Residence Life

Frequently Asked Questions

Here you’ll find a collection of our most-asked questions about living on campus.

Please visit our website HERE to find step-by-step instructions on how to apply for housing.

Instructions for New Students to submit their housing deposit can be found HERE under step number four.

Instructions for Returning Students to submit their housing deposit can be found HERE.

Because of the value of the residential experience and its impact on student learning and connections to the University, all first-year students are required to live on campus. Students who wish to appeal for an exemption may do so ONLY if they fit the following exemption areas, as listed in the Student On-Campus Residency Requirement of the University Housing Contract which can be found HERE, under Housing.

Exceptions to the on-campus residency requirement include:

  1. Living within 50 miles of campus, with an immediate family member (parent, grandparent, or legal guardian)
  2. Student released due to marriage, parenthood, over the age of 21, or other justified special case
  3. Have extenuating circumstances resulting in an exception being approved by the Director of Residence Life

Students can submit a First Year Residency Waiver, found on the Housing Forms page HERE under the “Services” section. Please note that students must receive written approval from Residence Life before they can stay at a residence off-campus.

No, financial aid cannot be used to pay the housing deposit.

To see more information on how to pay the housing deposit, please go to our New Student Application Instructions page HERE and read section 4, “Submit Your Housing Deposit.”

Many students do not know their roommate(s) prior to move-in. Whether you respond to a roommate request from someone you don’t know is up to you.

If they have included any of their social media platforms on their profile, feel free to try and get to know them before responding to the request!

You can message your roommate directly though the Housing Portal, or if your roommate has included their social media platforms on their profile you can try to contact them through that. If you have any difficulty sending a message to your roommate, please email reslife@truman.edu for assistance.

Housing assignments are available on the Application Summary page of your Housing Application. In the event that you did not select your own roommate:

  • Returning students should be able to view their roommate by April 1st of each year.
  • New students should be able to view their roommate by June 1st of each year.

You will only be placed automatically if you have a completed housing application and have a paid housing deposit on file.

You must be able to fill all bed spaces in the room you select. If you do not have a roommate, you must select a room that already has at least one occupant or is a single occupancy room (buy-out or single suite).

Students who fill out a spring-only application for housing will be manually assigned a room and roommate based on the preferences they list on their housing application. Please be aware that assignments are made based on the currently available room spaces on campus.

To live in a triple room, you will need to have two accepted roommates. You can search for roommates and accept roommates on the Roommate Selection page of the Housing Application.

This depends on the date you submitted your housing application and paid your housing deposit. The earlier a student submits a housing application and housing deposit, the more likely they will be placed in their first choice building.

When you complete your housing application, even for students who do not select housing with a roommate and get auto-allocated into their space, their building preferences are taken into account when room assignments are made.

Students moving onto campus in the fall can find their move in date on the Fall Opening page HERE  after clicking on their designation as a new, returning, transfer, or new international student at the top of the page.

Students moving onto campus in the spring can find their move in date on the Spring Opening page HERE under the section “When is my move in?”

Instructions for how to sign up for your check-in window and a link to the sign-ups are found on the Fall Opening page HERE under the section titled “Check-In Registration Process”.

For fall move-in, each residence hall has its own check-in station. To see a map of all check-in stations and driving directions to reach each residence hall on move-in day, click HERE.

For spring move-in, students can find more about how to check in on the Spring Opening page HERE under the section “Where do I go to check in?”

No, students will receive access to their room on move-in day.

Yes, but work to ensure they arrive on or after move-in day. There is limited storage for personal items shipped in advance and items that arrive prior to move-in day may be “returned to sender”.

Residence Life allows students who qualify under certain criteria to move in earlier than their assigned move-in date. To see if you are eligible for an early move-in date and for more information on the early arrival process visit the Early Move-In For Fall page HERE, or the Winter Break Housing page HERE for spring students.

To see a list of recommended items to bring with you to campus visit the What to Bring page found HERE.

If you would like to see a 360° picture of the rooms available in each residence hall, you can go to each hall’s page by clicking HERE to go to our Housing Options page and selecting the residence hall you would like to see.

Please note, the pictures for each room type are an approximation of what the room will look like on move in day, and not every room type has pictures available.

A full breakdown of housing rates can be found on our Housing Rates page found HERE. Simply select the academic year you need to see the rates for. Housing Rates are set by the university Board of Governors, and the upcoming year’s rates are updated each spring semester.

Room sizes vary between each residence hall because of each building’s unique design and room types. With all of these rooms different sizes, Residence Life does not have exact room, window, or closet measurements for each specific room on campus.

In place of this, approximate sizes are listed on each residence hall’s page found on the Housing Options page HERE, and it is highly recommended that you measure your room after you arrive prior to purchasing items that require specific dimensions (carpet, curtains, etc).

For information about Pet-Friendly Housing, please visit our website HERE.

Most students find a standard-size shower curtain to be sufficient. It is advisable students wait until they have moved into their room to measure the shower before purchasing a shower curtain.

Students are allowed to stay in campus housing over university breaks for a fee. To see more information about our break housing, please visit the Resident Information page of our website HERE under the section “University Break Housing”.

To see information on summer housing options, please visit our Summer Housing page HERE.

For more information on our room change process, please visit our website HERE.

Housing at Campbell Apartments is limited to students who meet any of the following qualifications:

  • Any student applying for family housing
  • Any student over the age of 21
  • Any transfer student with thirty credits or more
  • Any student who has lived on-campus a previous academic year

For more information about housing at Campbell Apartments, click HERE.

Yes! Our residence halls are home to a number of different options and communities. To see what is available, visit our Special Housing Options page HERE.

Our residence hall rooms come furnished with enough furniture for each resident living in the space. To see a full list of supplied furniture, please visit the General Amenities page of our website HERE. 

No. In areas that are not air conditioned, air conditioners must be approved as an accommodation for a disability by the Disabilities Services Office. If an accommodation for an air conditioner is granted, the university will provide the air conditioner.

Students may have microwaves smaller than 1,000 watts. Microwaves 1,000 watts and higher can cause electrical outage problems in the residence halls.

Microfridge units (a combination refrigerator and microwave) are available for rent through the Residence Life Office.

Microwaves for community use are provided in floor kitchens and students are expected to ensure they are clean after each use.

Students are permitted to bring their own refrigerator, so long as it is less than 2’w x 3’h x 2’d.

If you would like to rent a Microfridge unit (a combination refrigerator and microwave) from Residence Life, you can find all of the information on rentals and our Microfridge units on the Fridges and Microwaves page HERE. 

Yes, to see more information about cancelling your Microfridge rental, visit the Fridges and Microwaves page found HERE under the section titled “What if I want to cancel my Microfridge unit”.

Students who wish to bring a vehicle to campus must register it with the Department of Public Safety (DPS). You will get an application with your housing information if you are a first-time student. If you are a returning student, you must contact DPS directly for your application or use their on-line registration form, located on their website. For more information about parking or campus police services, visit the DPS website HERE.

All residence halls include wired and wireless internet. If you need assistance connecting your devices, please contact IT Services or visit their website HERE.

Truman strives to have a safe and open campus. Balancing those values requires the active awareness and participation of all residents. During the day, residents and visitors can enter the residence halls on their own to visit friends, meet up in common spaces, and enter the dining facilities.

With so many people coming and going, it is important for residents to secure their room door and take their key and ID with them when they leave their room. Students who notice concerning behaviors should report those concerns to a staff member. At 10:30 PM, the exterior doors of the building lock. Students living on campus use their ID card to enter the residence halls electronically, and students only have access to their own residence hall.

The non-emergency telephone number for Public Safety is (660) 665 – 5621. The emergency number is x911. Public Safety has fully sanctioned police officers and trained security patrol to monitor and secure the outside of buildings, as well as public areas, and to assist with any emergency within the University.

You can find the university alcohol policy and all other Residence Life rules and policies on our website’s Rules page HERE.

More information on how to request an extra long bed can be found on our website HERE.

Housing Contracts signed in the Fall are for the entire academic year.

Housing Contracts are available for the Spring semester only, for students who wish to return to campus mid-year.

First-year students are required to live on campus their first academic year as a part of the Student On-Campus Residency Requirement of the University Housing Contract. Students attending Truman for their first semester in the fall are prohibited under this requirement to move off-campus for the spring semester.

Exceptions to the on-campus residency requirement include:

  1. Living within 50 miles of campus, with an immediate family member (parent, grandparent, or legal guardian)
  2. Student released due to marriage, parenthood, over the age of 21, or other justified special case
  3. Have extenuating circumstances resulting in an exception being approved by the Director of Residence Life

Students can submit a First Year Residency Waiver, found on the Housing Forms page HERE under the “Services” section. Please note that students must receive written approval from Residence Life before they can stay at a residence off-campus.

The housing contract can be found on our Housing Forms page HERE, under the “Housing” section.

Students currently in their first academic year at the University are required to live on-campus as a part of the Student On-Campus Residency Requirement of the University Housing Contract. Students attending Truman for their first semester in the fall are prohibited under this requirement to move off-campus for the spring semester.

Upper-class students who wish to break your contract and cancel your room assignment, will need to fill out the Housing Cancellation Form, which can be found HERE, under “Services”. Students cancelling for the spring semester are only released from their contract if they meet any of the qualifications listed under section “Release from Contract” of the University Housing Contract.

Students are encouraged to review the housing contract before cancelling their housing to see if there will be any contract breakage fees. The housing contract can be found HERE, under “Housing”.

Students are allowed to submit appeals to the Residence Life office for any charge placed by Residence Life. To see more information about the appeal process and how to submit an appeal, visit our website HERE, under the section titled “Housing Charges Appeal Process”.

You can find a full list of our staff with contact information HERE.

All of these roles make up our residence hall teams, and without them supporting residents’ needs wouldn’t be possible. To see a full description of each role in Residence Life you can visit our Staff Roles page HERE.

You can always email us at reslife@truman.edu or call our central office at 660-785-4227. To get in contact with a specific member of the Residence Life team, you can find a full list of staff contact information HERE.

You can find Residence Life’s mission statement and a full explanation of our residential curriculum HERE.

Have questions?

Don’t see your question listed here? You can always email reslife@truman.edu or call us at 660-785-4227.

Residence Life