Housing & Residence Life FAQ

Our team puts in a great deal of effort to make sure your room is clean and in good condition. Rooms may have some normal wear from usage over time. Items such as small paint chips, scratches in wood/painted furniture, or pinholes in cork board are considered “normal wear”. It is the responsibility of each student to inspect their space at move-in and report the condition of the space.

When inspecting the room you should look for items such as: wall damage (holes, large paint chips, etc.), flooring damage (large stains or tears), mattress damage (inspect seams for tears/holes), and broken furniture. As with any rental we encourage you to take pictures/video of the space at move-in and keep them for your records.

All residents must complete a Room Condition Report within 72 hours of check-in.

To submit your Room Condition Report please visit our online Room Condition Form

Responsibility for Room Condition Information Document

Our beds are standard deep twin XL size. 

Residence hall rooms are furnished with:

• Extra-Long Twin Bed 
• Bookshelf
• Desk and Chair
• Closet
• Dresser or Wardrobe (depending on building)
• Garbage Bin (recycling bins are available upon request)
• Mirror
• Curtains

All items must remain in room. 

Yes we provide mini fridges so there is no need to bring one from home. There is one mini fridge provided per room in Wallace, Tower and McConnell. The LLCs come with a full size refrigerator and microwave in each suite.

Lounges, hallways, other common spaces and the Tower and McConnell residence hall bathrooms are cleaned daily by our dedicated custodial staff.

Students living in the LLCs and Wallace residence halls are responsible for cleaning their bathrooms.

The residence hall license agreement is a binding commitment to live on campus for the duration of the agreement contract. The University of Idaho residence hall license agreement includes both room and meals. 

Yes and No. Students living in the LLC may continue to be on campus during winter break. Students with winter break housing needs should work directly with the housing office to make housing arrangements.

Residence Hall students who have lost their VandalCard can get a temporary key from the Information Desk. The Information Desk will provide a temporary key during their hours of operation. If you have lost your VandalCard while the Information Desk is closed please contact the RA on call using the number located in your hall.

Absolutely. In order to room with a friend, choose the same room during the Housing application process.

Students who would like to live together, but not in the same room, can choose Wallace Residence Center and the Living Learning Communities. Suite style options are a great choice for students wanting to live together but not wanting to share a bedroom.

We want you to be happy and comfortable living on campus. The first step to take if you and your roommate are having a hard time adjusting to living together is to talk with your RA. If you still feel you must change rooms, please visit the housing office, and we will help you apply for a room change.

There are no room changes during dead week and finals week.

Yes. Each year we are able to approve a limited number of room “buy outs” in Theophilus Tower and Wallace Residence Center. This means students buy the other half of the double-capacity room.

If interested, email housing@uidaho.edu to let us know you would like a single room. We let you know within a few days if we can approve your request.

Yes and no. Students have seven days after their roommate leaves to declare they would like to buy out the other half of the room. Students may also choose to move out and choose a single room (if rooms are available). If students do not declare the desire to purchase the other half of the room, housing will begin the process of moving in another student.

Please note: housing can not guarantee single rooms if there is no availability.

Resident safety and security is important to us.

Each residence hall is protected by a VandalCard reader that unlocks the door for residents of the building. Students are encouraged to keep the doors to their rooms locked and follow common sense safety precautions.

Resident Assistants also do nightly rounds of the buildings to ensure safety and enforce quiet hours. Additionally, campus security does two random rounds with RAs per day.

For more information, contact campus-security@uidaho.edu or 208-885-7054.

There are several options you can go to for help.

Information Desk

Information Desk, located in the Living Learning Communities is available for all students 24/7 every day. Students can visit the desk for emergencies, room lock-outs, lost keys, disturbances, complaints or any other safety needs.

RA On Call

Each hall has an RA on call number you can contact. Numbers are posted in each hall.

Campus Security

The Campus Security Team is on patrol 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - including holidays and academic breaks. You can also contact Campus Security to utilize their safe walk program. This program is free for students, faculty, and staff. More information can be found at uidaho.edu/safe-walk. Campus Security can be reached at 208-885-7054 or 208-874-7550.

Yes. Housing and Residence life works directly with Moscow Police to ensure safety in the residence halls. Campus Security also does nightly rounds of residence hall buildings, student safety checks and a 24-hour a day campus free campus security walking service. For more information on the Safe Walk program, go to Security Services site.

No vehicle? No Problem!

U of I is a beautiful, walkable campus adjacent to downtown Moscow. With free public transportation and nearly 2,500 bicycle rack spaces, your educational experience can truly be vehicle-free.

Parking on campus is extremely limited and students outnumber parking spaces. Students must purchase a parking permit before they bring their vehicle to campus. Residence Hall students are eligible to purchase a Silver or Economy parking permit from Parking and Transportation Services. Parking permits go on sale online starting July 6, 2022, for the fall semester. Students who do not purchase a parking permit before they arrive should not bring their vehicles to campus. Note that parking a motorcycle on campus does not require a parking permit.

Read more about student parking permits on the Parking and Transportation Services website.

The University of Idaho encourages bicycle transportation. Designated bike racks at located outside the entrances of Wallace Residence Center, McConnell, Tower and Living Learning Communities.

Please stop by the housing office if you would like to store your bike indoors. We have limited spaces available in Wallace, McConnell and the Tower residence halls. The housing office is located on the second floor of Wallace Residence Center.

There is motorcycle parking near the residence halls and no parking permit is necessary. You may not store motorized vehicles inside your room or residence hall at any time.

Students can pick up their mail at the LLC Information Desk located in Living Learning Community Building 2.

A VandalCard or other form of identification is required to pick up mail.

All students have an assigned MSC number which is unique to the student. The MSC number is required for the student to receive mail. Any mail that does not have the student's name and MSC number will be returned to sender. Students with a fall booking will be sent their MSC number for receiving packages in late July. This information will also be provided when they check into their room.

If a student wishes to have mail sent to be ready for move-in, they can start sending mail to their student mailing address 10 days prior to move-in day.

Student Mailing Address:
Student Name
MSC #____
901 Paradise Creek Street
Moscow ID 83843

Absolutely! Washers and dryers are located in all buildings and are free to use. You only need to provide your own soap and dryer sheets. Ask your RA on which floor your nearest laundry room is located. 

Use of our laundry machines for all residents is free.

Yes. Each residence hall has computer labs with printing capabilities. The LLCs are the exception. However, all students are welcome to use the large public computer lab in the bottom floor of Wallace Residence Center. All full-time students receive 250 pages of printing per semester.

Many network-compatible devices, such as game consoles and smart tv's, do not work on the main campus networks AirVandalGold and AirVandalHome. Instead, they will need to first be registered at help.uidaho.edu/avsetup, then connected to the AirVandalGuest network. Connecting a wired device (Ethernet) will also require registration of the device at help.uidaho.edu/avsetup. For support or questions, contact the Student Technology Center at 208-885-4357 or submit a ticket online at oit.uidaho.edu.

Yes, Wallace and McConnell have kitchens in their basements, while our Living Learning Communities each have a kitchen on the main floor. 

If you seen an elevator requiring maintenance, please report it to the LLC Information Desk immediately at 208-885-7379.

Wallace, Tower and McConnell Residents

Please report Microwave/Fridge concerns by calling 866-651-5638 to schedule a time to have the unit repaired or replaced.

LLC Residents

Please submit a service request using our online service request form.

Gender-inclusive housing allows for same gender, opposite-gender or gender nonconforming students to live together, regardless of biological sex.

This housing option provides an environment where housing is not restricted by traditional limitations of gender.

To sign up for Gender Inclusive Housing, select "Gender Inclusive Housing" on the application, agree to the terms and choose from the available gender-inclusive spaces.

All participants living in gender-inclusive housing are expected to adhere to philosophies of respect and inclusion and are expected to be a positive member of the larger campus housing community the same as any other resident.

Gender-inclusive housing for first-year students is offered in Wallace Residence Center.

Non-first year students, including non-first year transfers, options are located in the Living Learning Communities and Wallace Residence Center.

All gender-inclusive housing assignments are located in suites with private bathrooms.

Yes, all students can request a room change at any time. There may be limitations to room selection options depending on the time of year and if there is available space.

No. Students will never be placed in a gender inclusive suite if they have not selected that option on their application. If not enough students select this option, a student requesting gender inclusive housing may be placed in a single gender suite.

For questions about gender inclusive housing and other accommodations related to gender identity/expression, please contact our student assignments team at housing@uidaho.edu or 208-885-6571.

Housing and Residence Life reserves the right to designate units with openings as single gender at any time if needed.

Yes, you can cancel your room application, however you will not receive a refund on your application fee and your room assignment will be released.

You can cancel your room application using the Cancel Application Form located in the Housing Portal.

Yes, you can request to break your agreement, however, doing so will result in a penalty of up to $1,200. The cancellation policy for students breaking their agreement early can be found in Section 9 and Section 10 of the Residence Hall License Agreement.

If we can do anything to convince you to stay, please contact us a housing@uidaho.edu. Otherwise, complete the Request to Break License Agreement Form located in the Housing Portal. Once the form is processed you will receive an email with instructions on checking out properly.

The residence hall application is non-refundable.

In the case of extreme, unforeseeable and uncontrollable problems the early cancellation fee may be appealed. Breaking your Agreement is your last resort to solve a problem. You must seek assistance from Housing and Residence Life staff to resolve the problem, and you must try all other, less extreme options offered to you before submitting a request to break your agreement. The other options might include, transferring to a different campus housing room, room type, residence hall or apartment for which you are eligible.

To appeal the early cancellation fee, please complete the Housing and Residence Life Agreement Appeal Form within 30 days of your checkout. Appeals submitted after 30 days from your checkout will be automatically denied.