Transferring

Plans and life circumstances change, so there are options available to transfer to another building or unit while living in MIT graduate housing:

  • Building-to-building individual switch lottery
  • Internal individual transfers for moving rooms within the same building
  • Family to individual housing
  • Family transfer process
  • Terminate to participate in self-selection

Scroll to learn more about the transfer option that fits your individual circumstances.

Building-to-building Switch

If you think another residence hall may be a better fit for you, the building-to-building switch process is available to help full-time, degree-seeking graduate residents living in individual units change residence halls. All buildings except Westgate and Graduate Junction are eligible. Residents switching into Ashdown or Sidney-Pacific will receive a one-year renewable license, and residents switching to first-year-only Warehouse will receive a non-renewable license.

  • The process is binding, meaning if you apply and receive a new assignment, you must move out by your assigned move date. If you do not, your housing assignment will be terminated, and you will be responsible for all rent and fees until the unit is occupied.
  • If you do not receive a new assignment through the building-to-building switch, you will remain in your current assignment.
  • Your move date will be coordinated with Housing & Residential Services and can happen between the end of November and mid-January. Failure to move by your assigned move date will result in a fee.
  • If you are going to be away on the finalized transfer date, you must arrange for your current room to be vacant on or before your move-out date and respond to your switch confirmation email to let Housing & Residential Services know that you will not be present on the move date. Only you can check into your new assignment.
  • To apply for the Building-to-Building Transfer process, submit a graduate building-to-building switch form, which is available in the Forms section of the Housing Portal during the application period.

Internal transfers

If you are looking to change rooms within the building you currently reside in, you can fill out an internal transfer application between August 1 and March 31.

Residence

Guidelines

transferring to an individual unit

Given the high demand, family housing is only available if your partner or child will live with you on a full-time basis. If your family member(s) will no longer live with you full time, inform Housing and Residential Services (HRS) right away, and we will try to accommodate you in individual housing. If you prefer to live off campus, please provide 30 days advance notice and note that regular termination fees will apply.

Transferring Into or between family units

Transferring from Individual to Family Units

  • Provide “Proof of Family” documentation, and you will have the option to terminate your assignment and apply for family housing through the self-selection process. Depending on when you plan to move out, additional rent responsibility and fees may apply.
  • Please include in your termination form that you plan to self-select for family housing.

Transferring to a different Family Unit

A student currently residing in on-campus family housing may apply on the Housing Portal for a transfer to another apartment as long as their family meets the residency requirements for the desired apartment type. Family units are designated by the maximum number of people they can accommodate under local occupancy laws, so transfers between family units are prioritized to ensure compliance while accommodating individual preferences (see chart below).

  • You may transfer between apartments of the same type within the same building.
  • If you decline an offer matching your application preferences, you will be moved to the end of the list within your priority classification.
  • Applications to transfer into a higher-occupancy family apartment due to a change in the size of your family requires the following documentation:
    • Copy of birth certificate(s) of the child/ren
    • Visa(s) or other government-issued documents for each child
    • A letter from your doctor with an expected due date created after the twelfth week of pregnancy. Please note that an offer to move to a larger apartment will likely not occur until eight weeks (at the earliest) before the child’s expected birth date, as all transfers are based on apartment availability.

Building-specific information

  • Family residents in good standing who serve as officers in their building are eligible to move to the top of their priority classification
  • Couples living in Sidney-Pacific, Edgerton House, or 70 Amherst Street may apply for a transfer to a one-bedroom apartment in Graduate Tower at Site 4 or an efficiency or one-bedroom unit in Westgate Apartments. The license status you currently hold will follow you to the new housing assignment.
  • Only those with a change in family status may apply for internal transfers within the Graduate Tower at Site 4 (e.g., one-bedroom to two-bedroom due to a newly approved family occupancy).

Terminate and participate in self-selection

If you do not want to wait for the next scheduled transfer period, you can terminate your current assignment and apply for the next self-selection period.

Before terminating your housing, consider the risks:

  • You may not be able to get another on-campus housing assignment and may need to find off-campus housing.

  • You will be subject to all termination policies, including rent responsibility and possibly an early termination fee.

  • You forfeit all seniority you may have accrued while living in your current assignment.

  • Self-selection is not open all year, so double-check that self-selection is available before terminating.