Extended Housing Capacity in Triples and Quads

How many triples and quads are there?
Of the more than 4,450 student rooms on campus, there are 347 triple and quad rooms. Of the total of 8,246 housing spaces (beds) in 36 residence halls, 1,095 spaces (13% of total) are in triples and quads.

Most of the rooms in the residence halls (74%) are doubles to be shared by two students. About 13%of the rooms are singles, always taken by upper-division students through a seniority system.

Who's assigned to these rooms? Why were these students chosen
Mostly freshmen. For Fall 2008, 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. In some cases where students who made mutual roommate requests are both going to be assigned to triples or quads, these mutual roommate requests are honored before the third or fourth roommate is assigned.

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.

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. Some of these rooms were eliminated because of their size, shape and the locations of windows, closets, pipes, etc. which affected how furnishings could be arranged in the room.

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. Triples and quads exist on Honors, Honors Humanities, Gemstone, Women In Engineering, College Park Scholars, Global Communities, Jiménez-Porter Writers’ House, Language House, and CIVICUS units.

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?
Yes, 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 other 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:

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'm concerned about my ability to study and rest in the triple (or quad). What can you suggest?
Roommates in a triple or quad should discuss issues that affect any one student's ability to study in the room or get the proper rest. Issues include: Daily schedules for being in and away from the room; hour to rise and hour to go to bed; frequency and number of visitors; and use of phone, computer, tv, stereo, radio, etc. that affects another's ability to study or rest. Your RA will be available to prompt discussion of these issues with all residents of the room. The RA also will help resolve any difficulties that may come up during the semester. Also, there will be several air-conditioned study spaces on your floor or elsewhere in your building.

Each resident in the room will need to take personal responsibility for helping to make the best of this situation. Each resident should be especially courteous, considerate of others and sensitive to the concerns of others this semester. Practically speaking, this means tangible things like keeping your space clean and picked up, talking through problems and not letting them go unresolved, being patient and flexible as you negotiate and compromise on sleep/study/socialize matters, and not undermining relationships by talking about roommates behind their backs or causing dissension among roommates or floormates.

I don't have to pay the same price for housing as everybody else, do I?
No. 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. This amount ($405.15 per semester) is credited to students’ accounts. The Office of the Bursar suggests that in order to avoid overpayment to the University, students in triples or quads should subtract $405.15 from the final payment they make to the University for tuition, room and board, etc. A student who has overpaid the University is entitled to a refund; requests can be made beginning September 3 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?
No. 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 tripled up in double 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. Priority for reassignments for Spring semester will be given to students who remain in quads and triples, based on a priority order that takes into account the dates of these students’ initial housing requests. 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 so-called 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 will add 360 beds, bringing to 3,313 the number of beds available in these two communities.

As part of its East Campus Development initiative announced Fall 2006, the campus expects to demolish housing spaces in the Leonardtown apartment community and anticipates that a developer will provide some replacement beds by building new student housing on a North Campus site. The start date for this project has not been determined and is several years away.

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 pubic-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 consideration by local jurisdictions such as the City of College Park and Prince George’s County.