Welcome / Where You'll Live

ATTENTION NEW STUDENTS: Click here to read about
what every new student should know

A LOT OF WHAT YOU LEARN in college happens outside the classroom. Because we believe valuable life lessons come from living in community, we’re a residential campus. That means you’re required to live in a residence hall or other campus housing. Whether you choose to live in a hall, a small living unit (SLU), or pledge a fraternity (sororities are non-residential), you’ll meet new friends and gain an appreciation for other cultures. You’ll also begin to make the decisions that go along with living away from home. If you need some help, Residential Life’s professional staff and student assistants will work with you to solve problems, deal with personal issues, and refer you to additional assistance if necessary.

Except for Hayes Hall, which is for women only, all Ohio Wesleyan residence halls are co-ed, separated by suite, room, or floor. Other halls include Welch Hall (honors); Smith Hall East and West (two floors in Smith West are wellness/substance-free); Thomson Hall; and Bashford Hall. As a first-year student you’ll live with other first-years in a suite or room, but among upper-class students, unless you’re part of our YearOne Program. YearOne students live in a wellness/substance-free community in Bashford and Thomson Halls. All OWU residence halls are smoke-free.  Stuyvesant Hall, our oldest residence hall, is under renovation for the 2011-2012 academic year.

After a year in a residence hall, you might choose to live in a SLU—a small living unit whose members share a specific interest and a house. This year’s SLUs include:

• The Citizens of the World House
• The House of Black Culture
• The House of Thought
• The Inter-Faith House
• The Modern Foreign Language House
• The Peace and Justice House
• The Tree House
• The Women’s House

Upperclass students have the opportunity for a unique intergenerational living experience at Austin Manor, where you’ll share an apartment with friends, and your neighbors may be alumni, faculty, retirees—or all three.

All residence halls and SLUs are within walking distance of campus and historic downtown Delaware, so you won’t really need a car. If you do need a car, you may bring one and purchase a parking permit.  Juniors and seniors may purchase permits to park in residential areas.  First-year and sophomore students may participate in a lottery for a limited number of residential parking spaces or you may purchase a permit for a periphery lot. You’ll have to register your car, and everyone with a car pays a yearly parking fee.

Residency Requirements and Room Assignments

Living in an on-campus residential learning community throughout one’s college career is an integral part of the Ohio Wesleyan University educational experience.  As a residential university, we require full-time enrolled students to reside on campus unless they meet one of the following criteria of exception:

1.       Residing with parents or legal guardians at their primary place of residence in Delaware County;

2.       23 years of age or older during the academic year for which an exception is requested ;

3.       Fifth year seniors;

4.       Legally married (must provide documentation);

5.       Parents of dependent children (must provide documentation);

6.       Medical or psychological conditions that cannot be accommodated by the university.  Ohio Wesleyan University is committed to making accommodations in our residences for medical or psychological conditions for which a student has been diagnosed by a licensed health care provider. These accommodations are made in consultation with university personnel including representatives from Student Health Services, Counseling Services, and the Academic Resource Center.   In rare circumstances when the university is unable to make accommodations as determined by these university personnel, the student will be granted an exception.