Student Housing for Student Success: Through intentional engagement with resident students, HRL focuses its efforts on developing students both personally and professionally throughout their time on campus. By living on campus, students are footsteps away from a variety of academic, cultural and social experiences that are hard to get elsewhere.
As a result of the residential experience, resident students can expect to:
Connect: Engage and connect with the campus community
Engage with fellow community members
Experience different people and ideas
Care: Learn ways to take care of yourself
Recognize habits that promote a healthy lifestyle
Identify appropriate resources and interventions related to physical and mental wellness
Explore: Discover and discuss new ideas outside of the classroom
Interact with faculty and University leaders in the residential setting
Discuss intellectual topics with faculty and fellow community members
Thrive: Develop skills to thrive beyond UM
Discover tools and strategies promoting the advancement of interpersonal skills
Recognize the resources and behaviors that promote academic, intrapersonal and professional success
The Residential Leadership Council program is an opportunity for resident students to develop their leadership skills as engaged members of their residential community. Throughout the year, members of the council coordinate social programs and provide feedback on the overall residential experience. Students interested in joining the council should speak with their RA/CA once they arrive on campus.
Residential Colleges
The University of Miami's Residential Collegessupport and enhance student learning and engagement through interactions with live-in faculty and student affairs staff, as well as a wide range of programming, seminars, lectures, field trips, and recreational activities throughout the academic year.
Area Directors are the primary administrators of each residential area and strive to maintain an environment that promotes academic, developmental, and social success. This is accomplished through coordinating educational programming in each area, collaborating with live-in faculty regarding academic initiatives, responding to resident issues or concerns, and serving as a crisis manager and a judicial officer.
Office Supervisors are full-time staff members responsible for the oversight and management of the residential area reception desks. They serve as liaisons between the residential areas and a number of University offices, including Parking, Purchasing, Accounts Payable, Facilities, GCA, etc. These supervisors also supervise reception desk student staff and oversee desk operations including mail/package delivery and cart/vacuum check-out.
Resident Assistants (RAs) and Community Assistants (CAs) are live-in student leaders who serve as residents' primary resource for campus information and for students' transition into the next stage of their personal and professional development on campus. RAs/Cas are the ultimate, versatile students that can provide their resident students with the help they need in day-to-day college life.
Residential Faculty and Faculty Fellows are present in the Residential Colleges and serve as resources for students. The faculty hold office hours in the buildings, host dinners in their apartments, and work with the student staff to provide programming for residents that focus on current events, social issues, and faculty members' research interests.
The Senior Advisor for Residential College Advising assists residential students in first-year communities and handles academic concerns related to major and career exploration. They frequently advise students on developing four-year plans and connect students to campus resources to aid in their success. Advisors also support at-risk students through outreach and programming efforts in the Residential Colleges, working with the Residential Faculty and First Year Fellows. They oversee the First Year Fellow peer mentorship role available in Eaton, Hecht, and Stanford Residential Colleges.
First Year Fellows (FYFs) are upperclassmen student leaders living in first-year communities who build relationships with and support students as they transition into the college experience. FYFs develop and implement academic and personal development initiatives and programs for their residents throughout the year. FYFs, who report to the Office of Academic Enhancement, also work closely with the RAs to build a community that supports living and learning.
Safety & Security
In addition to the University of Miami Police Department, HRL Safety & Security staff utilize card swipe access so that only residents and properly credentialed staff have access to the non-public areas of the buildings.
Our reception desks are staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with our Resident Assistants and Desk Assistants from 8 a.m. - 10 p.m. daily, and from 10 p.m. - 8 a.m. with our Student Security Staff, who are responsible for signing in every guest and maintaining a desk presence in the event of an emergency. In addition to regular desk hours, RAs/CAs are on duty for crisis response should one occur.
Comprised of professional and student staff, the HRL Safety & Security team is responsible for maintaining a safe environment, educating residents, and responding to crises between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. Security Assistants are student employees that operate the security posts in each residential college. SAs screen individuals who enter the building, check in guests, monitor fire alarms and access doors, and serve as first responders to emergency situations that may arise throughout the night.
Residential Life Night Managers are professional staff members who support RAs and Safety and Security student staff throughout the night, especially in crisis response. Together with Safety and Security staff, Night Managers plan semester programs and outreach initiatives designed to educate residents about on-campus safety and security.
Live-On Requirement
All non-local first-year students are required to live in University housing for two academic semesters, as long as space is available. This policy does not apply to first-year students living with parents or legal guardians in Miami-Dade or Broward counties.
Ready to apply for on-campus housing? New students - including those transferring to UM from another institution - who have been admitted to the University are eligible to apply for housing via CaneLink under the "UM Housing" section. To activate access to the housing application link, admitted students must pay the $500 enrollment deposit to verify their admission acceptance.
