Summer Housing FAQ

We have vacancies for Summer 2024!

Below are some answers to common questions about Summer co-op housing.

Who is eligible for summer housing?

To be eligible for Summer co-op housing you must either be a student Spring 2024 OR Fall 2024 OR taking UCB Summer courses.

What kind of documentation do I need to verify my eligibility?

You do not need to be taking classes during Summer 2024 if you were a student Spring 2024 or will be Fall 2024.

  1. A copy of your Spring 2024 class schedule OR
  2. A copy of your Fall 2024 acceptance letter OR
  3. A copy of your UCB Summer 2024 confirmed class schedule (If your class schedule is pdf password protected, please provide the password) OR
  4. If you attend a college/university other than UCB, a screenshot of your Spring 2024 class schedule, with your full name, the name of your university and the number of units enrolled.

*If you are interested in living at Cloyne Court during the Summer, you must be either a registered UC Berkeley student Spring 2024 or Fall 2024 or enrolled in 5 or more units at UCB during Summer 2024.

*We will not be able to consider you for summer assignment until we have received the proper verification of summer membership eligibility. When you send your student verification, please indicate which Summer wait list you are interested in (first half, second half or full summer). Please send your verification by email to housing@bsc.coop.*

When should I expect to hear from you? How will you contact me?

We are going to make assignments for the upcoming Summer primarily through a process called “self-select” where you log into the Member Portal on or after your scheduled time to select a spot from a list of available vacancies.

We will email our first round of access codes to people on the First Half or Full Summer waitlists who have verified their student status eligibility by the end of the day Friday, March 8 with a time to log in the week of March 11 and select a space for Summer. If you verify your student eligibility after March 8, we will reply to your email with an update on the assignment process. We continue to make Summer assignments until late July.

When you receive your login time for First Half or Full Summer, you should log into the member portal exactly at your appointment time so that you have a better chance of selecting a co-op that you like. It is also recommended that you have a strong and secure internet connection to complete the self-selection process.

When you log in, you will be able to select your space for the Summer from a list of available spaces.

If you select a space, you will be sent an email no later than the end of the day, Friday, March 29 with information about how to sign your contract and make the appropriate rent payment. Contracts for Summer will be due with rent payment or payment arrangement request with a deadline that is still to be determined.

If you are on the Second Half of Summer waiting list, you MUST have housing preferences attached to your application as all Second Half of Summer assignments are made manually in May.

Important DSP Information: If you are seeking a DSP accommodation assignment (such as an ESA or single bedroom), you must contact Giovanni Smith, housing supervisor, as Giovanni makes all accommodation assignments. Giovanni may be reached at gsmith@bsc.coop.

What should I consider before making my housing preferences?

Hoyt Hall and Sherman Hall (which are women-identified only during the academic year) is co-ed during the Summer.

Houses offering food during Summer will be: Davis, Hillegass Parker, Hoyt, Lothlorien (vegetarian food), Oscar Wilde (LGBTQIA+ Theme House), Person of Color Theme House, and Wolf. This list may be subject to change. All other houses will be open for Room-Only contracts.

There will be some maintenance/construction projects over the summer which may impact your living environment and where you would like to live this summer. Follow this link for a list of currently planned maintenance/construction projects. This list will be updated as more information becomes available. Kingman will be closed this Summer.

If you have questions about maintenance/construction projects, contact the central-level maintenance department at 510-549-5965 or Pavin Johnson, maintenance director, at pjohnson@bsc.coop.

The co-ops that will be open for room and board are Castro (POC Theme House), Davis, Hillegass Parker, Hoyt, Kingman, Lothlorien, and Wolf. This list may be subject to change.

Members should expect to live in a shared bedroom in the co-op houses. Rooms are assigned by a process called Room Bids. Apartment spaces in Rochdale and Fenwick are all single rooms. All rooms in the graduate/re-entry co-ops, Convent and Hillegass Parker are also single bedrooms.

During the summer only, you do not need to be a UC Berkeley student to live at Rochdale, Fenwick, or Convent, as long as you are otherwise eligible. You do need to be a UC Berkeley student to live at Cloyne Court.

What is the summer contract period?

We have three Summer contract periods

Taking summer courses at UC Berkeley? Summer contract periods are designed to fit the UC Berkeley Summer Session schedule. You can sign for either the first half, second half or the full summer.

  • The full Summer contract period is May 18–August 9.
  • The first half of summer contract is May 18–June 28.
  • The second half of summer contract is June 29–August 9.

Follow this link for Summer 2024 rates.

Can I cancel a contract once I sign? What will it cost?

You may cancel a Summer 2023 contract without financial penalty as long as you do so on the BSC member portal by April 5 . Summer cancellations received after the April 5 deadline will be VERY expensive. If your space is not filled, your maximum liability will be full rent charges for the duration of your Summer contract term.

Will there be food?

Houses offering food during summer will be: Davis, Hillegass Parker, Hoyt, Lothlorien (vegetarian food), Oscar Wilde (LGBTQIA+ Theme House), Person of Color Theme House, and Wolf. All other houses will be open for Room-Only during Summer 2023.

Some room-only houses may decide to charge a fee to keep staples on hand for all. This fee will be voted on at the first house council meeting of the summer. You will have kitchen privileges in a communal kitchen in your house or an individual kitchen in your apartment.

Can I stay for Fall?

Summer residents who live in the co-ops for at least six weeks will have priority on the Fall waiting list at the end of the six weeks First half and full Summer contract holders have a better chance of receiving an offer for Fall as they will earn their co-op point the first week in July. Living in the co-op during the second half only generally does not increase chances for Fall as these residents will not earn their co-op point until August 12 and at this time we are generally full for the Fall. However, Summer housing does not guarantee you a space for Fall.

Interested in living in the co-op for the Academic Year 2023-2024? Living in the co-op during the First Half of Summer or Full Summer can increase your chances of receiving an offer for the Fall, though it does not guarantee you a spot for Fall. Living in the co-op during the second half only generally does not increase chances for Fall as these residents will not earn their co-op point until August 12 and at this time we are generally full for the Fall.

Summer contracts do NOT extend into the Fall term. You must be assigned separately off the Fall waitlist. If you are interested in Fall/Spring academic year co-op housing, you must add yourself to the Fall waiting list on the member portal.

Spaces for Fall are assigned from a separate waiting list and are more competitive. If you are also interested in Fall, make sure you put yourself on the Fall waiting list too. (No additional fee is required.). The more co-ops you are interested in and the longer you remain on the Fall waitlist, the better your chances of receiving an assignment for Fall. We begin to make Fall assignments in late March and we continue until November as we process contract cancellations.

What are my chances of being assigned for Summer?

We have many vacancies for Summer provided you are somewhat flexible in the co-ops you will live in. The more housing preferences you are interested in, the more likely it is to be assigned more quickly. The first half of Summer and full Summer have a lot of availability. The second half of Summer is sometimes more impacted.

What is the Summer Workshift requirement?

The workshift requirement will be 5 hours a week for room-only houses and 5 hours per week in the room and board houses. In the apartments, the workshift requirement is 6 hours per six week session for people who hold contracts for only one Summer session and 12 hours for the Summer if you hold a contract for the full Summer.

Follow this link for more information about workshifts.

Will I get a single room?

The houses have single, double, and triple rooms (a few houses have quads). You will select your permanent bedroom and roommates after you move in during a process called room bids. All members should expect a shared bedroom in all co-op houses. If you have questions about the room bid process contact the house manager where you will be assigned. Follow this link for a list of house manager emails.

The houses have from 10 to 94 bedrooms and features such as:

  • large communal kitchens and dining rooms
  • shared common spaces (living rooms, TV rooms porches, roof decks, backyards, gardens and other hang-out spaces)
  • various amenities depending on the house

Sharing common spaces connects people and builds a sense of community. Sharing chores and running a house democratically creates the trust and positive relationships among housemates that can be absent in other living situations.

You are guaranteed a single bedroom only in our two grad/re-entry co-ops, the Convent and Hillegass Parker,(which are single bedrooms in a shared house), and in the Rochdale and Fenwick apartments (single bedrooms in a shared 2, 3, or 4 bedroom apartment). Studio apartments are more limited; studios are one person only and a 1 bedroom can be one or two people. If you live in a 1 bedroom apartment, we will not assign a random person to live with you, but you may choose to live with another eligible member if you like.

Subletting is strictly prohibited.

What if I want to live with someone specific?

It's easier to get a spot in the larger houses and when you participate in self-select, you can both sign up for the same co-op.

The houses have single, double, and triple rooms (a few houses have quads). You will select your permanent bedroom and roommates after you move in during a process called room bids. All members should expect a shared bedroom in all co-op houses. If you have questions about the room bid process contact the house manager where you will be assigned. Follow this link for a list of house manager emails.

Follow this link for more information about our houses/apartments.

Will my room be furnished?

Each resident is guaranteed a bed, desk, dresser or wardrobe and chair. If any of these things are not there when you arrive, just ask your house manager. Follow this link for a list of House manager emails.

How much will Summer housing cost?

Follow this link for our Summer 2023 rates.