How many triples and quads are there?
Of the more than 4,700 student rooms on campus, there are approximately 416 triple and quad rooms. Of the total of 8,900 housing spaces (beds) in 37 residence halls, 1,300 spaces (15% of total) are in triples and quads.
Most of the rooms in the residence halls (67%) are doubles to be shared by two students. About 12% of the rooms are singles, always taken by upper-division students through a seniority system. Our newest housing type, the semi-suites located in Oakland Hall, makes up about 6% of the room inventory.
Who's assigned to these rooms? Why were these students chosen?
Mostly freshmen. About one in every four freshman students (plus those returning residents who chose these rooms) will be living in triples and quads. These are the last rooms we assign, so the freshmen in these rooms are among the last new students confirmed by the University to receive on-campus housing (i.e., housing requested after early to mid-April). In most rooms, the three or four roommates do not know one another.
How big are these rooms? Are they big enough for the number of students you're putting in each room?
Triples are (a) rooms that were structurally designed to accommodate three students or (b) larger doubles that have been converted. Quads are (a) rooms large enough for four persons or (b) structurally designed adjoining double rooms (which are connected by a door on the interior wall that the two rooms share, with one entrance from the hallway into one of the doubles; no interior bath). The rooms range in size from 170-299 square feet. Most double rooms are about 160 square feet.
| Typical Layout of a Triple | Typical Layout of a Quad |
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| (click image for larger view) | (click image for larger view) |
How were these rooms chosen? You are using the biggest rooms, aren't you?
Most triples and quads were identified in Fall 1997 and have been in continuous use since Fall 1998. More than 1,300 of the largest rooms on campus were considered for conversions, after consultations with the University Fire Marshal.
Rooms are in most but not all traditional residence halls; with some exceptions, bedrooms in suites and apartments were not selected for tripling because of the locations of windows, closets, furnishings, etc., as indicated above.
What furniture is in the rooms? Will I have my own computer line?
In each triple and quad, we provide a regular twin bed and mattress, dresser, desk and desk chair for each resident. Each resident also has Internet access via hard-wired data line and wireless connection. In all rooms, beds will be bunked. In triples, in addition to two bunked beds, the third bed is an elevated metal frame with mattress (with space beneath it for that student's dresser and desk). In quads, there are two sets of bunked beds. Each triple and quad also has at least one window with blinds, overhead light, closet space, telephone line (shared with roommates), smoke alarm and sprinkler.
Rooms are not carpeted, except in Anne Arundel Hall and in the few triples in apartments. In a few rooms with the smallest closets, a wardrobe has been installed to increase the amount of hanging space. We will be prepared to remove a desk or dresser if all residents of a triple or quad room are in agreement. Students can make these requests after move-in day to the Manager for Assignments and Public Inquiry, 301-314-2100 or reslife@umd.edu
Won't it be cramped in the room with all that furniture?
It figures to be tight, although the rooms were evaluated before their conversion to triples or quads as to how well furnishings would fit in the available space. Storage space is limited to the closet or closets and under the beds. There are not storage rooms elsewhere on the floor or in the building. Here are some creative, yet safe ways of arranging furnishings in order to save space and maximize the amount of open floor space:
- Bring shelving units to stand on the floor or in the upper part of your closet
- Bunk any unbunked bed or elevate it on hard plastic bed risers (no cinder blocks)
- Make an 'L' formation with two beds, or dressers or desks
- Use your refrigerator as a nightstand
- Make use of all flat surfaces (tops of desks, dressers, refrigerators, etc.)
- Bring storage drawers or boxes that fit under your bed (10" clearance if not elevated)
- Move dresser or shelves into your closet
- Hang a shoe organizer inside your closet
Each student should restrict the items he/she brings to campus, particularly by leaving least essential items (e.g., winter clothing) at home. A practical rule of thumb would be to restrict your possessions to what fits in/on your desk, dresser and one-third of a small closet. Hanging space for clothing will be particularly limited. Roommates are strongly encouraged to speak with one another prior to move-in day and to ensure that unnecessary duplications (e.g., analog telephone with plug, TV, stereo, fan, refrigerator, curtains) are avoided. Families who travel to campus for move-in day should plan to take back home with them items such as empty trunks and suitcases.
Are there any restrictions on setting up my triple (or quad?)
Yes, furniture should remain on the floor. Elevating furniture on bricks or blocks, other furniture or other structures could lead to problems with stability and personal safety or damage to personal or University property.
Also for safety reasons, please:
- Do not place beds on tops of dressers, desks, multiple layers of cinder blocks, any slippery surface or any type of structural support not provided by the University
- Do not bring or construct lofts, partitions, or any other structure
- Do not purchase or rent bed lofts, except from the University's approved vendor (currently Bedloft.com)
- Do not bring cinder blocks
- Do not use extension cords [instead of extension cords, bring UL/CSA approved power strips equipped with Integrated Circuit Breaker (over-current shut off protector)]
- Do not block windows or heating convectors
I don't have to pay the same price for housing as everybody else, do I?
Each student living in a triple or quad is entitled to a 15 per cent reduction in his or her semester's housing fee for the full period that the room is assigned as a triple or quad. The correct housing fee should be posted to students' accounts when housing charges are posted in August. A student who has overpaid the University is entitled to a refund; requests can be made through www.testudo.umd.edu or by visiting room 1135 in the Lee Building.
At the point that a vacancy occurs in a triple or quad and the space is not refilled by Resident Life, the 15 percent rebate will be terminated by Resident Life and for the remaining weeks in the semester, the remaining two students in a triple or three students in a quad will be charged for housing at the full rate.
I'm worried my grades might suffer because I've got these extra roommates. Does that happen to students in triples?
Not in our experience at the University of Maryland and not according to a number of national research studies done over the years. Per a review of six studies by John Foubert, the research has concluded that academic performance does not suffer when students are in tripled rooms and that grade point averages are no different for these students than for others in residence halls. Studies also show that being tripled does not affect students' adjustment to college life and that tripled students are as likely as others to participate in student organizations and to report satisfaction with their academic and social experiences.
On the negative side, studies also show that tripled students are less satisfied with their living space, privacy and perceived control over room activity than are students in standard doubles. Tripled students are less satisfied with their roommates and spend less time in their rooms than do students in standard doubles.
How long do I have to stay in the triple (or quad)?
Because we do not anticipate having many vacancies during fall semester, nearly all triple and quad assignments will last at least through final exams in December.
Any student in the residence halls can request a room change for the start of Spring semester; these procedures will be published in November. There will not be enough openings in other rooms for Spring semester to reassign all students the triples and quads, so some students will have to keep these assignments for the entire year. Rooms for the next school year are chosen next April; it will be possible at that time for all interested and eligible returning residents in triples and quads to choose other rooms.
Why isn't more housing being built at the University?
The University has built more housing. This occurred rapidly and in partnership with two private developers. The first public-private partnership at Maryland came into being August 2000, when the 704-bed Courtyards apartment community was opened on University land about one mile along University Boulevard from Byrd Stadium.
The second partnership opened August 2001, with the first 454 beds of the 1,825-bed South Campus Commons apartment community on a campus site adjacent to the South Hill residence halls. Residents of The Courtyards and South Campus Commons enjoy fully furnished apartments with full kitchens, private bedrooms, choice of private bathrooms, and washer/dryer in each unit.
In August 2004, the final two buildings in South Campus Commons opened, bringing to 2,529 the number of beds available in these two communities. In August 2008, 64 spaces were added at The Courtyards by lowering the rents, and converting bedrooms in several two-bedroom deluxe units to double occupancy.
In 2010, a seventh South Campus Commons building added 360 beds, bringing to 3,313 the number of beds available in these two communities.
In October 2008, the campus received the final financing authorizations from the State of Maryland and the Board of Regents that were needed to begin the process of identifying a company that will build a 650-bed State-owned and University-managed residence hall on a site near the Denton Community residence halls and the Eppley Recreation Center. The construction company began work in Fall 2009. The new building, Oakland Hall, is open for occupancy starting in the Fall 2011 semester.
The campus has been advised to pursue privately developed and financed student housing as an alternative to the previously utilized means of adding housing inventory that require financing approvals from the State of Maryland (i.e., University System-funded construction from the sale of revenue bonds and State-approved public-private partnerships whereby the housing is built on campus property by a private developer who assumes the costs of construction and financing). Since 2005, more than 2,100 additional beds in student apartment communities (University View, The Towers at University Town Center, University Club) have been added within a one-mile radius of campus. These locations offer "by the bedroom," 12-month leases with start dates in August each year.
Other proposals for adding more privately developed and privately managed housing opportunities for Maryland students – both undergraduate and graduate – in close proximity to the campus are in varying stages of completion.