Home away from home

As university enrollment increases, on-campus housing has become highly coveted among students, providing affordable living solutions and a supportive community of peers. To accommodate the rise in demand, UC Irvine continues to construct new housing projects, offering additional opportunities to live on campus.

“Housing is critical to serving our students,” says Tim Trevan, assistant vice chancellor for student housing. “In order to enroll as many students as we have a vision for, we must have the housing support to offer them.”

Ranking third among University of California campuses and third overall among California universities in housing availability, UC Irvine currently has 17,793 student bed spaces across residence halls, apartments and graduate housing communities.

While living on campus is not required, incoming first-year and transfer students who wish to reside on campus are promised housing for their first two years, and newly admitted, full-time students pursuing doctoral or terminal degrees are guaranteed housing for the duration of their studies.

As a result, about 47 percent of undergraduates and 63 percent of graduate students in fall 2024 lived on campus.

This “benefits our undergraduate students, particularly first-years, in terms of their acclimation to college and access to facilities, staff and support,” Trevan says. “For graduate students, many with families, campus housing offers the convenience of living in a community where you can more easily balance life as a parent with life as a graduate student.”

However, efforts to expand housing are motivated by more than the desire to match increased enrollment. The university is also dedicated to helping students financially by ensuring more affordable housing options. Market comparisons in 2022 showed that UC Irvine apartment rental rates were 32 percent below surrounding rates.

“When we talk about serving our students, it comes back to providing affordable housing,” Trevan says. “But another aspect of this growth is that we are being educationally purposeful in everything we do. We want to create spaces that support students outside the classroom in attaining their goals, staying in college and getting their degrees.”

With sustainability and student wellness at the forefront of each endeavor, all new housing projects must achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold or Platinum certification, meeting the highest standards for water savings, energy efficiency and air quality control. Since 2022, they must also qualify for Fitwel certification, which focuses on healthy buildings that enhance occupant well-being.

Student wellness, however, has been a university priority for years, with each housing expansion tailored to the needs of the growing UC Irvine community.

For instance, in 2016, UC Irvine built the Mesa Court Towers, the campus’s first high-rise dorms. Soon after, in 2019, an additional residence hall – the Middle Earth Towers – was constructed. These not only house a combined 1,656 students but also provide such amenities as dining halls, common areas, study spaces, and fitness and recreation centers, fostering a supportive and comfortable environment.

However, many undergraduates turn to third-party, on-campus apartments after their two-year housing guarantee ends. To meet the high demand of continuing students, UC Irvine has, in partnership with developer American Campus Communities, expanded apartment options too.

Built in 2019, the Plaza Verde complex boasts 1,400 beds plus study spaces, a fitness center and multipurpose rooms for upperclassmen. Its counterpart, Plaza Verde II, opened in 2023, providing an additional 1,077 beds.

UC Irvine also unveiled the Verano 8 housing project in 2022. Its five seven-story towers add 1,055 bed spaces for graduate students and families on campus and provide family support programs, a community center and other amenities.

Looking to the future, the university aims to house 60 percent of all students on campus. Working toward that goal, the Mesa Court expansion project is the next phase of residential development. The five-floor dorm will offer 424 undergraduate beds and a new community center to create a living and learning environment that meets the needs of current and incoming students.

Supported by funds from California’s Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program – which aids the construction of affordable student housing in the state’s public university systems – the expansion is slated to open during the 2025-26 academic year.

“For all students, being a part of an educational community that’s geared to support your academic goals and your success in college is a huge benefit,” Trevan says. “With these projects, we want to make sure we’re growing alongside our students.”