Student Apartment/Housing

Inside a dorm roomThe following information explains the UAF Residence Life Office, staff responsibilities and expectations of students living in campus housing. For specific information about types of housing available, visit the ISSS Housing page and the Residence Life site.

Residence Life Office The Residence Life Office is located in the main lobby of the Moore-Bartlett-Skarland complex on upper campus. This is the central office for all Residence Life related business. You can always call the Residence Life Office regarding any concern or question about your housing while you are here. The main phone number (on campus) is x7247 or from off campus (907) 474-7247. The Residence Life office is where you will go to move rooms, cancel your housing agreement, or get the necessary paperwork to receive your housing deposit back before you return home.

Hall Staff

  • Resident Directors: Most residence halls have one full-time, live-in professional who is responsible for the total management of the residence hall or apartment complex. They are skilled in the areas of counseling, crisis intervention, mediation, and referral.
  • Resident Assistants: Each floor of a residence hall has one resident assistant (RA) specifically trained to help you and other students learn more about UAF, each other, and yourself. The EDGE (freshman) program consists of two resident assistants per floor.
  • Desk Attendants: A team of student employees monitors the entrance of each residence hall. The desk attendant helps facilitate the Residence Life guest policies and promote security in each hall. Desk attendants are on duty 7pm-5am Monday through Thursday, and 24 hours beginning Friday at 7pm continuing until Monday at 5am.
  • Peer Mentors: A team of student tutors living on each floor in the Edge (freshman) halls to provide academic assistance and foster personal growth.

Building Safety

  • Appliances & Cooking in Residence Halls Due to concern for fire and safety hazards, no open coil appliances (toasters, bagel ovens, hot pots, etc.) are permitted in residence hall rooms. One microwave, smaller than one cubic foot, is allowed in each residence hall room. Automatic coffee makers, air popcorn poppers, cup warmers, and refrigerators, (which do not exceed three and one-half feet in height) are also allowed in resident’s rooms. Food must always be attended while cooking in order to prevent fire.
  • Kitchens All residence halls have communal kitchens for student use. Apartments have individual kitchens. Please provide your own utensils, dishes, and cleaning supplies. However, some supplies may be checked out from your hall office. Please use these kitchens rather than cooking in your room to prevent fire!
  • Candles & Open Flames To protect personal safety and as a means of fire prevention, candles, incense, open flames and fireworks are prohibited from any residential facility (student rooms and public spaces). Unburned decorative candles may be kept in student rooms/apartments.
  • Pets Fish are the only pet permitted in residential areas. Aquariums are not to exceed 10 gallons per single room, 20 gallons per double occupancy room. You will be held financially responsible for damage and/or cleaning costs associated with aquarium use. 

Visitation Policy

The visitation policy is to protect the rights of all students and to allow students to enjoy a safe and comfortable living environment.   Discuss visitation expectations with your roommates prior to entertaining guests.  Carry your keys and Polar Express Card to gain access to your residential facility. Guests should have a photo ID with them to enter the residential facility.  Residents are held responsible for the behavior of their guests and any activity that originates from their rooms whether they are present or not.

Overnight Guest Policy

  • Overnight guests are allowed if all of the occupants of the room/apartment approve.
  • Due to the Fairbanks North Star Borough curfew law, no person under the age of 18 may stay overnight without the expressed, written, and advance approval of the Director of Residence Life or his/her designee.
  • An overnight guest may not stay more than three consecutive nights in a 7-day period.
  • A maximum of four guests may be checked-in by a student at any given time. Residence Life Staff reserve the right to deny visitation privileges at any time to any one.

Roommate Bill of Rights

As a UAF resident, there are certain rights you can expect and that you have a responsibility to maintain

  • The right to read and study free from undue interference in one's room.
  • The right to sleep without undue disturbance from noise.
  • The right that a roommate will respect one's personal belongings.
  • The right to a clean and healthy environment in which to live.
  • The right to full access of one's room and facilities without pressure from a roommate.
  • The right to host guests with the expectation that the guests will respect the rights of the host's roommate(s), other facility residents, and the UAF guest policy. If conflicts arise, speak with your roommate(s) first; talk a problem through before it becomes a major conflict. If this step is not successful, ask your RA for assistance.

Smoke-Free Residential Facilities
All UAF residential facilitates are considered smoke-free environments. This includes all apartments. Smoking or carrying any lit smoking device, including but not limited to cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and incense, is prohibited in all residential facilities. The same is true for public areas, such as bathrooms, elevators, stairwells, kitchens, laundry rooms, hallways, entryways and lounges. Students are not permitted to smoke within 30 feet of building entrances and must use the provided ashtrays. Do not toss cigarettes on the ground. Students have the right to be free of exposure to smoke and the hazards associated with or caused by smoking.

Quiet Hours
In addition to courtesy hours each residential facility has quiet hours. These hours recognize the rights of all students to have an environment that supports academic success. Quiet hours are considered sleeping time, and are strictly enforced. 

Sunday - Thursday                   Friday - Saturday

11:00 pm to 8:00 am               1:00 am to 10:00 am.

 

Courtesy Hours                        Final Exam Quiet Period

24 hours per day                      24 hours per day

Check-Out and Return Home

Students leaving University housing must check out of their room with a Residence Life staff member. In order to avoid fees you should schedule your checkout with your RA at least 24 hours in advance of the time you would like to check out.  Once you check out, your RA will take your room key, so you will need to already be moved out of the room  At check out your RA will fill out a Room Condition Report (RCR) and have you sign it.

If you are returning to your home country upon your check out of University Housing you can receive your student housing deposit back in cash. All you need to do is bring your copy of the RCR to the Residence Life Office in the Moore-Bartlett-Skarland complex lobby. Here the office staff will assist you in filling out a form which you will take to the Bursar’s Office; located on the first floor of Signers’ Hall. At the Bursar’s Office you will receive your deposit back in US dollars.

Please allow enough time after your room check-out and between the hours of 8am and 5pm to complete this process before your flight.

UAF Residence Halls Alcohol Policy

UAF is committed to maintaining a healthy and safe academic community that reflects high standards of personal responsibility and behavior. Alcohol abuse will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Alcohol is permitted in student rooms in accordance with state law/UAF guidelines.  

Alaska state law maintains that it is illegal to possess or consume alcoholic beverages if you are under the age of 21. This includes, but is not limited to, possession by consumption. It is illegal to provide alcoholic beverages to anyone under the age of 21 or to anyone (regardless of age) who is visibly intoxicated.

In all residential areas, any alcoholic beverages possessed in violation of UAF regulations will be confiscated and disposed of by Residence Life Staff. You and your visitors must follow state laws and university regulations related to alcohol use and possession.

  • If students are of legal age, they may consume alcohol in their individual residential facility room with the room door closed.
  • Persons under the age of twenty-one may not possess or consume alcohol. If alcohol is found in student residential facilities, it is considered to be in student possession.
  • Alcohol must be confined to individual rooms, suites, and apartments. The consumption of alcohol is not permitted in public and common areas, including hallways, lounges, and lobbies or on porches. A student residential facility with an open door is considered a common area.
  • If you are of legal drinking age and are found to be with minors who are in possession of alcohol, it may be assumed that you have provided the alcohol.
  • If you are underage and are present in a room where alcohol is being consumed, it may be assumed that you have been drinking alcohol.
  • Alcohol is restricted from alcohol-free and substance-free living areas. All persons, regardless of age, are prohibited from possessing or consuming alcohol in these buildings.
  • Alcohol Free halls include: Moore, Skarland, Nerland and MacLean House.  Non-alcoholic beer is not allowed in an alcohol free hall.

Displays of alcohol or alcohol containers are permitted for residents of legal age as long as they are not in public view (i.e. able to be viewed by someone outside the room or apartment or through a window). Underage residents may not display containers that once held alcohol.

Illegal Substances

It is a violation to possess, distribute or use any substance solely for the purpose of becoming intoxicated, even if such behavior is not considered a violation of law. Marijuana use on campus is prohibited by UAF policy.

 

Housing Definitions

The application has terms that you may not be familiar with and do not have definitions in an English dictionary. If you have questions about the terms on the housing contract and the term is not defined below, please send your question to housing@uaf.edu so that the term(s) can be defined. 

Board (meal) plans – Food service that is provided by the University and paid for in advance. All single student housing contracts require purchase of a UAF meal plan, estimated to cost $1,220-$1,400 per semester depending on the option chosen.  Exceptions include room assignments in Wickersham Hall, Cutler Apartment Complex and all graduate students. 

Munch money – an optional part of the UAF meal plan that grants an allowance of money on the meal plan to pay for meals at any eating establishment on campus in addition to the meals included in the plan at the Wood Center.

Dorms – The dormitory buildings (also known as student housing, student housing buildings, and student residence halls) where students reside, or live, on the UAF campus.

Hall Preference – You request that your room be in a specific building. The housing buildings are known by name – Cutler Apartment Complex, Wickersham Hall, Moore Hall, Skarland Hall, Bartlett Hall, Lathrop Hall, Nerland Hall, Stevens Hall and MacIntosh Hall.

Apartment Style – the Cutler Apartment Complex has two-bedroom apartments (kitchen, living room, bathroom) usually assigned to four people (two per bedroom).  Wickersham Hall is a co-educational building (both men and women), but the suites are either all men or all women.

Dorm room – the room that is assigned to the student for his or her living space (bedroom).

Suite Style – Wickersham Hall suites consists of a study room between two bedrooms, assigned to four people (two per bedroom). Wickersham Hall is a co-educational building (both men and women), but the suites are either men or women.

Double occupancy – two people sleep in the same room. Unless other arrangements are requested, all room assignments are double occupancy.

Single – private room assigned to one person – notice that Bartlett Hall rooms are all singles.

Double Single or Super Single – a double occupancy room assigned to one person.

Substance Free hall – the whole building is assigned to individuals who do not smoke, drink alcoholic beverages or use non-prescribed drugs. (Nerland and Skarland Halls)

Bathing and toilet facilities – Except for the apartment or suite buildings, the bathing and toilet facilities are centrally located, near your room, but not attached to the room.

Night Owl – a person whose best study/work hours are late at night (for example: studies 9 at night to 2 in the morning) and likes to sleep late in the morning.

Early Riser (or Early Bird) a person whose best study/work hours are early in the morning (for example: wakes up between 4:00-6:00 in the morning and goes to bed early in the evening.

Smoker – smoking is not allowed in any of the buildings on campus, but is allowed outside. In respect to both a smoker and a non-smoker, the Residence Life office makes an effort to ensure that a non-smoker is not assigned to a smoking room.

 

What is your age? -  The Residence Life administrators ask this so that they do not put someone who is 20 in the same room with someone who is 30, as lifestyles are usually quite different.

Freshman – A student in their first year of university study (with less than 29 credits), usually age 18 to 20.

Sophomore – A student in their second year of university study (with more than 30 credits but less than 59 credits).

Junior – A Junior is a student in their third year of university study (with 60 to 89 credits).

Senior – A Senior is a student in their fourth or final year of university study (with more than 90 credits).

Graduate – A student is a “graduate” only after being officially admitted to a master’s or doctoral program.