Dear Students,

We are looking forward to welcoming you to campus in just a few short weeks, as you embark on your collegiate experience at Brown. We are writing today to provide information about your housing assignment and important details about the arrival process.

At a Glance

• View your housing  and roommate(s) assignment in the housing portal
• Click here to schedule your arrival time on August 27 
• Need to arrive before August 27 - Request early arrival
• Can’t arrive on August 27 - Request late arrival

Housing Assignment

Your Fall 2025 housing assignment is now available for you to view on the homepage of the housing portal. The portal will also show you the name(s) of your roommate(s) as well as information about special interest housing, if you applied.

Assignments are based on the information you provided in your housing questionnaire. We ask that you use the next few weeks to get acquainted with your roommate(s), their information is provided on the portal. We have staff (Community and Area Coordinators) living amongst you in the residence halls who, once you arrive, will help you build connections with your roommate(s) and others living on-campus. You will also fill out a roommate agreement to establish a common set of norms for your room with your roommate(s). We ask that you wait to make room change requests until after your arrival, allowing for time to engage with your roommate(s) in a meaningful way. 

Move-In Selection Time (August 27 Arrival Only)

Move in for Fall 2025 for incoming students is Wednesday, August 27, 2025. To ensure a smooth check-in process, it is important that you indicate a specific check-in time using the Fall 2025 Move-in Time Slots form, accessible within the Forms process on the housing portal. Your check-in area is based on your residence hall location and is listed both in the housing portal and on our website. Please select your arrival check-in time no later than Wednesday, August 20, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. ET. 

General Early Arrival Requests

Students assigned to on-campus housing who are participating in one of the following programs or have one of the following criteria may request to arrive prior to their official move-in day: pre-orientation programs, fall athletic programs, student employment, sponsored program/research, or international travel limitations. Requests outside of those conditions and without sponsorship are subject to further review and may not be approved, regardless of the date requested. 

Sponsors are University departments or units who manage programs that require students to arrive prior to the start of the semester. Sponsors are generally responsible for payment; students without a sponsor are responsible for payment. If you would like to be considered for financial support, there is information about that in the form. 

To request an early arrival date, you must complete the Early Arrival form, located within the Forms process on our housing portal, prior to the priority deadline of August 6 at 11:59pm ET. While submissions received after this date may be considered, they are subject to additional review and may not be approved.

All requests will be verified with the sponsoring department or staff. Confirmation notices will be sent by our office, on a rolling basis, after the priority deadline has passed.

Students approved to arrive early for a University-sponsored activity, such as a pre-orientation program or a fall varsity athletic team, do not need to sign up for a move-in time slot. Students approved to arrive early will receive directions from our office in their approval notice.

Late Arrivals

As New Student Orientation begins the evening of Move-in day, we ask that you make every effort to arrive on time to avoid missing any critical information during this onboarding program. That said, if you believe that there are circumstances which necessitate that you arrive after August 27, you can request late arrival via the Late Arrival form in the Forms process.

Before You Arrive

Now that you have your housing assignment, we encourage you to connect with your roommate(s) prior to your arrival. Use the days leading up to your arrival as an opportunity to get to know one another. If you aren’t sure what to talk about, perhaps discuss what you might be bringing to campus; items you’ll use to personalize your shared space. If you are curious about what to bring, review the Comprehensive College Packing List curated by the New Student Orientation team. Also be sure to review our list of restricted items. If you have any questions about the list, please contact us at res_life@brown.edu.

If you have not already done so, please upload your student ID photo to Banner Self-Service as soon as possible and no later than Sunday, August 3. If you are unsure of whether you have done so, you can check your photo status in Banner.

What’s Next

As we get closer to new student move-in, we’ll send additional information about what to expect when you arrive, including parking information and maps to our check-in locations. You can visit our website to review information about your assigned building/neighborhood. 

During the first week of August, you will receive your University mailing address from Mail Services. Please visit the Mail Services website for more information or email mail_services@brown.edu if you have any questions about mail.

As always, please contact us (reply to this email) if you have any questions.

Sincerely, 

Brenda Ice

Assistant Vice President for Residential and Community Living

Office of Residential Life