Since Fall 2023, Macalester has operated with a gender-inclusive housing model. This gives students the option to reside and live with other student(s) regardless of sex, gender and/or gender identity, and have access to all-gender bathrooms. Additionally, this model supports our gender needs and allows Residential Life to have facilities and a program that is rooted in universal design. While the majority of our residence halls and buildings will be all-gender housing, there will be some floors and spaces that will have gender-specific spaces and bathrooms. All students will be able to select the housing arrangements that best fit their needs and live in a safe and comfortable living environment. To be more specific, all of our residence halls except for designated areas will be gender inclusive, meaning that the bathrooms in those spaces will be gender inclusive, too. If a student wants or needs to live in a single gender community with designated male and female bathrooms, then they can request to live in Doty Hall (as a first year) or choose to live in Bigelow Hall (during Housing Selection as an upper division student). Currently, our traditional halls (excluding GDD, GCA, and the houses) do not have single stall bathrooms. They are communal bathrooms that have sinks, toilet stalls, and shower stalls within a common space.
All first-year and sophomore students are required to live on campus. The residential life program has great housing options and numerous social and learning opportunities for students based on their class year. Beginning Fall 2028, all first-year, sophomore, and junior students will be required to live on campus.
Opportunities to learn about yourself and others beyond the classroom.
Resident Assistants to help you make the most of living on campus.
The safety and convenience to live where you learn.
2026-2027: room charges per year and per student are TBD. 2025-2026: Room charges per year and per student are as follows: -Language Houses and Eco House – $8,990 -Grand Cambridge Apartments – $9,923 -All other residence halls including Cultural Houses – $8,722 Board charges per year and per student are as follows: -Dining charges per year is $7,754 -Commuter Plan charge per year is $2,030
Residence hall move-in will take place on Monday, August 31, 2026 (between 8am-1pm). Please note, students approved to participate in certain pre-season activities such as PO4IS (Pre-Orientation for International Students), fall athletics, or select Community & Connection Cohort programs should connect with their campus contact for information on relevant pre-season move-in dates/details. To be eligible for Pre-Semester housing (moving in prior to August 31), students must have a housing contract for Fall 2026 and be sponsored by a Macalester department. Special requests for early move-in prior to your allocated move-in slot the following will not be approved: Getting over jetlag, non-Macalester related events, transportation arrangements or prices, and error in scheduling. While this is not an exhaustive list, Residential Life reserves the right to deny or approve requests. Please see the above section for more move-in information.
Based on your preferences, we’ll do our best to assign you a room and roommate or possibly roommates (we have some triple and quad rooms). If you are assigned to a residential first-year course, the course location may take priority over your hall or room-type preference. We don’t encourage roommate requests, and of the mutual requests we receive, we can accommodate very few.
We have a lot of information about each residence hall at Macalester – see the link below. Laundry – Each hall has at least one laundry room. Students can use the laundry for free. Laundry detergent can be purchased at the Highlander campus store on Snelling, or one of the stores within walking distance from campus. Our hall offices have an iron and ironing board for check-out if your clothes need pressing. Cleaning – You may check out a vacuum from the hall office but you’ll have to provide any additional cleaning supplies you may need during the semester. Shower Items – Don’t forget towels, shower shoes or flip flops, and something to carry your personal items to and from the bathroom. Kitchen – The residence halls have kitchens with microwaves and ovens. We don’t allow microwaves in student rooms, but small refrigerators, less than 3.6 cubic feet are permitted. Small refrigerators use lots of electricity and are not very sustainable.
All campus-provided items must remain in the room throughout the year.
Size – Basic room dimensions are listed under Residence Halls. In general, rooms are standard dorm room size. We recommend bringing less so you don’t overcrowd your room.
Bed – Mattress size is twin extra-long, 36 x 80. Our mattresses are comfortable but may not be as thick as you are accustomed to so in addition to the usual bedding you may want to bring a mattress pad of some sort.
Desk – Each residence hall room has a desk. You may want to add a desk lamp since the only other lighting in the room is the overhead fixture.
Dresser/Closet – You’ll need hangers to hang clothes in the closet and a laundry bag or basket for your dirty clothes and linens.
Fan- The residence halls are not air-conditioned, so a small fan is helpful during the first few weeks in September. Air conditioners are not allowed.
Outlets – In case the electrical outlet isn’t near where you want to plug in your electric devices bring a surge protector/extension cord that is UL approved.
These items are not allowed in Residence Hall Rooms:
-Microwave
-Air conditioner
-Nails or tape that damages walls or paint
-Halogen lamps
-Small appliances with an open coil heater such as a hot plate or toaster oven
-Candles or incense
Your personal Housing and Dining Self Service webpage contain your housing and roommate assignments and dining plan selections at Macalester. How to access Housing and Dining Self-Service portal:
1. Log into 1600grand using your Macalester username and password.
2. At the 1600grand page under the Student Life tab, click Housing and Dining Self-Service.
How to access Housing and Dining Agreement and New Student Housing Form (Available in late May and/or early June):
1. Log into 1600grand using your Macalester username and password.
2. At the 1600grand page under the Student Life tab, click Housing and Dining Self-Service.
3. At the top of the page and to the right of the Macalester name and logo, you will notice three lines. Click on those lines and a menu bar will appear on the left side of your screen.
4. Click the Applications button on the left menu bar.
5. Select the New Students Housing Form 2026-2027
6. Read and sign the New Students Housing and Dining Agreement 2026-2027 then click continue.
7. Answer the housing questions, then click continue.
8. Read the final message and click home to complete your New Student Housing Form 2026-2027.
You can revisit your New Student Housing Form in your 1600grand Housing and Dining Self-Service portal to make edits prior to June 28th. If you receive an error message at Housing and Dining Self-Service, please email the Macalester ITS Help Desk at [email protected] for help with privacy settings.
The deadline to complete the New Student Housing Form 2026-2027 is TBD. We will communicate with you via email by middle to end of July regarding your housing assignment. A date will be finalized as we get closer to the summer.
If you have any questions about completing the form, please email us at [email protected]. Welcome to Macalester!
