Fall 2023 Renewal
Information

Over the past year, Housing & Residential Services (HRS) has been meeting with student leaders, heads of house and other campus partners who serve on the Graduate Housing Working Group as part of a collaborative effort to improve MIT graduate housing.  

Through these conversations, HRS has developed an updated renewal policy which maintains renewal opportunities for many current residents and preserves space for new graduate residents within select buildings.  These changes seek to offer graduate students greater housing stability, to provide community-based living opportunities for new graduate students, and to better align housing license agreements with academic program lengths.

Please see the table below for specific information regarding the renewal policy for each graduate residence hall according to resident type: 
 

*Residents must remain eligible for MIT graduate housing.  This renewal policy does not apply to undergraduate students living within graduate housing. Visitors, affiliates, postdocs and cross-registered students continue to receive non-renewable licenses.

**In an effort to ensure on-campus housing opportunities exist for incoming graduate students in Ashdown House and Sidney-Pacific, currently a 40% target of each building’s total occupancy will be made available for new incoming residents each year.     

***First-year graduate students only

****As an update to previous communications, a special exception has been made to allow current first-year graduate student residents of The Warehouse to select from any available alternative on-campus housing option for the 2023-2024 license year through the Self-Selection process, including Sidney-Pacific and Ashdown House.  Please note that residents who successfully move to either Sidney-Pacific or Ashdown House will receive a non-renewable license and are subject to the updated renewal policy which does not guarantee renewal beyond two years in MIT housing. 

Denise - Sidney-Pacific Resident, Enrolled MIT Graduate Student 

Denise moved into Sidney-Pacific in August 2022.  They are interested in renewing their housing license agreement for one additional year.  Can they renew?

Yes.  Denise is able to renew for one additional year.  
 

Velma - Edgerton House Resident, Enrolled MIT Graduate Student 

Velma moved to Edgerton House in October 2020.  They are enrolled in a six-year PhD. program at MIT and would like to remain living within their on-campus housing assignment for the duration of her program.  Can Velma renew? 

Yes.  Velma has the option to renew for the full duration of their MIT graduate degree program.
 

Dev - Ashdown House Resident, Enrolled MIT Graduate Student 

Dev moved into Edgerton House in September 2021 and later transferred to Ashdown House in 2022 as part of the Building Switch Lottery.  In the Spring of 2022, they renewed their housing license agreement for the 2022-2023 academic year.  Dev is interested in living in Ashdown House for the 2023-2024 academic year.  Can they renew again?  

Potentially. Dev will likely need to participate in a special housing lottery to remain within their current housing assignment.  If the lottery process is successful, Dev will be able to renew their current housing assignment for one additional year.  If unsuccessful, Dev will be granted early access to select an alternative on-campus housing assignment (excluding Ashdown House, Sidney-Pacific and The Warehouse) before general housing selection.
 

Raffi - Warehouse Resident, Enrolled MIT Graduate Student 

Raffi, a first-year graduate student, moved into The Warehouse in August 2022.  They are interested in continuing to live on campus next year.  Is this possible?

Yes. While The Warehouse is restricted to first-year graduate students, Raffi and other residents of The Warehouse will receive early access to participate in the Self-Selection process to find an alternative on-campus housing assignment (excluding The Warehouse), before general housing selection.  
 

Ashley - 70 Amherst Resident, MIT Affiliate (cross-registered student, postdoc, or research assistant)

Ashley, an MIT affiliate, moved into 70 Amherst in August 2022.  They are  interested in continuing to live on campus next year.  Is this possible?

No.  As a non-MIT graduate student, Ashley is unable to renew their current housing assignment.  They must enter the Self-Selection process annually to select an on-campus housing assignment, subject to housing availability. As an existing resident who is seeking to remain in on-campus graduate housing, Ashley will be granted early access to select a unit before off-campus visitors, affiliates, postdocs and cross-registered students.
 

If you are a fully-registered graduate student who will remain actively enrolled at the Institute for the upcoming fall semester and are eligible to renew your housing license agreement, please find details regarding the renewal process below: 

1. Please visit your Housing Portal between Tuesday, March 21 (at 12:00 pm ET) and Thursday, April 6, 2023 (11:59 am ET)
2. After logging into the portal using your MIT Touchstone credentials, click “Forms”
3. Click on the “Graduate Housing Renewal Form”
4. Complete all sections of the form and click submit– that’s it!

If you choose to renew your license agreement, you must do so by April 6, 2023 at 11:59 am ET. Residents who do not renew by the deadline will automatically forfeit their on-campus housing renewal and must move out by July 31, 2023.  

If you do not plan to continue living in on-campus housing, please see FAQs #4 & #8 below for specific guidance.  Please remember that if you are not renewing on-campus housing, you must submit a Termination Request Form within your Housing Portal by April 6 so that HRS understands your move-out plans.  

If you do not renew your housing assignment by the stated deadline and are still interested in on-campus housing for 2023-2024, please participate in the Self-Selection process within your Housing Portal, which is subject to housing availability.  Please visit our Dates & Deadlines webpage for details regarding the Self-Selection timeline. 

If you do not plan to renew your housing license agreement, please submit the Housing Termination Request Form no later than April 6, 2023 at 11:59 am ET. HRS captures this information to understand student departure dates, housing vacancies, and housing availability for the next academic year.

Steps to Submit Termination Request Form:

1. Enter the new Housing Portal
2. After logging into the portal using your MIT Touchstone credentials, click “Forms”
3. Click on the link for the “Graduate Housing Termination Request Form”
   1. Note: If you are a visitor, affiliate, postdoc or cross-registered student, please complete the “Visitor Termination Request Form”
4. Complete each section of the form and submit by April 6, 2023 at 11:59 am ET

If your termination date changes from what you originally submitted, please send the updated date via email to graduatehousing@mit.edu at least 30 days prior to the new termination date with the email subject “Move-out Date Change”.   

Please note that residents who do not take action to submit a completed Housing Renewal Form (if you are eligible to renew), or a Termination Request Form, within their Housing Portal by April 6, 2023 will automatically have their housing license agreement terminated on July 31, 2023.

If, after terminating your housing license agreement and moving off campus, you seek to return to on-campus graduate housing, please participate in the Self-Selection process within your Housing Portal, which is subject to housing availability.  Please visit our Dates & Deadlines webpage for details regarding the Self-Selection timeline.

Residents receive a One-Year Renewable Housing License Agreement, which provides residents with the option to renew their Agreement for a second consecutive year (no change to the existing policy).  Please note that residents’ license status does not reset with the adoption of this updated renewal policy, which means that if you have lived in MIT Graduate Housing for at least two years (including in a different residence hall), this still counts toward your two years of guaranteed on-campus housing.

• If you are seeking to renew your housing license agreement after your first year in MIT graduate housing, please follow the renewal process outlined in FAQ #3.
   
• If you are seeking to renew your housing license agreement after at least two years in MIT graduate housing, you may be subject to a housing lottery to renew your housing assignment (according to the target housing availability for new residents*). 
   
  • Please complete the Termination Request Form within your Housing Portal by Thursday, April 6, 2023 at 11:59 am.  Within the form, please select the July 31 termination date and check the relevant box to request remaining within your current on-campus housing assignment for the next academic year. 
     
  • If a lottery is required, you will be notified by HRS no later than Friday, April 14, 2023.  The lottery will occur on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.  Additional information regarding the lottery process will be shared with all participants.  
     
    • If you’re unsuccessful at renewing your housing license agreement through the lottery process, or if space does not permit renewal through a lottery process altogether, you will be granted access to select an alternative on-campus housing assignment through the Self-Selection process (excluding Ashdown House, Sidney-Pacific and The Warehouse) on Tuesday, April 25 and Wednesday, April 26, 2023, which is before the general housing selection process. 

*In an effort to ensure on-campus housing opportunities exist for prospective residents of MIT graduate housing, currently a 40% target of each building’s total occupancy will be made available for new incoming residents each year.  This approach was developed in coordination with student leaders and heads of house from each community. 

Given that the Warehouse is a first-year graduate living community, we are unable to renew current residents’ housing license agreements in the same building.

With that said, Warehouse residents will receive early access to select an alternative on-campus housing assignment (excluding The Warehouse) through the Self-Selection process on Tuesday, April 25 and Wednesday, April 26 between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm ET each day.  

This means current Warehouse residents will be able to view available unit types across most residence halls in the graduate housing system and select a specific housing unit for the next academic year within the Housing Portal before the general graduate housing selection process.  Warehouse residents will receive specific guidance about how to participate in the Self-Selection process by mid-April. 

Even if you would like to continue living on campus, please complete the Termination Request Form within your Housing Portal between Tuesday, March 21 at 12:00 pm (Noon) and Thursday, April 6, 2023 at 12:00 pm ET (Noon).  If you would like to continue living on campus and you’re intending to remain within your current housing assignment through the license agreement period, please select the July 31 termination date within the form.

Residents who do not intend to continue living on campus during the next academic year are also required to submit a completed online Housing Termination Request Form within their Housing Portal no later than April 6, 2023 by 11:59 am ET to confirm their anticipated move-out date.

Please note that residents who do not take action to submit a completed Termination Request Form by the stated deadline will automatically have their housing license agreement terminated on July 31, 2023, with rent responsibility continuing through this date.

NOTE: As an update to previous communications, a special exception has been made to allow current first-year graduate student residents of The Warehouse to select from any available alternative on-campus housing option for the 2023-2024 license year through the Self-Selection process, including Sidney-Pacific and Ashdown House.  Please note that residents who successfully move to either Sidney-Pacific or Ashdown House will receive a non-renewable license and are subject to the updated renewal policy which does not guarantee renewal beyond two years in MIT housing. 
 

Licenses for visitors (researchers/postdocs/cross-registered students) in residence are for one year at a time and automatically expire on July 31, 2023.  We ask that visiting residents complete the following steps if they are interested in the opportunity to remain in on-campus housing for the 2023-2024 academic year. 

Step 1: Submit a Housing Termination Request Form by April 6, 2023:

1. Please visit your Housing Portal
2. After logging into the portal using your MIT Touchstone credentials, click “Forms”
3. Click on the link for the “Visitor Termination Request Form”
4. Complete each section of the form and select July 31, 2023 as your termination date unless you would like to select an earlier date to terminate your contract.
5. Within the form, you will be able to select the option to indicate your interest in requesting to live in on-campus housing for the next academic year. 
6. Submit the completed form by April 6, 2023 at 11:59 am ET. 

Step 2: If your current apartment is available after the opening of the Self-Selection process for MIT graduate students, you may renew your housing assignment between Monday, May 22 (12:00 pm ET) and Monday, May 29, 2023 (11:59 am ET):

If your unit is available for renewal, you may renew your housing assignment during this period. HRS will inform you of your unit availability. 

Steps to Renew:

1. Please visit your new Housing Portal
2. After logging into the portal using your MIT Touchstone credentials, click “Forms”
3. Click on the “Visitor Housing Renewal Form”
4. Complete all sections of the form and click submit– that’s it!

While we will make every effort to accommodate a renewal within your existing housing assignment, this cannot be guaranteed.  If an alternate on-campus housing assignment is required, please proceed to Step 3, which is subject to housing availability.   

Step 3: If you are unable to renew your current assignment, you may participate in the 2023-2024 Self-Selection process every Tuesday and Thursday between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm ET beginning Tuesday, June 6 and concluding Thursday, October 12, 2023:

1. Please visit your Housing Portal
2. After logging into the portal using your MIT Touchstone credentials, click “Forms”
3. Click on the “Visitor Self-Selection Application” Option
4. Complete all sections of the process, including selecting your desired unit (subject to housing availability) and signing your housing license agreement, and click submit– that’s it!

Updates to the graduate housing renewal policy do not impact Officer renewal or assignment processes.  To renew your license agreement as a 2023-2024 Housing Officer, please complete the standard renewal process outlined in FAQ #3 by April 6, 2023 at 11:59 am ET.*  Any changes to your housing assignment that are associated with an officer position will be coordinated at a later date by HRS staff once your position has been confirmed by the House Team. 
 

*Exception: Please note that Warehouse Officers, as well as Ashdown House and Sidney-Pacific Officers who have lived in MIT graduate housing for more than two years, are unable to renew their housing assignment within the Housing Portal.  Please complete the Termination Request Form within your Housing Portal between Tuesday, March 21 at 12:00 pm (Noon) and Thursday, April 6, 2023 at 12:00 pm ET (Noon).  In the comment field of the Termination Request Form, please enter "Seeking to become Officer."  If you’re intending to remain within your current housing assignment through the license agreement period, please select the July 31 termination date. The House Team from these communities will forward a list of officers, along with the appropriate housing assignments, to HRS which will then be inputted within our housing management system. HRS will share additional housing assignment information with confirmed officers during the month of April.

Under the early termination policy, residents are required to provide a minimum of 30 days' advance notice to terminate their housing license agreement.*  Please note that approved termination dates occur at the end of every month.  Examples are below:

• Termination Date May 31 – Must Notify by May 1
• Termination Date June 30 – Must Notify by May 31
  • June Degree List residents are eligible to terminate their on-campus housing on any day during the month of June with at least 30 days' notice (rent will be prorated - June Degree List ONLY).
• Termination Date July 31 – Must Notify by July 1

*Please note, residents who terminate their 2023-2024 housing assignment during the months of September, October, February, or March will incur a termination fee equivalent to one month’s rent.

Please connect with the team from Housing & Residential Services.  Staff are available through a variety of channels, including drop-in virtual office hours.  Standard business hours are 8:00 am to 4:00 pm ET, Monday through Friday, excluding Institute Holidays.