Santa Clara University

Housing Options

Where students live is a very important and defining part of the social scene on any American college campus. SCU is a relatively smaller university than many large state universities and the closeness of our community is reflected in our close location to campus. The typical SCU student lives on campus during their first (freshman) year and often times the second as well. Students living on campus living in different sized dormitories all around campus and consists of sharing a bedroom, bathrooms, and having community activities, as well as rules enforced by a Community Facilitator, who is an older student living with the younger students. Once students reach their junior and senior year, they typically move off campus into and rent from privately owned houses or apartments, most of which are around campus. They often rent these off-campus housing with fellow students. For more information on both options, please read on...

Living in Campus Housing Getting Involved in Student Life If you choose on campus housing, most of the dorms (we call them Residential Learning Communities or RLC) house underclassmen (freshmen and sophomores) who are 18 and 19 years old. If you live in a typical dorm room you will be sharing a room with with one or two other people. In the standard dorms you will also not have your own kitchen and will have most of your meals in the dining hall. Many former exchange students report this was a good way to meet new people. You may contact Michael Wenzel, an exchange student from Regensburg, Germany who stayed in such a dorm: michaelwenzel@gmx.net.  One of the dorms, Sobrato, and sometimes Casa Italiana (RLC names are Loyola and DaVinci) have apartment style housing for the 3rd and 4th year students where you can have the option of having a single room. If you live in Sobrato, you will have a small kitchen and a living room to share with your suitemates. However, this dorm is very hard to get into, so you must be punctual with your housing application form. Olivier Halluitte, an exchange student from Lille, France, lived in Sobrato and you may contact him at olivier.halluitte@gmail.com. Living on campus can also be expensive, but most of the dormitories are also very nice. Instructions: Student housing in the Residential Learning Communities (RLC) is limited. Participants must complete and submit on time the Housing Preference Form. Submission of an application does not guarantee that an international student will be assigned an on-campus housing. Final housing assignment is made by the Office of Housing and Residence Life at Santa Clara University. Students will be charged directly for on-campus housing. Click here for the Housing & Roommate Preference Forms. Click here to visit the Residential Learning Communtiy website

Living Off Campus The Freedom of Independent Living If you choose to live off campus, it is recommended that you sublease from a Santa Clara student who is studying abroad for the fall quarter, or for a full year, depending on your needs. It is most common for SCU students to study abroad for fall quarter only. If you are staying for one year, you can sublease for fall quarter and then meet people to find an apartment/house after Christmas if you are staying for the year, or set one up with the new exchange students that come in January. Subleasing in a house with Americans seems to be the best way for exchange students to connect with American students and the social life at SCU, as well as to practice their English skills. This is also very cheap because the students who are studying abroad are often quite desperate to have someone to fill their spot. So negotiate the price as low as you can, because there are many options (you should pay at least $100 less than they are asking). Older students have houses that are only one or two blocks off campus, and most houses hold 6 to 10 students. Other than that, there are apartments nearby you can find and rent for the whole year. Most juniors and seniors live off campus (age 20 - 22), so they are older, which changes the social aspect in on-campus vs. off-campus housing, since the older students can go to the bars and can legally drink, etc. You can contact Ted Kristensson, an exchange student from Lund, Sweden at ted.kristensson@gmail.com, if you are interested in learning about his experience subleasing with Americans fall quarter and living off campus. Instructions: Often some international students prefer the freedom of living in an apartment or house usually with other Santa Clara students. Participants must find their own housing from the list of available off-campus apartments, sublets, houses that are posted on the Office of Student Life website. Students are responsible for making their own arrangements with landlords or sublets. Click here to search from a listing of Off-Campus Housing Options