On-Campus Residency Requirements

At D'Youville University, we're dedicated to the student experience.

All first time in college students and first-year transfer students are required to live on campus until their sophomore year, at which point they may choose to commute. All students in the Physician Assistant and Occupational Therapy programs are required to live on campus for the first two years of study.

The Office of Student Engagement & Housing ensures all students are engaged and members of their community. Staff has activities and workshops that help students new to residential living develop skills that include conflict resolution, civic engagement, adaptability, respect, compromise, and accepting the ideas and worth of those from diverse backgrounds.

Additionally, the Office of Student Engagement & Housing offers Living-Learning Communities. According to national statistics students who live in residence halls tend to perform better academically, acclimate more rapidly to the collegiate environment, engage in more developmental opportunities, and are more satisfied with their overall experience.

Students looking for a way to connect with like-minded peers will also have the opportunity to join in themed living experiences.  Traditional themes include leadership development and social justice, but students are also able to work with staff on creating new themes for the year – athletics, urban exploration, health and wellness, and eSports are all examples of possibilities – bring your passion and join others with similar interests.

Living on campus also provides students full and convenient access to the complete D’Youville experience – enjoying late night study time, grabbing a delicious meal with friends, cheering on the Saints in a NCAA Division II game, attending a lecture series or campus festival, and so much more. Living on campus is more than a room with a bed – it’s an experience.

Housing Policy Exceptions

Students who wish to speak about an exception to the housing requirement must meet one of the following circumstances and may contact the Office of Student Engagement & Housing to learn how to be released from their housing assignment:

  • Married students (with proof of marriage certificate)
  • Veterans and active duty service members (with proof of military service)
  • Students who have dependent children or dependent family members (with proof of a tax return)
  • Students who are under the age of 16 or over the age of 26 before September 1 of their first academic year
  • Students who have a medical housing need that cannot be reasonably accommodated by the university
  • Canadian commuter students (with proof of Canadian residency)
  • Dependents of D’Youville faculty and staff

Students who do not have proof of one of the above circumstances will not be permitted to live off campus.

Contact Us

Office of Student Engagement & Housing

Phone: 716-829-8454 Email: housing@dyu.edu Office: KAB 201 C Hours: Mon-Fri, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Quick Info

These requirements are applicable to the following students:

  • ‌first time in college
  • ‌transfer first-years 
  • ‌physician assistant
  • occupational therapy 

Medical Accommodations

Special housing accommodations are not standard academic accommodations. To determine if special housing is a reasonable accommodation, we must receive detailed current and comprehensive documentation of the correlations of your disability with the need for special housing that cannot be secured through the Housing Room Selection Process.

A major part of the educational experience is for students to learn to live on their own. D’Youville University provides on-campus housing to enhance intellectual, social, and cultural development through the experience of living with other individuals who bring a variety of social and cultural backgrounds to the community.

Please note that requests for single rooms based on a student’s desire to have a “quiet, undisturbed place to study” are not considered eligible under the Americans with Disabilities Act or Section 504. By virtue of the shared facilities, resources, and number of people living under one roof in the residence halls, a single room does not provide for such quiet, distraction-free space to any appreciable degree beyond living in a standard double room.

Reasonable Accommodations:

  • Disability accommodations are deemed “Reasonable”, under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, if they are necessary to ensure equal access to the same opportunities as provided to all students.
  • Accommodations are not considered Reasonable if they are merely to improve chances of success. The University certainly wants all of its students to succeed, however now that the student is an adult, success is the responsibility of the student, not the institution.
  • Disability accommodations are only appropriate when there is a barrier to equal access.
  • Accommodations are Reasonable when they include the student in the same opportunities everyone else has. Accommodations are not reasonable if they let students with disabilities out of the responsibilities or expectations the University holds for everyone else.

What does Access vs. Success mean when it comes to campus housing?

Access ensures that all students are able to receive the educational opportunities provided by the University. Success is considered when the requested accommodation would be helpful or desirable and could improve chances of success — especially when the student’s disability makes these situations more difficult. But, generally speaking, when no student has access to the opportunity requested, the request is generally regarded as a fundamental alteration to the housing program, and legally not considered “Reasonable”.

Students who are expecting a large degree of privacy and solitude may need to rethink whether the housing program is the best choice. While solitude and privacy are essential parts of the educational process, living in the housing community involves being able to negotiate with other students to ensure everyone's needs are respected. Students who are not committed to living in a community should reconsider housing as an option.

While the committee will review requests for single rooms, the provision of a single room as an accommodation is not common. Single rooms are not guarantees of privacy or of a quiet environment. Single rooms are also not guarantees of an allergen-free environment. A single room will not prevent a student from having to interact and negotiate living arrangements with other students, such as alone time, sleep patterns, and study schedules. Bathrooms are shared but are designed with single use facilities, meaning showers, toilets, and sinks are meant to be used by only one person at a time.

It is important to realize that students often receive the housing placement they want simply from going through the housing application process. Thus, even if the committee does not agree that a particular housing placement is a reasonable accommodation, the student may still receive that placement from the housing office based on availability, application priority, and other factors.