Guests in Residence Halls

General Guidelines

• With the exception of Express Guests, all guests must sign-in before going to the resident host’s room.
• Sign-in at the security desk. In some residence halls, sign-in may be available via intercom if the guest is an MIT student with a valid MIT ID.
• All non-MIT affiliated guests must sign-in at the security desk with a valid government-issued ID.
• Guests not on the resident guest list must be escorted by the resident host when entering/exiting the building.
• Residents are prohibited from giving guests their room/apartment keys or MIT ID card or Mobile ID data at any time, and the Institute will not issue keys to guests, or provide guests with an MIT ID card.
• Guests, as well as all non-residents, are not allowed to enter MIT residence halls with any animal(s), except service animals which have been individually trained to do work or perform a task on behalf of an individual with a disability.
• Residents may have overnight guests for up to three nights in a seven-day period, although non-MIT overnight guests are NOT allowed during the fall semester until after Registration Day.
  • Residents must obtain, in advance, the permission of all other residents of the apartment/room/suite in which the overnight guest is staying. Consideration should be given to the reasonable expectations of a roommate(s) at all times.
  • Sleeping overnight in the public common areas of a residence hall (e.g., lounges) is prohibited.

Undergraduate Housing

Houses may opt to implement guest lists which allow residents to place a limited number of guests (typically six or fewer) on a guest list at the desk to allow unescorted entry. All guest list guests must check in at the desk to sign in and enter the building.

Individual Houses have house-specific policies governing the details of guest list management and other local policies. Ordinarily, and unless an exception is approved by the Division of Student Life, these policies may not be less restrictive than the resident guest policy. Residents and guests are required to follow the guest policies and procedures for the specific residence hall they wish to visit.

Undergraduate guest lists are paused during Winter Break/IAP and summer. Guests are permitted but must be escorted.

Express Guests

Houses may opt to implement Express Guest Lists, which allow MIT-affiliated guests to tap and enter an MIT residence hall without checking in at the desk. Express guests are only available in certain residence halls.

• Must tap MIT ID upon entry
• Do not need to sign-in
• Resident host escort not required
• Express guests cannot bring others into building

Available only between 8:01 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. daily. Outside of these hours, all guests must check-in at the security desk and be escorted by a resident host.

Undergraduate House-specific Policies

Graduate Housing

Guests may be approved beyond three nights with prior approval from Heads of House or Graduate Residential Life. Some residence halls may have an overnight guest policy that may be more restrictive. Ordinarily, guest stays beyond 14 days are not approved as this may put the guest into an ‘”authorized resident”‘ status and impact the license agreement of the resident, in addition to other factors described under the Extended-stays Guests policy below. This policy allows for friend and family visits and does not require exceptional circumstances or hardship.