Information for Parents
View important housing announcements and messages on the Senior Director's Corner page
Support from parents is an important part of a student's transition to college life.
A student's transition to college can be a challenging time for parents. For the first time, your child will be living away from home, doing laundry (you hope), deciding when and what to eat (not just pizza, please), and generally far away from your watchful eye. As a parent, you will be worried, and Student Housing is committed to providing you with as much information as you need to help alleviate your concerns.
Residence Halls
Get acquainted with the USF residence halls by visiting the Residence Halls webpage, which lists information on each building, including a brief history, a list of amenities, and photos of building exteriors, community areas, and rooms. The mailing address of each building is also listed on this webpage.
Room Rates
It is important that you and your student understand the cost of living in a residence hall. View the Room Rates webpage for a breakdown of on campus housing costs.
Applying for Housing
Applying for on-campus housing at USF is an easy process that is completed entirely online. Students can log in, view buildings they are eligible to live in, create a profile, find a compatible roommate, and more. For more information about applying for housing, including user guides and FAQ, visit the Apply webpage.
Regulations and Policies
The Fogcutter Student Handbook contains important information on student rights and responsibilities, university policies and regulations, student organizations, and more. Parents may refer to the Fogcutter for information on official Student Housing policies and regulations. They are located via the "Student Residential Policies" link in the menu.
Further information on University policies and regulations, can be found in the USF General Catalog.
Some of the topics included in the Fogcutter and the General Catalog include the following: housing guest and visitation policy, emergency procedures, academic honesty, leaves and withdrawal, grading system, probation and disqualification, academic requirements for graduation, drug and alcohol use, smoking, privacy of student records, sexual misconduct, and more.
Packing List
To get a list of what students should pack and what they should leave behind, take a look at What's In My Room. This web page will list the furniture included in each room, essential items to bring, recommended items, and items that are not permitted in rooms. Just remember: your child will inevitably forget to pack something essential.
Also, visit the Student Housing Vendors webpage to learn more about how to rent a Microfridge®, order linens and/or care packages for your student, and order renter's insurance.
Holidays
Before booking flight tickets home for your student, make sure to check the Academic Calendar to find out when university holidays and finals week take place.
Dining
Students living in all residence halls except St. Anne's, Fulton Flats, and Fulton House must purchase the Flexi Standard Meal Plan. Students living in Loyola Village and Lone Mountain-East must purchase the Apartment/Suite Flexi Meal Plan. For more information, visit the Meal Plans webpage.
Dining services on campus offer a selection of healthy food choices, including vegetarian and vegan options. For more information about dining on campus, visit the Bon Appetit website.
Parking
All students who receive and live in on-campus housing are not allowed to bring their cars to campus, as parking is very limited at USF. Please refer to the Public Safety Parking and Transportation webpage for more information.
Public Safety
Public Safety is committed to maintaining a safe and secure campus for all students, faculty, staff, and visitors. Some of the services Public Safety offers include:
- 24-hour campus patrol by Public Safety Officers, on foot, in marked vehicles, Segways, and electric motorbikes.
- A Dispatch Communications Center that operates 24-hours per day. USF community members may call the 24-hour emergency number to report accidents, crimes, suspicious persons, hazards and other emergencies.
- Direct-dial emergency phones located outside campus buildings, in most parking lots and all multi-level parking garages. These phones are housed in yellow boxes and are labeled with red and white signs. Several phones are also accompanied by steady burning blue lights.
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A Safety Escort service that operates from 7:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. with the USF campus shuttle, Monday through Sunday. Uniformed Public Safety Officers also assist in providing Safety Escorts when the USF Shuttle is not in service
Non-emergency business number: (415) 422-4222
Non-emergency dispatch number: (415) 422-4201
Emergency dispatch number: (415) 422-2911
For more information, please visit the Public Safety webpage.
Privacy
Students enrolled at USF are protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), also known as the Buckley Amendment. Under this federal law, students are afforded the right to privacy. Institutions of higher education may not disclose personally-identifiable student information without the consent of the student, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. This means that information such as grades, GPA, class schedule, hours enrolled, financial aid, tuition and billing information, etc., may not be disclosed to any third-party, including parents, without the written consent of the student. The directory information that may be disclosed without student consent includes the following at USF: student's name, school of enrollment, credit hour load (full-time, part time), periods of enrollment, USF email address, degree(s) awarded and date(s) of conferral, honors, participation in athletic activities, weight and height of athletic participants, major and minor fields, and dean's list.
Students may choose to authorize the release of information to a third-party (i.e. parents) by completing the Student Consent to Release Information form.
Books
Your student can order required books from the USF Bookstore, located on the 1st floor of the University Center building. Students have the option to rent and/or purchase books on through the Bookstore website.
You can view what books are required for each course and even find the ISBN numbers in the online Schedule of Classes. View the Course and Final Exam Schedule Page, then click on the "Search for Classes Here" link, and then follow the links to search for classes. Once you have found a course, click on the "View Book Info" button to view the required books for the course.