Student Living

West Chester University provides housing facilities for its graduate students on a limited basis for the regular school year and as available during summer sessions. The University, through the West Chester University Foundation, offers housing options on campus that are referred to as affiliated housing. University Hall, Allegheny Hall, Brandywine Hall, and Commonwealth Hall are suite-style residence halls on North Campus, and The Village and East Village apartments have four-bedroom units located on South Campus. These facilities offer all the same opportunities found in University-owned housing but are managed through an arrangement with University Student Housing, a subsidiary of the WCU Foundation.

Graduate students are expected to abide by all regulations appropriate to their living arrangements. Upon acceptance to graduate study, students may contact the Office of Residence Life and Housing Services for additional information and applications for on-campus housing. Students are encouraged to contact this office as early as possible since the availability of on-campus housing varies based on the time of year that the request is made.

For assistance in locating a dwelling or apartment off campus, students may contact the Office of Off Campus and Commuter Services (OCCS). OCCS partners with Off Campus Partners to provide a FREE service for all students to use as an effective method of finding roommates and a place to live off campus. The office is located in Sykes Student Union, Rm 238, commuters@wcupa.edu.

The Office of Residence Life and Housing Services is located in 202 Lawrence Center, 610-436-3307. The University Student Housing Leasing Center is located in Commonwealth Hall, 610-430-4988.

Mission

West Chester University’s Department of Off-Campus and Commuter Services (OCCS) supports equitable access to curricular and co-curricular experiences and institutional resources, regardless of a student’s place of residence.

OCCS is committed to fostering an inclusive environment that connects off-campus and commuter students with the university and the larger West Chester area community through intentional engagement opportunities to support institutional retention and graduation goals.

Vision

West Chester University’s Department of Off-Campus and Commuter Services will be a nationally recognized model for providing exemplary engagement, educational, advocacy, and empowerment opportunities to support off-campus and commuter student success.

OCCS oversees the Free Student Legal Service, providing 15 minute consultations on a variety of civil and criminal issues - landlord/tenant, leases, citations, etc. This service is available by appointment for undergraduate and graduate students.

Off Campus and Commuter Services is located in 238 Sykes Student Union, commuters@wcupa.edu.

Students who choose to live in the Borough of West Chester and the surrounding communities must secure their own living accommodations. OCCS partners with Off Campus Partners to provide off campus housing solutions and will provide information and support to students who are searching for off campus housing opportunities. Additional information about living off campus can be found on the web at www.wcupa.edu/occs/. If you are interested in renting off campus in the Borough of West Chester or the Township of West Goshen, please note that it has student-zoned housing -- "a living arrangement for at least two students to a maximum of four students who are unrelated by blood, marriage or legal adoption" -- and considers the definition of a student as the following: "an individual who is enrolled or has made application and been accepted at a university, college, or trade school and is taking at least 6 credit hours and whose primary occupation is as a student or who is on a semester or summer break from studies at a university, college, or trade school." This applies to undergraduate and graduate students.