Housing Capacity Issues Fall 2019 | Public Relations & Marketing

Statement:

“The value of a University of Kentucky degree is exemplified by our record first-year enrollment and record retention rates. More students, both first-year and returning, want to live in our on-campus housing because we know that decision results in higher grade point averages and great academic success. The result is a temporary capacity issue. With student success as our core value, our residence life and housing staff are developing solutions in partnership with our resident advisors. We will communicate a more specific plan this week and will be communicating directly with students and parents. We will honor our obligations and ensure that UK students who have a fall 2019 housing application to live on campus will receive an assignment.” -Jay Blanton, UK spokesman

Additional Details:

The size of UK’s expected incoming class is currently slated to be the largest in our history.
Our previous record first-year enrollment was 5,211 in 2015.
We also reached our highest ever retention rate this past year at 84.5%
And, we have a record number of returners—students who lived in a residence hall last year and chose to return this year—at 2,425.
That means more and more students value the education they receive at UK, and more and more students are succeeding and returning.
However, with the growth we have a challenge. A record number of applications for on-campus housing from both first-year and returning students have resulted in the number of applications exceeding the number of available residence hall beds.
We added 6,850 new beds across 14 residence halls over the past five years. These halls are designed to provide students with more support spaces and innovative learning spaces, in an environment to thrive and build community.
Every eligible UK student who completed a housing application received a housing assignment before the start of the fall term.
Students and parents may contact the Campus Housing Office at 859-257-1866, if they have questions or if they didn’t receive the communication. They may also learn more at this website: https://www.uky.edu/housing/capacity-faqs.

Communication:

Blog, July 29, 2019: Commitment to Student Success Drives Housing Plan