The Policy That Requires Freshmen & Sophomores to Live On-Campus
Living on-campus is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for students to live in and be a part of a Benedictine student community. U-Mary alumni often tell us that by living on-campus, they had the opportunity to make lifelong friends, they enjoyed the informal conversations (at meal time and late at night in the residence hall), and they got involved in a variety of campus activities. This is consistent with research at colleges and universities across the country that indicates on-campus students are significantly more likely than their off-campus peers, to succeed academically, to be involved in campus activities, to graduate, and to feel positive about their college experience. For these reasons, the University of Mary, like most private colleges and universities, requires students to live on-campus. The University of Mary’s policy is intended to require all traditional-age students to live on-campus for the entire first and second year. The policy is as follows:
All students under the age of 20 on the day classes begin, who have not completed a minimum of 60 credits from an accredited college or university, are required to live on campus for the entire semester. All exceptions to this requirement require the prior, written approval from the vice president for student development and are limited to the following circumstances:
a) The student will live with his/her parents or legal guardians for the entire time he/she is required to live on-campus.
b) The student will live with his/her grandparents, an uncle/aunt or a brother/sister for the entire time he/she is required to live on-campus.
c) The student has already lived on-campus for two complete academic years (four semesters) at the University of Mary or at another accredited college or university.
d) The student is married. Students with plans to marry during the time they are required to live on-campus will be required to live on-campus up to the date of the wedding.
e) The student is the legal custodial parent or legal custodial guardian of a minor child or children.
f) The student, because of a disability, provides the university with appropriate documentation of the need for reasonable accommodations in housing the university is not able to provide.
Students who would like approval to live off-campus consistent with the circumstances listed above may submit a request using the form for that purpose available at the following link:
Request Form for Approval to Live Off-Campus
Forms are also at the Student Development Office located in Room 1209 of the Benedictine Center for Servant Leadership. The university reserves the right to require any documentation deemed necessary to verify the information submitted with the request. As part of the approval process, a parent or legal guardian must sign the request.
Students who receive approval to live off-campus as first-year students must renew their approval to live off-campus for the sophomore year. Students who fail to renew their approval are subject to an administrative hold on their ability to register for classes.
A student who provides false information to obtain university approval to live off-campus as well as the student who has obtained legitimate approval to live off-campus consistent with the policy but who’s living arrangements are not consistent with those approved will be assigned to a Level 4 disciplinary status by the director of student life.
