Admitted: Housing

Important Dates

Fall 2025
May 1	Priority Deadline for housing applications and commitment deposit
Late July	Housing assignment notifications sent via email on a rolling basis
August 21–23	New student move-in
August 23–24	New student orientation *schedule subject to change

MCAD has a Two-Year Residency Requirement and all full-time freshmen and sophomore undergraduates are required to live on campus in MCAD Student Housing.

Exemptions to the required residency policy may be requested and will be reviewed by the committee. Exemption requests that may be considered are a documented medical condition, signed by a medical professional; cultural or religious; married; is a custodial parent or has caregiver responsibilities; age 21 or older in first or second year of undergraduate program; is a junior or senior at MCAD. To request an exemption to the required housing policy, please refer to the form on my.MCAD.edu, under the Student Life tab.

Learn More About Campus Housing

Required Application Materials

You must first complete the $300 Tuition Deposit and $350 Housing Commitment Deposit to have access to the Housing Application form. It may take up to two business days for this process to complete and for the Housing Application to be available to you in myMCAD.

You are required to read the Lead-Based Paint Disclosure, Required Food Plan for Residential Students, and submit both the housing application and the housing commitment deposit for your housing application to be complete.

The Application Procedure

All full-time first-year and sophomore undergraduate students are required to live on campus. You must complete and submit the housing application indicating your desired number of roommates by the posted deadline. To access the Housing Application form in myMCAD to make the selection, you are required to first submit the $300 tuition deposit and the $350 housing commitment deposit. It may take up to two business days for this process to complete and for the Housing Application to be available to you in myMCAD.

The housing application submission binds you to the terms and conditions contained in the Housing Contract, which can be accessed at the MCAD Housing Department page. If your housing application is not accepted and you are not assigned housing, the Housing Contract shall be null and void.

MCAD has housing available for all full-time first-year and sophomore undergraduate students, but may receive more applications than there are housing spaces from continuing junior, senior, and graduate student requests. All MCAD students who wish to live on campus should complete a housing application for consideration by the deadlines. Priority for space is given to international students and new first-time undergraduate students whose housing applications, housing commitment deposits, and tuition deposits have been received by May 1 for fall semester or November 1 for spring semester. Priority within the new student category may be given to those under the age of twenty-four. Depending on demand, continuing junior, senior, and graduate students obtain eligibility to live on campus via a lottery. Some categories of students may be precluded from the lottery and may not have the opportunity to live on campus.

New students whose housing applications, housing commitment deposits, or tuition deposits are received after May 1 for fall semester may be placed on a waiting list. Students applying for spring semester housing will be assigned space as cancellations for spring semester occur. There is typically plenty of availability for spring semester.

Final decisions for specific housing requests are at the discretion of the housing office based on availability.

Incoming students should prepare to have a shared apartment unit with up to three roommates. Spaces in these shared units are negotiated between roommates.

Additional information on housing assignment procedures, waiting lists, and priority systems is detailed in the MCAD Housing Handbook. For students who choose to withdraw from housing, the commitment deposit is refundable prior to July 1 for the fall academic semester by emailing the MCAD Housing Office.

If you have questions, please contact housing@mcad.edu or 612.874.3780.

Housing Assignment Notification

Fall semester housing assignment notices will be emailed to applicants in mid-July. Spring semester housing assignment notices will be emailed to applicants in early- to mid-December.

Housing Costs
On-Campus Housing	Per Semester	Per Year
Housing Deposit	N/A	$350
Apartment Rental (per student, per academic year)	$4,375–$6,875*	$8,750–$13,750*

What to Bring/Not Bring

For your desk (adjustable task chair included)

art supplies
heavy-duty surge-protected power strip (thin extension cords are not permitted)
laundry detergent

For your kitchen

cleaning supplies
dishes, cups, utensils
microwave
pots and pans
storage containers

For the bathroom

medicine
towels
manicure set
toilet paper

For your room/life:

bedding for twin long mattress
bike
decor
wastebasket
winter clothing
extra blankets

What NOT to bring:

2.4 GHz cordless phones
wireless routers and access points (including but not limited to Apple TimeCapsule and MiFi-style devices)
halogen lamps
anything that produces an open flame (including incense burners)
space heaters
window air conditioners
weapons of any type (real or imitation)
hoverboards
waterbeds
pets
thin extension cords (heavy-duty surge-protected power strips are okay)

Housing During Breaks

MCAD Housing is open during all breaks throughout the academic year (i.e., winter break and spring break). Residents do not need to vacate their apartment at these times. Summer housing is available. If you have questions, please contact the MCAD Housing Office at housing@mcad.edu.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION can be found on the MCAD Housing Department page,
which includes links to:

Housing Handbook
Annual Housing Contract
On-Campus Housing
Off-Campus Housing
MCAD Dining
MCAD Housing Gender Policy