When a student enrolls in college, most of the time, they plan to live in a dorm on campus. However, at Ringling College of Art and Design, students wait anxiously for their winning ticket in the housing lottery.
Their Office of Housing claims to be committed to providing housing options for all students, but with its increasing student body, is there enough space for everyone to live on campus?
As the housing demand rises, students are left wondering whether the college can truly accommodate all who wish to live on campus.
(Tanaya Williams) Goldstein Hall, one of the two first-year dorm buildings, located behind the student recreation center.
Acceptance Rate and Housing Demand
According to Prepscholar, Ringling’s acceptance rate is 64.7%. This number shocked students as they said they felt Ringling accepts far more students than they can house. As stated on Ringling’s diversity page, roughly 20.3% freshmen of the 1,660 students are international students.
Ringling also states, “Since the Spring semester of 2024, the Committee has begun identifying ways for Ringling College to further embrace and share our campus culture as one of inclusion and support for the diversity of all people within our campus community.”
Many who don’t receive housing struggle to find a place to stay near campus. It’s clear that diversity is welcomed, but is Ringling doing enough to support its diverse population?
Laura Pressley, a rising sophomore student, expressed her concerns for international students by saying, “What do you mean you’re gonna go to a different country and pay so much and dedicate your time to this school, and they can’t even ensure you have a place to stay?”
Housing Options and Conditions
At Ringling, there are many different housing options available both on and off campus. On the campus, the first year housing buildings are the Goldstein Hall and the Greensboro Hall–centrally located on campus for convenience.
(Tanaya Williams) The front of the Bridge Apartments, a 3-story, on-campus building that houses juniors and seniors.
(Tanaya Williams) The back of the Bayou Village Apartments; a 3-story, on-campus building that typically houses juniors and seniors, a few sophomores if they join a group with upperclassmen.
There are 6 on-campus buildings and 2 off-campus buildings for upperclassmen. This seems like an adequate amount of housing options for the roughly 1,660 students, but students say there’s barely any room for everyone.
Marisa Medina, another rising sophomore, said, “You could literally end up homeless or even in more debt just so you can go to school and it’s not fair.” Unfortunately, that statement isn’t far from the truth. A photography senior also revealed they heard about a few people being homeless while going to Ringling because they couldn’t receive housing under the housing lottery system.
Housing Lottery Experience
The overall process to enter the housing lottery is quite simple. Under the ‘Housing’ tab on https://ringling.erezlife.com, a student makes an account, fills out basic information, and completes the application. Once complete, they can decide to room with up to 3 others. Then, you make a roommate group, select it as your preferred group, and wait for an email to tell you what time your lottery slot is.
This system, however, raises some questions. Students wonder “Why is there even a lottery?” and “Why isn’t housing guaranteed for everyone who pays tuition?
Costs
Outside of inadequate space for students, the cost is another variable that increases frustration with the housing lottery system. Under Ringling’s tuition and fees page, it says that tuition, tuition fees, and room and board totals to $76,570 for the 2024-25 first year students. About 25% of that total is the price of housing–$18,670 per year. The cost of housing per semester ranges from $4,120 to $9,505.
Even when students are able to secure housing, oftentimes, they have to pay for a meal plan that they don’t need because it’s required. This increases frustration and forces students to pay for a resource they don’t use.
The Future
So if there’s not enough housing for everyone on campus to live in, then what should Ringling do? Some students suggested getting rid of the lottery system entirely and replacing it with a system that’s similar to registering for classes. Other suggestions were to only accept as many students as they can house or make more dorm buildings.
Conclusion
Many students have expressed their concerns over the availability of housing and the lottery system. The general consensus is Ringling doesn’t have enough to fit their students’ needs. Reducing the acceptance rate and building more adequate housing options are the most plausible solutions. In order to meet the needs of its diverse student body, it’s clear Ringling needs to reassess its housing system to ensure every student has a place to stay while pursuing their education.
Sources:
https://www.prepscholar.com/sat/s/colleges/Ringling-College-of-Art-and-Design-admission-requirements#:~:text=The%20acceptance%20rate%20at%20Ringling,more%20flexible%20than%20other%20schools – used for Ringling’s acceptance rate
https://ringling.erezlife.com/resources/ – used as an overview of the housing lottery process
https://www.ringling.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2025-Website-New-Student-Housing-Information.pdf – used for first-year housing information
https://www.ringling.edu/about/diversity-at-ringling/ –amount of international student
https://www.ringling.edu/admissions/financial-aid-and-tuition/tuition/ –tution and housing costs
Marisa Medina – rising sophomore, illustration major
Laura Pressley – rising sophomore, illustration major
A Photography major Senior – talk about homelessness
Office of Housing – used for thoughts on housing, not much information that differed from online sources
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