Chapter 3 – Living On Campus
Our campus is a shared community of diverse people from various backgrounds. We expect all community members to take advantage of the unique learning experiences that a shared environment offers.
Recognizing differences in each other and successfully interacting with those differences is the key to harmony in a residential community. As a responsible member of the Wake Forest community, you should recognize your responsibility to advocate for members of your community and appropriately challenge the unfair, unjust, or uncivil behavior of other individuals or groups.
Together, we all strive to make our community a safe, enjoyable, and academically focused environment.
Getting Settled
The process for moving in for the fall semester simply requires that you familiarize yourself with information on the Office of Residence Life and Housing website regarding move-in day and follow the instructions.
Generally, checking in will include picking up your key(s) and other important items, meeting the staff in your community, and reviewing your room condition report.
Please note that if you have an outstanding balance on your student account, you may be asked to address your account with Student Financial Services prior to being allowed to check-in. Additionally, students who have not fulfilled all University requirements may not be allowed to check-in.
After that, you’re free to move-in! Please pay careful attention to our website and Chapter 4 of our Guide to Community Living for items that are not allowed in our communities.
Students may be granted special permission for early arrival. This allows the student to move into their on-campus housing assignments before their designated check-in dates. For a variety of reasons, Wake Forest University restricts the number of students allowed to check-in early.
Incoming first-year students are not allowed to arrive early unless the student is participating in an approved program (i.e. band, athletics, pre-orientation program). These requests to arrive early are made by the sponsoring department.
Continuing students who wish to move into the residence halls or apartments before the published move-in dates must be involved in a campus organization or activity that has made prior arrangements and/or have their individual requests approved by the Office of Residence Life and Housing.
Request for early arrival can only be approved by the Office of Residence Life and Housing. Students who arrive early without approval may not be allowed to check in to their space or may be charged a fee.
Students arriving early should be aware that work continues in our communities until our published move-in dates.
Prior to your arrival, all of our communities are inspected by our Residence Life & Housing staff. They note the condition of the various spaces in your living space (bedrooms, bathrooms, living rooms, etc. as applicable).
All Room Condition Report items will be preset to “Good”. Students will need to notify the Office of Residence Life & Housing of any damages or issues within 48 hours of move-in via (go.wfu.edu/housingportal). Failure to report conflicting conditions within the allotted 48 hours, indicates that you have accepted the reported condition of your space. When the time comes for you to check out, our staff will note the condition of the space(s) and that information will be compared with what we have on file. Please note that students are expected to return their space(s) to its original condition and will be charged for issues/damages (beyond normal wear and tear).
Checking Out
Should circumstances arise that result in a student needing to move our during the semester, the student should contact their Community Director to arrange an official checkout time and room inspection. Students must return their room key(s) and remove all of your personal belongings from the room. Failure to follow proper checkout procedures may result in an improper checkout fee and lock recore/key replacement, and/or additional charges.
- Upon a status change that results in the need to move out of University housing, students must properly check-out within 72 hours of their status change. Failure to follow proper checkout procedures may result in an improper checkout fee, lock recore/key replacement, and/or additional charges.
- Upon checking out of your space, there will be no opportunity to collect or retrieve any personal property that was left behind in the assigned space. Items found will either be packaged and shipped to the student and the student’s account will be billed for all costs, or items will be discarded. Discarded items are not retrievable by staff or students.
- Refunds are outlined in the Housing Agreement found in the Assignments and Meal Plans section of this document.
If students are unclear on any part of the check-out process, they should contact a member of their Community Director or the Office of Residence Life and Housing.
Students who know they are not returning to school for spring semester should arrange an official checkout time and room inspection with their Community Director before Winter break OR complete an express check-out form, which can be found at their community’s Resident Advisor office.
Students should not wait until they are ready to leave to contact their Community Director. Students must return their room key(s) and remove all of their personal belongings from the room. Failure to follow proper checkout procedures may result in an improper checkout fee, lock recore/key replacement, and/or additional charges.
Upon checking out of your space, there will be no opportunity to collect or retrieve any personal property that was left behind in the assigned space. Items found will either be packaged and shipped to the student and the student’s account will be billed for all costs, or items will be discarded. Discarded items are not retrievable by staff or students.
If a student decides that they will not be returning to the University after leaving for Winter break, they must contact the Office of Residence Life and Housing as soon as possible at housing@wfu.edu or 336.758.5185 to arrange removal of their belongings.
Students are also encouraged to inform their roommate(s) of their decision to not return.
If students are unclear on any part of the check-out process, they should contact their Community Director or the Office of Residence Life and Housing.
Students will receive communications concerning checkout procedures at the end of the academic year and are expected to follow those procedures. Generally speaking, students are expected to remove all personal belongings, return their spaces to the condition they were in at move-in, and check out with a Residence Life and Housing staff member at which time they will turn in their key(s). Failure to follow the outlined procedures may result in charges of improper checkout, lock recores/key replacement, and/or additional charges.
Upon checking out of your space, there will be no opportunity to collect or retrieve any personal property that was left behind in the assigned space. Items found will either be packaged and shipped to the student and the student’s account will be billed for all costs, or items will be discarded. Discarded items are not retrievable by staff or students.
If students are unclear on any part of the check-out process, they should contact a member of their Community Director or the Office of Residence Life and Housing.
Getting Assistance
For assistance during business hours (M-F, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.), please contact the Office of Residence Life and Housing at 336.758.5185, housing@wfu.edu, or stop by our offices located in Angelou Hall Suite 001.
Please note that our Community Directors work in their communities, for details on their office locations please contact them directly.
If at any time there is an emergency, please contact University Police by dialing 336.758.5911.
Outside of business hours, the Office of Residence Life and Housing provides on-duty coverage to assist students and/or visitors at all times while classes are in session.
- For assistance between 5 p.m. and 8:30 a.m. nightly, and during daytime hours over weekends and University holidays, contact the Resident Adviser (RA) on-duty in the respective community. To identify the RA on-duty, please visit your community office.
- Should you need assistance but are unable to reach staff with the Office of Residence Life and Housing, contact University Police at 336.758.5591 to be connected with our staff on duty.
In addition to the contacts above, the Resident Advisers staff each community office during the following times:
- Sunday thru Thursday from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
- Friday and Saturday from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Please stop by your community office at the beginning of the year to meet the RAs in your community and learn about the services provided to residents by the staff in your respective building/area. Typical services provided during office hours include responding to lockouts, managing crisis situations, checking out recreational equipment, or simply having conversations.
Residents can expect to:
- Live in a secure, comfortable, inclusive, and engaging community
- Have access to facilities and programs that support their academic success
- Have their personal property and privacy respected
- Have free access to their room and living space without pressure from those with whom the living space is shared
- Study without undue interruption or interference
- Rest without undue disturbance
- Host guests so long as guests don’t infringe on the rights of others or violate the University’s policies
- Be held responsible to University policies
- Have access, in a reasonable time frame, to University staff who provide assistance, guidance, and support as needed
- Receive equitable treatment when their behavior is in question
- Live free from fear of intimidation, physical, and/or emotional harm, and racial, sexual, or other prejudicial harassment.
Residents will be expected to:
- Work hard as they pursue intellectual growth both in and outside of the classroom
- Demonstrate care and concern for the welfare of others
- Accept responsibility for their behavior and the behavior of their guests
- Respect the diverse backgrounds and interests of others who are different from them
- Constructively resolve conflict in a mature manner
- Express themselves using open, authentic, and civil communication
- Take the perspectives of others seriously in a respectful manner
- Comply with reasonable requests of fellow residents or University officials
- Report violations of University rules and regulations to community staff in a timely manner
- Engage in behaviors and contribute to environments which promote personal health and wellness and reduce personal and community harm
- Display responsible citizenship by acting in compliance with the Student Handbook and/or residential policies (outlined below)
- Cooperate in the investigation, hearing, or administration of incidents related to alleged violations of the Student Handbook and/or of this Guide.
- Accept responsibility for personal and community safety
Roommates
You may have come to campus having never shared a room with someone else. Being a good roommate and enjoying living with a roommate will depend upon your ability to communicate and compromise. Obviously, you and your roommate are individuals with unique interests, hobbies, likes, and dislikes. It is not essential that you are similar in every aspect of life in order to be good roommates. As with any relationship, conflicts will arise. How you choose to handle those conflicts will determine your success.
Roommates who respect each other’s rights and privacy and allow reasonable socialization tend to have positive experiences. As a result, all first-year students are required to develop a roommate agreement during the first weeks of school in order to prevent potential conflicts. Your Resident Adviser will guide you through this agreement at the beginning of the semester.
Returning students are strongly encouraged to complete a roommate agreement, particularly if the students have not previously lived together.
If you and your roommate experience difficulties living together, first try referring back to your agreement and have a conversation with each other. If that is not successful, or if you want to talk through your conversation first, feel free to reach out to your community staff who can help mediate the conflict. In the end, sometimes no matter how hard you try, it just does not seem to be working out with you and your roommate. It is possible to change rooms during the open room change periods if space is available on campus.
Please note, the Office of Residence Life and Housing does relocate students as a result of roommate conflicts and/or disagreements.
Break Housing
Residential communities remain open during Fall Break, Thanksgiving Break, and Spring Break. During the Winter Break period, there may be limited housing options available to students. Information about preparing for the various University breaks is provided to students via their @wfu.edu email addresses in advance of each break period. Students are expected to carefully read this material to be aware of the policies/processes related to each break period.
As students are packing, they are encouraged to verify that they have packed valuables such as their wallet, keys, passport, airplane tickets, medication, and Deacon OneCard along with all other items needed for the break.
While our communities remain open during several breaks, these periods are marked by low occupancy in our buildings. During these times it is important that residents observe common-sense precautions. Immediately report to the Office of Residence Life and Housing or University Police any broken doors, locks, lights, or other repairs that are necessary to assist in providing a secure community.