New Student and Family Programs was joined by our colleagues in Housing and Residential Education and Dining to discuss move-in, on-campus dining, and discoveries orientation for new students. Read below for office information, webinar recording, and top asked questions during the webinar. Slides are attached for reference.
Click here to watch webinar recording
Housing and Residential Education (Move-In, Meal Plans, & Room Assignments):
Email: housing@du.edu
Phone: 303-871-2246
Website: https://studentaffairs.du.edu/housing/content/resident-resources
New Student & Family Programs (Discoveries Orientation)
Email: orientation@du.edu or families@du.edu
Phone: 303-871-6080
Website: https://studentaffairs.du.edu/new-student-family
DU Dining:
Dietary Needs: gina.vega@du.edu
Website: https://dudining.sodexomyway.com/
Top Asked Questions in Webinar:
How will my student learn their dorm and roommate?
Students will receive an email by end of day Tuesday, July 30th with directions to navigate to their Housing Portal. Within the portal, your student will see their room assignment, roommate, and their roommate's DU email address.
Tell me about parking!
Parking permits for the 2024-2025 school year will go on sale on Monday, July 29, 2024, at 9:00am. You do not need a parking permit for move-in day. As housing assignments come out the next day, you may have to wait to know your housing assignment to purchase your parking permit. Permits are not a specific reserved spot – they are a scanner into a parking lot of your choice.
Why do parking permits go on sale the day after first year housing assignments are released?
While first-year housing assignments are being announced July 30th, returning students do know their housing assignments. If your first-year student is buying a parking permit, they can choose a centralized lot and request on July 29th or they can wait until they know their dorm assignment to purchase a permit.
Tell me about the dorm rooms!
The dorm rooms are carpeted. The mattresses in all dorm rooms are Twin XL size and can be raised/lowered to the height you prefer or stacked to make a bunk. The room has two small trash/recycling bins. For dimensions of each type of room, please refer to https://studentaffairs.du.edu/housing/places-to-live There are not safes or lockboxes in the dorm rooms.
How do I choose and manage my meal plan?
There are a few variants of the meal plan. A student meal plan can have 125, 150, or 175 swipes (per quarter) and comes with meal plan cash (used at retail location on-campus, rolls over quarterly until the end of the year). You chose your meal plan on the Housing Application. You can manage it by contacting Housing & Residential Education: housing@du.edu
I have a specific dietary need or restriction!
Please contact Nutritionist Gina Vega at gina.vega@du.edu to get a tour of the dining options to match your needs. There are also several dining stations that are specifically catered to students with dietary needs. There is also an app called “Everyday” that has nutritional facts.
I’m a commuter!
Commuters can purchase commuter-specific meal plans at https://www.du.edu/pioneercard/meal-plans. Commuter students will have specific meetups during orientation week, as they are not living in a residence hall.
I’m in an early-arrival community!
If you are in an early-arrival community, like LEP, PLP, First@DU etc., you will get your information from that program’s coordinator. Schedules and directions are being solidified, you will hear from them in August! If you have questions, email your program's contact or general email.
Is orientation required?
Yes, orientation is required for all new students. Data supports that students tend to acclimate and transition into college more successfully when they attend a full orientation. The schedule can be found online here and the app with the complete schedule will go live August 6th!
When do parents/families leave during orientation week?
The last parent/family specific programming is the Crimson Cookout on Tuesday night that ends at 8pm. Families will have a lounge and welcome wall in the Community Commons building across from Starbucks where you can write a message to your student. The art installation will stay up the first month of school with students searching for their family's message to them within the Wish Wall. There will be family orientation sessions throughout Tuesday, September 3rd. You can find the Family Orientation schedule here. We ask parents/families to leave after Tuesday (9/3), as your student will be busy with orientation activities and acclimating to campus.
I heard something about a free book…?
You can get a free copy of College Ready 2024 at this website: https://www.collegeready.guide/university-of-denver-2024 Our office’s Director, Brie Jutte, contributed to this book! The redemption code is “crimson-gold”. Find directions here.
