First-year housing may seem like a difficult task for incoming freshmen to navigate. GCSU wants to help alleviate the stress by providing new students with detailed information about housing and a smooth transition into college life.

• There are seven residence halls on campus: Adams, Bell, Foundation, Napier, Parkhurst, Sanford and Wells. There are also apartment-style residence halls, called the Village Apartments, on West Campus.
• Bell Hall is the designated Honors College residence hall and is the only dorm out of the seven on-campus halls located on main campus. The other six residence halls are all located in the southwest corner of central campus, on W Greene St. and near the Centennial Center. 
• It is roughly a 10-minute walk from the six central campus dorms to the main campus, and there are bus stops located along W Greene St. that shuttle students throughout the GCSU grounds. 

Anabel Kissel, a sophomore mass communication major, lived in Foundation Hall during her freshman year and regularly walked to and from class.

“It’s one of the furthest dorms on central campus, but the walk wasn’t bad at all,” Kissel said, “And if the weather was bad, I’d usually hop on the bus.”

• There are generally two students in a room in the central campus residence halls. Bell Hall is unique in that it offers rooms for three students. All of the central campus dorm rooms are suite-style, meaning there is a bathroom in between two dorm rooms that four students share. 
• While the dorm halls are co-ed, there are no co-ed suites, and the bathrooms are shared by students of the same gender. Each bathroom suite has a main room with two sinks and a large mirror, a room for the toilet and a room for the shower. 

“Having multiple racks in the shower room helped the four of us keep our products organized without having to tote things back and forth,” Kissel said. “I recommend getting racks that hang on the backs of doors.”

• All of the residence halls have their laundry rooms with several washing machines and dryers that students must pay to use. There are also communal spaces, like study rooms, multi-purpose game rooms and large kitchen areas within each hall for the students to enjoy. 
•  The Village Apartments, located on West Campus, are located two miles west of central campus, off Highway 441. The West Campus Village Apartments are within walking distance of the Wellness and Recreation Center and intramural sports fields. 

The Village Apartments of West Campus are more of an apartment-style residence hall compared to those of central campus, with the option of a four-person unit or an eight-person unit.

Each unit in the West Campus first-year housing complex comes equipped with a fully furnished living room and a kitchen with several amenities.

Ari Johns and Summer Morse, sophomore biology majors, lived in the Village Apartments during their freshman year. 

“It was great,” Johns said. “We would always hang out in the living room, and we became like a little family.”

• Both the central and west campus residence halls include similar amenities in each room: full-sized bed frame, dresser, bookshelf, desk and chair. Each room also has a lockable closet for each student.

“One thing the dorms don’t have that I’d recommend bringing is an air purifier,” Morse said. “Everyone had them.”

Those planning on living in the West Campus residence halls should be advised that the complex is not within a reasonable walking distance of the main campus, but given the distance and location, there is a bus system that runs out of West Campus for students’ convenience. 

“I chose to have a random roommate and it worked out great for me,” Kissel said. “I filled out a questionnaire and got matched with a girl pretty soon after.”

Incoming first-year students should complete their housing application forms by May 1 of the year they will start attending. The housing application gives students the option of choosing between central and west campus dorms and preferred residence halls. Students are also able to confirm their desired roommates through the housing application or fill out a short questionnaire to be assigned a random roommate.

“The sooner you complete the application, the faster you get paired with a roommate and find out what dorm you’ll stay in,” Kissel said. “Don’t wait until the last minute.”

The Central Campus and Village Apartment rates for the 2025-26 school year are available for viewing on the GCSU university housing website. 

For both central and west campus residence halls, utilities are included in the rates. 

After first-year students complete the steps to live in the residence halls, the final step is moving in. 

The main move-in dates for the 2025 fall semester first-year students are Aug 1 -14. 

Ellen Gunji, a sophomore art major and community advisor in Foundation Hall, will be one of the many helpers guiding new students during move-in. 

“Move-in can get a little hectic, but there are always people ready to help,” Gunji said.

The Cat Crew, a group of GCSU volunteers, acts as movers for students who need help getting their belongings into their new dorm rooms. 

“The Cat Crew helps out a lot,” Gunji said, “They are only at the residence halls in the mornings, though, so make sure to come early.”

After move-in days, students will get acquainted with GCSU and their new dorms. 

Each residence hall has multiple community advisors, or CAs, on duty at all times. 

“As CAs, we’re here to help the freshman,” Gunji said. “We put safety first, but students can come to us about pretty much everything and we are happy to assist them.”

As the next school year approaches, GCSU is overall excited to welcome new students to campus.