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Moving In and Adjusting

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Our residence halls are far more than a place to sleep. We firmly believe that a student’s living experience can have a positive impact on his/her academic success and overall college experience. Studies indicate that students who live on campus:

  • participate in more extracurricular activities
  • report more positive perceptions of the campus social climate
  • tend to be more satisfied with their college experience
  • report more personal growth and development
  • engage in more frequent interactions with peers and faculty members (Blimling, 1993, as cited in Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005)

Aside from these developmental benefits, students who live on campus experience the following advantages:

  • convenient distance to classrooms, campus services, dining facilities, and extracurricular events to facilitate their interaction with the campus
  • opportunities to meet new people and develop lasting friendships
  • access to dedicated and knowledgeable residential staff and faculty
  • exciting experiences through educational programs offered in the residence halls
  • opportunities to engage with the community through participation in residence hall student government or leadership positions

You have an important role to play in helping your student adjust to living on campus. Although it’s natural for parents to want to actively resolve all challenges faced, this is the time to empower students to make decisions and handle situations. UCLA can seem like a very big place (it is!) but as students meet roommates, get to know their Resident Assistant (RA), and learn about the community and university, they will soon discover an exciting place of untold opportunity.

Move-In Day

Helping your student move onto campus can be overwhelming for a number of reasons, from the logistics of packing to the emotion of moving your child to college. Here are a couple of tips to help make the transition as smooth as possible:

  • Allow your student to take the lead on navigating the move. You will not be there to take his exams or handle her roommate conflicts; the sooner your student takes responsibility, the better.
  • Review the residence hall rules and move-in checklist with your student. This will help your student become familiar with the policies that will guide their on-campus experience and facilitate a discussion of your expectations.
  • Model appropriate and open-minded behavior toward your students’ roommate. Remember that your student must live with this person for a year, and learning how to work with people who are different is a healthy experience.
  • Understand that your student’s emotions may be slightly erratic. This is a natural and common response to the transition into college.
  • Let go and say goodbye! This is the start of an exciting journey for your entire family!

Adjusting to Residential Living

For many students, attending college marks the first time they have lived away from their friends and family. Homesickness is common among new students. Many times it is the combination of fear, the uneasiness of a new place, the desire to see a familiar face, the feeling of not being in control, the challenges of independence, the excitement of a new life ahead, and the pressure of living up to expectations that elicit feelings of homesickness. For families, sending a child to college can be just as much of an adjustment. To support your student and reduce their sense of homesickness, encourage him/her to:

  • continue to do activities that are familiar, and experience them in a new environment.
  • place photos, quotes, posters, and other important items around his/her room to remember home by.
  • engage in conversation with other students. Learning about others, and creating bonds in a new environment is comforting and familiar.
  • get involved by joining a club or intramural sports team, attend programs in the residence halls, and participating in campus wide events.
  • establish a call, email, or texting routine with you. It is important to allow your student the independence that comes with college, but keeping you informed and connected is the best way to maintain a close relationship

Developing Healthy Relationships with Roommates

One of the biggest changes your student will face is living with a roommate (or two!) Learning to live with a roommate is one of the most valuable lessons your student will encounter in college. Developing a healthy roommate relationship is key to an enjoyable living situation. Assist your student in establishing a good roommate relationship using the following tips:

  • Help your student acknowledge his/her living habits and values (i.e. listening to music while studying, tendency to leave dirty clothes on floor).
  • Encourage him/her to communicate these values and talk through issues with his/her roommate regularly. Suggest direct communication and the use of "I" statement during these conversations.
  • Support your student’s ability to keep a good attitude and be flexible.
  • Use this as an opportunity to speak with your student about difference between people and the importance of valuing diverse perspectives.

At some point during your student’s residential experience, s/he may experience a roommate conflict. Roommate conflicts, although often unpleasant, are perfectly natural and actually quite healthy. Any experience with conflict will help your student to learn essential skills such as effective communication and boundary setting. It is natural for students to talk with their parents and family members about the situation. You can support your student by challenging him/her to actively work through the issues, instead of avoiding them or looking for easy answers (such as requesting a roommate change). The Resident Assistant (RA) who lives on your student’s floor or house has been trained to handle roommate issues. If the conflict goes beyond the RA’s expertise, he/she can also ask for assistance from the Resident Director.

Meet the Residential Life Staff

All Office of Residential Life staff members are available to talk with students about their experience living on campus. However, the RA, RD, and FIR will be the best and most accessible resources to your student.

Resident Assistant (RA)

Your student is encouraged to seek support from his/her RA. RAs are responsible for the student development and community development program within their floor, house, or suite. These students go through extensive training in order to help support their residents in connecting to the university and the local area, getting involved with the campus, meeting their academic goals. RAs also mediate roommate conflicts, confront violations of On-Campus Housing policies, and educate their residents on how to handle emergency situations.

Resident Director (RD)

Each residential area has an RD that oversees the vision and operation of the community. The RD works with the RAs to provide a challenging and supportive environment where students can live and learn. All RDs have master’s degrees and are well informed about the issues and challenges college students face.

Faculty-in-Residence (FIR)

Some of the most prestigious UCLA faculty members and their families have chosen to make their permanent home within the student residential community. These faculty help shape the learning experience for the students by bridging the academic and residential experiences in a seamless living-learning environment.

Construction Management

During the past decade, UCLA has undertaken a sizeable number of construction and renovation projects to meet the demand for quality, on-campus housing. These housing projects are key to the continued growth of UCLA’s vibrant student residential community-a living and learning environment that supports student success and satisfaction. In order to reduce the impact of the construction on our students, we do our best to ensure that residents are informed and programs are in place to mitigate possible inconveniences whenever possible. We invite you to visit the construction website to learn about the projects planned in the residential community.