page of the application. On the How to Apply page, there are specifics including videos. As you and your friends may want to throw your hat in for different options, knowing how to change up your group is important.

Nothing is guaranteed
Any student(s) can apply for any process. We do not cap the number of groups for a process to the number of spaces. For example, if thirty groups apply for groups of 4 but there are only twenty blocks or suites of 4, then ten groups will not get a suite or block of 4.

General Selection Information

Times are random by class year.
It is pure randomization. No other factors are taken into account; all seniors, then all juniors, then all sophomores. For groups of 8, 6, 4, 3, and 2’s the group time is an average of all individual times.

One person selects for everyone in a group
The group leader is the only person that can select for a group. For a single application, do not form a group.

If you want a single, don’t join a group
If you are not in a group the day that singles applications close for your year, you will be given a singles selection start time and select for yourself. 

Group size must match space size
For example, a group of three will not be able to select a suite or block for four people. A single person can not select a double, etc.

Once you confirm a room, you are done
You can participate in as many processes with different size groups as you want, but when you (or your group leader) confirm a room you are done. This will be the room you will move into in September.

Summer Placement for those who did not select
If there were no rooms of the size you wanted or you were unable to select you will need to apply for Summer Placement starting in May.

Our office will fill empty spaces
If you or your roommate(s) are not on-campus in the fall, the open space in the room or suite will be filled by our office. As a courtesy to the student(s) remaining in the shared space, we will give you the first opportunity to move a student of your choice into the space. If you do not take this opportunity we will fill the space during summer placement, fall semester, winter placement, or winter semester.

Housing Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

If you have a diagnosed disability and need to pursue a housing accommodation, you should contact the Office of Accessible Education.