Common Questions

Living on campus is safe, convenient, and exciting. Here are just a few of the benefits:

• Trained, professional community living staff to assist students
• Organized social activities
• Wireless computer network connections in resident’s rooms
• Live and study with others in your major
• On-site laundry
• Close to the library
• Easy access to recreation facilities and fitness center
• Short walk to classes and labs
• Meals prepared by professional chefs

All students with 59 credits or less are required to live on campus, with the exception of those who live within 30 miles of Keene with a parent or legal guardian. To get an exemption from this requirement, those students who meet the noted criteria must request an exemption - in writing - from the Director of Transitions & Community Living.

Absolutely! We have specific housing options for juniors and seniors that meet your needs. Our upper-class housing selection process happens during the academic year.

The safety of our residents is our highest priority. All residential buildings are locked 24 hours a day. Campus Safety officers perform rounds around the campus living areas regularly, and Community Assistants conduct rounds three to four times a night to make sure the doors are secured and to check on the activity level in the building. Each residential area is supervised by a Community Director (CD), who are full-time, live-in professionals able to respond to emergencies if they occur.

In addition, each night a CD is “on-call” to respond to concerns as they arise.

All residence halls except for Pondside 2 are closed during Thanksgiving, winter, and spring breaks. Students wishing to stay in the Keene area for these breaks should consider contacting friends living off campus, or one of the local hotels.

Students starting in the fall semester agree to abide by the “Terms and Conditions of the Residence Hall” contract that binds them financially for the full academic year* (two semesters, August through May). Students starting the spring semester agree to a one-semester contract.

*A student may be released from the housing contract for the following reasons: Withdrawal from Keene State College, transfer from Keene State College, leave of absence, marriage, student teaching beyond a 30-mile commute, studying abroad, or graduation. A student must notify the Transitions & Community Living office by completing the Online Request for Release from Housing Contract form in order to be considered for release from the housing contract.

Every resident’s room is connected to the campus computer network via Eduroam. If students are having trouble connecting to the network they should call The HelpDesk at 603-358-2532 for information regarding “Getting Connected at KSC.”

New students have an opportunity to pick their roommate, building, and room. They go through a housing selection process in June. If a student does not select a room or roommate, they are matched by their requests from their housing application. First-year students can only select first-year buildings which provides them with the opportunity to meet and build bonds with their classmates.

Returning students select their rooms during the spring Housing Selection process.

The answer is a qualified yes. As professionals we realize how difficult it can be to live with someone you don’t know. But we also realize the importance of students learning to broaden their views, to learn about people who do things differently than they do. This is the most important part of a student’s education. Issues of race, religion, sexual orientation, abilities, taste in music, etc., are not viewed as acceptable reasons to change rooms. And we have heard every way these differences can be rationalized into “life or death” situations. Yet the fact still remains that students need to learn to deal with differences, to compromise, and to work through issues.

These are life issues students will face both on campus and off, in both their personal and professional lives. Taking the time to develop these essential skills now will have lasting effects long after students have left college. Though they may not realize it at the time, students can successfully share their space and their lives with someone they do not like. In fact, we often find that students who are friends before they live together don’t stay that way - which is why we recommend that high school friends not room together - and students who do not know each other prior to becoming roommates often develop the best relationships. So, while room changes are possible, they are not automatic. We will work with the students to create an atmosphere of mutual respect and understanding. As a last resort, a room change can be made anytime after the second week of the semester. This two-week rule is in effect so that the Community Directors have time to figure out who has and who has not shown up and what, if any, spaces are available.

Students can inquire with the Community Living office if they are taking summer classes and would like to stay on campus.

Many students bring their bicycles to campus and find them handy for going to class and riding in and around the area. Bike racks exist outside each residence hall and at various locations on campus. Campus Safety advises locking bikes to the racks at all times with a high-grade “U-Lock” (i.e. Kryptonite). Bicycles are allowed in residence hall rooms, although they must not block points of entry or egress. In addition, bicycles are not to be hung on hooks or nails in the walls.

Students must be enrolled for a minimum of 12 credits in order to select a room on campus.

The cost for laundry is included in the room rate for on-campus students, so there’s no need to stock up on quarters in order to do your wash.

Keene State College uses Cbord Housing Management System, Cbord HMS, to house students. This product enables the community living staff to use an automated process to allow students to self-select their own rooms. Students receive information ahead of time with how to select their rooms.

Students are asked to select housing based on their budget as well as their preferences. Prices vary per building due to style and amenities.

Please be aware that the measurements shown are rough measurements and there are slight variations with our beds.

Standard Bed Height

Bed Adjusted to Highest Rung

Before you run out and buy just anything, make sure it is approved to bring into your residence hall. Go to the What to Bring section under Living on Campus.

Refrigerator rentals are handled by a third party, EEPY.

All housing self-selections are made as a “group.” If you are looking for a single or want to fill a bed space in a double, triple room, suite or apartment, you still need to create a group of one (1) – just you. Do this in the “Roommate Group” page of the application.

• If you create a group, you become the “group leader.” You are responsible for adding roommates and/or approving requests to join your group.

If you know your roommates, follow these steps:

• All roommates must have an active housing application.
• On the Roommate Groups page, click Create Group and then enter a Group Name
• Search for your roommates by clicking Search for Roommates by Details and send an invitation.
• The roommate(s) will then need to log into their application and accept your invitation to join the group.
• Once you have filled all your roommate spaces and the roommates have accepted the invitation, your group is done. All you have to do is wait for timeslots to be distributed.

Join a Group:
*If your potential roommate already created a group, click Join Group. You will need to know the exact group name

Merge Two Existing Groups:

• If you created a group and so did your planned roommate(s), you can merge the two groups. Click Search For Roommate Group.

It depends:

• The transfer student must be admitted through the Admissions Office in order to be eligible to participate in the self-selection process. The student also needs to be an active student which means they must have completed their enrollment deposit and activated their account (KSC ID, username, password, etc.) If they’re not sure, have the transfer student call Admissions at (603)358-2276 or email kscadmissions@keene.edu.
• Students living off campus are able to participate in the housing selection event, but must complete a housing application. If you currently live off campus and want to live on campus, please contact communityliving@keene.edu

Applicants may find suggested roommates on the application process. Your “Roommate Matching Questions” will help you find a fellow student with similar life-styles by matching you with a percentage. Before the application closes, you can look at student’s profile and even send them a message!

Alternatively, students seeking other students to live with next year can use social media resources to find potential roommates.

You can adjust your roommate group at any time before the application deadline. The group leader can disband the group or transfer the group leader position by revisiting the “Roommate Groups” section of the application. An individual applicant can also remove themselves from the group by revisiting the application.

You will receive a notification via your Keene email when the timeslot becomes available in your Housing Portal. You can log back in to the housing application to view your timeslot for the upcoming process.

You can pick a space from the moment your selection time starts until a designated time on that day - see the selection email that comes when times are released. If you are unavailable during the selection period, you can transfer the position of group leader to another group member who would be available during the initial timeslot.

Remember, the earlier you are able to select a space, the more choices you will have!

Popular halls that you like, are probably the same halls other students like as well. Demand will be high and the open spaces in those halls will go quickly. Be realistic with your options and have more than one building and room type in mind. Keep in mind that selection times are completely random.

At your specific selection time, you login to the housing application and you get to choose from whatever room spaces are available at that time. There is a possibility that the space or hall you wanted might not be available. Please have backup plans that are agreed upon with your potential roommates.

The group leader logs in at the earliest timeslot of any group member. The housing application will show the group leader this “best timeslot” and that is when they will log in to select a space. Remember that the group leader is the one who logs in to select - not the other members!

Once you have booked a space, you are not able to change it. If you’d like to change your assignment, please contact Communityliving@keene.edu to discuss. However, during the actual selection event, responses to questions will be delayed as they are answered in the order that they are received.

You can still apply for on-campus housing. However, you will be place on the waitlist and hand assigned after the selection event.

We discourage parents/guardians from completing housing applications on behalf of their student. Students answering questions on their own is important for ownership in the housing process, as well as setting them up for the best possible roommate match.

No. For self-selection processes, all selection timeslots are randomized and application date does not affect a student’s assigned selection time. Students must meet the published application deadlines in order to participate in self-selection. Applications submitted after the published deadline will be hand assigned by Community Living.