Dorms at USF are Filled to Capacity This Fall

The University of South Florida Has a Record Number of Students Living On Campus This Year

USF Residence Halls(usf/usf.edu)

Today, August 18, 2022, is the University of South Florida (USF) Grand Opening. It's the day the University is open to all students to start moving in if they are residing on campus.

This year, all of the USF resident halls are filled to capacity at both the Tampa and Saint Petersburg campuses. USF has a total of 33 residence halls on both campuses.

Tampa campus will have nearly 6,500 students living in dorms and more than 900 students will reside in the St. Petersburg dorms. The total number of students living in residence halls is approximately 7,400.

Grand Opening Facts and Stats:

• More than 400 student volunteers have signed up to help their peers move in through USF’s signature Bull Haul program on the Tampa campus.
• Including students, families and other volunteers, USF estimates 10,000 people will be on the Tampa campus Thursday to help welcome and move students into the residence halls.
• Student residents on the Tampa campus represent 46 states and 83 countries; on the St. Petersburg campus, student residents represent 33 states and Puerto Rico as well as 17 countries.
• USF features a total of 19 Living Learning Communities, which are residential communities designed to provide a cohort experience with peers who share similar academic, career and co-curricular interests.

Source: USF Newsroom

USF Fall Grand Opening Move-In Map(usf/usf.edu)

What's New at USF?

Students arriving will be able to take advantage of various new additions on both campuses this fall. A new smoothie and acai bowl franchise, Blenz Bowls will replace the Jamba Juice in the Marshall Student Center on the Tampa campus. The St. Petersburg campus Blenz Bowls opened last year.

Khawa Coffee Replaces Starbucks at the USF St. Pete Campus(usf/usf.edu)

At the St. Petersburg campus, Kahwa has replaced the Coral Café’s Starbucks, located inside the University Student Center. The Student Center in St. Petersburg will also house the Aramark-developed Local Restaurant Row program, which brings local cuisine from minority- and women-owned small businesses to 727 Eats. The Tampa campus' Local Restaurant Row opened last year at 813 Eats in the Marshall Student Center and is a campus favorite.

An 88,000-square-foot indoor performance facility will also open on the Tampa campus this fall. The climate-controlled facility encapsulates an entire football field.

Source: New This Year - USF Newsroom

Not As Easy To Get Housing This Year

USF Fall Move-In for 2022 looks different than last Fall. Returning students are noticing barricades that weren't up last year. More students decided to move in a day or even weeks early when they found out the same options for housing just weren't as liberal this year.

Alahni White - Second Year Pre-Med Student at USF(Melani Rivera/Aloha Melani)

I got lucky last year as a Freshman, said second-year pre-med student, Alahni White. I didn't sign up on time for my dorm and had to be put on a waiting list, but I was told enough people will cancel their dorm reservations so I didn't have to worry. I got a dorm room a day after being on the waiting list. This year there is no waiting list. I have some friends that had to figure out how to live off campus. ~Alahni White USF Sophomore

Although many colleges across the country have long waiting lists, this year USF students who did not apply for housing by the deadline did not have the option to get on a waiting list.

Another housing option that was not openly available to all students this year is one-person suites. The only option to have your own room is to be in an apartment-style dorm room, where several students share the same apartment, but get their own small room. Special circumstances warranted single suites this year according to Alahni White, a second year USF student who tried to apply for one-person suites.

Grand Opening

This week also launches USF’s annual Week of Welcome, which is packed with activities to get students engaged in campus life. This includes a kickoff event tonight, Thursday, Aug. 18, with the traditional balloon drop at 7 p.m. in the Marshall Student Center. During the first week of Fall classes, there will be a pep rally on Friday, Aug. 26.

Fall semester classes start Monday, Aug. 22.

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