Fall 2025 Move-in information

Your Fall 2025 Move-In Guide

 

Fall 2025 Resident Move-In

Summer is flying by and we are excited that you’ll soon be joining us here on campus!  New resident move-in will be held on Wednesday, August 20 and Thursday, August 21 and returning resident move-in will be on Friday, August 22.  Prior to moving in, all students expected to have met ALL move-in criteria.  You will not be permitted to check-in and receive keys unless we can verify that you have met all criteria listed (see below for more information!).

All residents will be required to sign up for a move-in date and timeslot.  An email with a link to register for a timeslot of your preference will be sent out in early August to all students living on campus.  Please be sure to continue checking your YSU student email so you don’t miss this link and any other important move-in related updates!

 

Fall 2025 Move-In Criteria

The following items must be taken care of in order for all residents to receive keys:

Is your bill paid in full or have you registered for a payment plan?
All students living on campus must have their bill (tuition AND housing) paid in full or be enrolled in a University payment plan with the first installment paid, before they will be permitted to pick up keys and move in.  This requirement remains in effect regardless of whether you are moving in on one of the official move-in dates, or whether you are arriving early.

Paying your bill can be done conveniently online with a credit card, or in person at the cashier’s window in Meshel Hall, to avoid any credit card surcharge. You can view your bill online and enroll in the University payment plan by following the steps at the Penguin Service Center | Pay Bill webpage.

University payment plans require a $50 enrollment fee and the first installment of the plan will be due at the time of registration- this will be 1/4 or 1/5 of your total remaining balance (after authorized aid) depending on the date that you enroll in the plan.  You are able to connect with the Bursar’s office at (330) 941 3133 for any assistance.

For questions about financial aid and scholarships, please reach out to the Financial Aid department here on campus at (330) 941 3505. If you need to know the balance due on your account after all scholarships and aid has been applied, Financial Aid and the Bursar's office are happy to assist you with these details. 

If you have any questions regarding this process please do not hesitate to contact our Business Operations Specialist, Faun Williams at 330-941-3539 or 330-941-3547. Her office is located in the Office of Housing & Residence Life, first floor of Kilcawley House and her hours are Monday-Friday, 8 am until 5 pm.  

Are you registered full-time for classes?
Students registered below full-time status will not be permitted to move-in.  Full time status is 12 credit hours for undergraduate students and 6 credit hours for graduate students.  You may be asked to show proof of your registration status to a Housing staff member by logging into your student portal.

 

Packing For Your Arrival

Check out our Frequently Asked Questions page, where you can see lists of suggested items to bring to campus, versus those that are not permitted. You can use these to make a packing list. Before you pack or look at purchasing any items, be sure to talk with your roommate and compare notes. Some items are better shared between roommates like coffee pots, curtains, TVs, area rugs, etc. Remember, often times, less is more. Make your move-in (and move-out) experience easier by only bringing the essentials. MicroFridge units are provided in every single residence hall room, so please do not bring any outside mini fridges or microwaves, as only the one provided in-room is permitted.

Pack using stackable boxes and containers, and label each container with your last name, building, and room number. This will be extremely helpful during the move-in process to ensure that your items make it to your room! Plastic bins are also great for storage, can serve as side-tables, and help protect belongings from the elements if you get caught in a summer shower during move-in. While we provide small carts and moving bins, you are welcome to bring your own to assist you with moving belongings and to avoid waiting on one if there are none available when you arrive.

 

What is My Mailing Address?

In order to ensure that mail will be delivered to you, please include your name and room number as well as the street address below:

CAFARO HOUSE

205 Madison Ave.
Youngstown, OH 44504-1611

KILCAWLEY HOUSE

117 University Plaza
Youngstown, OH 44502-1208

LYDEN HOUSE

251 Madison Ave.
Youngstown, OH 44504-1611

WELLER HOUSE

658 Wick Ave.
Youngstown, OH 44502-1215

WICK HOUSE

656 Wick Ave.
Youngstown, OH 44502-1215

 

Plan Your Route to Campus

Plan your route to campus by reviewing the directions to your assigned residence hall.

Due to changes in traffic flow onto and around campus during move-in, we ask you to use the directions provided in lieu of GPS directions.

Reserved spaces in the immediate area of your specific residence hall entrance (by check-in tents) are for unloading only and should only be used briefly during your registered move-in time slot. Once you have completed unloading, move your vehicle to the areas designated for long-term parking. All vehicles should be moved prior to the end of your 1-hour time block.

Residents are welcome to park their vehicles in any mixed or residential lots on campus. Additional vehicles belonging to those assisting residents in their move-in efforts are able to access long-term parking areas for the registered day of move-in. Long-term parking includes the M-90, M-2 and M-81 lots. Vehicles without campus parking passes should be gone from these lots by 7:00pm each evening to avoid being ticketed or locked inside gated lots.

 

Check-In Process

  1. Make sure you bring a Photo ID (OH State student ID, driver’s license, or passport), which you will need for Check-in.
  2. Residents are encouraged to limit the number of people coming with you to assist with move-in to no more than two (2) people where possible. Please note that pets are not allowed in the residence halls. Our halls are also smoke-free and tobacco-free (including vape) and these items should not be used in the halls.
  3. Plan travel time in order to arrive, check-in, and unload your vehicle within your 2-hour appointment slot.
  4. Once you’re approaching campus, follow instructions we’ve provided to access your specific residence hall. This is a busy time with multiple events occurring across campus, so access to your hall may be limited to a certain route. Don’t trust your GPS! (See the Recommended Driving Directions for Move-In Day section below for details!)
  5. Park temporarily in designated unloading areas for your building/community, following directions from on-site staff. In several areas, you will be asked to have someone remain with your vehicle or to unload and immediately move your vehicle to long-term parking.
  6. Upon arrival, residents should check in with Housing staff at the check-in tent outside the entrance to their building. In order to receive your keys and officially check-in, staff will verify that you have met all move-in requirements and you will be asked to show a student ID (or another government-issued photo ID).
  7. While the resident is picking up their key, any move-in assistants accompanying the resident should begin to unload their vehicle. At this time, Housing staff or volunteer Move-In Crew members may be available to assist you in your move-in efforts.
  8. As soon as your vehicle is unloaded, it must be moved to dedicated long-term parking areas. (See the Recommended Driving Directions for Move-In Day)
     

What If I’m Moving-In Early?

Early arrivals will be permitted with advance approval, beginning August 11. An early arrival fee of $40 per night will be assessed for any resident approved to arrive prior to August 20 (the first official day of move-in). If you are part of an official University group (Athletics, Band, Orientation Leader, etc) you should mention that in your request form.

Students arriving early will still need to meet ALL move in criteria before they are issued keys and able to check-in.

Request early arrival here Housing Contract Extension Request | YSU

 

What If I’m Arriving Beyond the Scheduled Move-In Dates?

You are welcome to move-in on the day that best suits you, even if this means moving-in on a day beyond our official move-in dates. We do ask that you please communicate your plans to housing@ysu.edu so we know when to expect you.

Those moving in beyond official move-in dates will still be required to have met all move-in requirements and will be asked to officially check-in with a Y-Card student ID or government-issued photo ID.

 

My Student ID

You should have received your student-resident ID card (Y-card) during orientation.  If you have not received your Y-card, you can get it by visiting the Card Office at the Guest Services Desk in the Beeghly Center lobby, 8am-4pm.  It’s important that you let the Card Office know you are a resident living on campus, so you get a residential Y-card ID.  A government-issued photo ID will be required to pick up your Y-Card.  

The Y-Card will provide door access to the residence hall you are assigned to, as well as your meal plan.  Meal plans will be active on August 20th (the first official date of move-in).  Until you receive your physical ID, you will be able to use the virtual version of the Y-Card (you should download the YSU app in order to access your virtual Y card).  

Regarding meal plans, ALL students will default to the 12-bronze option and will have until September 8th to change their meal plan. You are able to change your meal plan through the Y-Card portal (ycard.ysu.edu). Any upgrades above and beyond the ‘bronze’ plans will be charged to your student account. Any technical difficulties with meal plans should be communicated to cardoffice@ysu.edu for assistance.

Students experiencing door access issues should reach out to their residence hall front desk for assistance in troubleshooting.

 

Bed & Furniture Adjustments

Our residence halls offer a variety of room, suite, apartment, lounge, bathroom, and hallway layouts. Rooms are typically furnished with extra-long, single beds (standard college beds), chest of drawers and/or a closet/wardrobe unit, microfridge unit (combined microwave, refrigerator, and freezer unit), desks and desk chairs or table and chairs. Furniture set-up also varies across the halls, with different combinations of standard-height, lofted, or bunked beds in various rooms.

No bed adjustments will be made in rooms ahead of time. If students decide, at move in, that they would prefer a different bed height, they are able to head down to their specific desk and place their request with the Desk Attendant. The Housing staff will make every effort to take care of these (by list order) as time and availability of bed adjustment furniture pieces permit.

Students with any accommodations that necessitate specific bed and furniture set ups should work with the Office of Accessibility Services to get their accommodations officially on file.  The Office of Accessibility Services will then communicate to Housing & Residence Life, who will make the required accommodation in advance of the student moving in.

Please note that the combination of room configuration and furniture in Kilcawley House does not allow for any bed adjustments in any rooms in that building. Therefore, students with room reservations in Kilcawley House must ensure that they address any needs for specific bed heights ahead of time

 

Am I Eligible to Move-In?

Please use the following as a checklist. If you have additional or specific questions about any of the following items, you should reach out to housing@ysu.edu or (330) 941 3547 ahead of time to connect with a Housing staff member.

  • Financial status
    • Students must have their full student account balance paid in full or have signed up for a University payment plan in order to move in
    • Students in Financial Aid verification will not be permitted to move-in
    • Students are encouraged to reach out directly to Financial Aid at 330 941 3505 to discuss their specific financial situations

 

  • Registration status
    • Students registered below full time (12 credit hours for undergraduate students and 9 credit hours for graduate students) will not be permitted to move in

 

Housing Assignment and Roommate Information

To view your housing/roommate information, please log into the Housing Application Portal Housing Application | YSU and navigate to the Application Status page. When you log in, click the application link on the black bar, choose the application and you should automatically be directed to this page. If you are not, it can be found via the blue link on the right had side of your screen above the page menu bar.

This page will show you your room reservation details and occupancy/roommate information. Please note this is showing your assignment for both fall and spring semester. To gain more information about your roommate, click the View Profile link. That pop up will include the YSU email address for you to reach out and contact your roommate. Please note: if you are in a Cafaro suite, you will see all residents of the suite. Your specific roommate is assigned to you same room number, with the different bed letter(s).

We realize you may have some initial questions upon learning your room/roommate assignment. Please read the following FAQs:

Why is my room/roommate different than what I had selected or requested?

There are a multitude of reasons for this. Some students have made requests for new room assignments or roommates which all factor into your specific placement. Additionally, some students have signed up as recently as this morning or have made decisions to no longer live in University Housing. These all contribute into why you were placed where you were. Please know that we have spent many hours making these placements using the information you provided in your application. It is not possible to meet every request for every student, so we appreciate your understanding.

Why don’t I have a roommate?

Don’t worry! We will be assigning roommates to non-single rooms on a semi-weekly basis between now and move in. Please keep checking your housing application portal for the most up-to-date information.

Is this roommate/room assignment final?

We certainly hope so, but please know that as students continue to make decisions about their housing for the fall semester, it might be possible that you will be assigned a new room or roommate. We realize this can be challenging, so please be sure to check your housing portal often to see if anything has changed with your room or roommate assignment.

Can I request a new room/roommate?

First, we ask that you communicate with your roommate if you don’t already know them. Our expectation for roommates is that roommates live together while respecting each other. Sometimes, roommates are not new best friends but instead a person that you live together with in a respectful way. Please be sure to respond and send emails to your roommates to start your communication with them. Simply checking their Instagram or Snapchat account is not an effective way to get to know someone. If possible, we recommend scheduling a video call or even an in-person visit to get to know them better. We do realize that there can be rare and extenuating circumstances that might warrant a roommate change request. To make that request, please email housing@ysu.edu.

If you and your roommate(s) would like to be placed on a waitlist for a different building you can request that as well to housing@ysu.edu. Please know that we may not be able to make that request, but if we can we certainly will.

 

Recommended Driving Directions for Move-in Day

Route to Lyden or Cafaro House- Traffic coming from the West

  1. From 422, take the Belmont Avenue exit
  2. Go straight through the light onto Madison Avenue, getting into the right-hand lane
  3. When you cross 5th Avenue, you’ll stay to the right to get onto East Bound Service Road
  4. Continue on East Bound Service Road and turn left onto Elm St once you reach the stop sign
  5. Continue on Elm St until the traffic light on the corner of Elm St and Madison Ave, where you will turn left and pull into an unloading zone for Cafaro or Lyden House (a little further down Madison Ave)

Route to Lyden or Cafaro House- Traffic coming from the East

  1. From 422, take the Wick Avenue exit
  2. You’ll hit a traffic light as you exit 422. Continue straight through the light, but stay to the right hand side
  3. Continue straight and turn right onto Elm St once you hit the stop sign
  4. At the traffic light, turn left onto Madison Ave, where you will see the unloading zone for Cafaro House or Lyden House (a little further down Madison Ave)

Route from Lyden or Cafaro House to M-81 parking lot (after car is empty)

  1. Follow Madison Avenue to Fifth Avenue and get in the left-hand lane
  2. At the light, turn left onto Fifth Avenue
  3. At the next light, turn left onto Eastbound Service Rd again to pass the stadium
  4. This time, get into the right-hand lane
  5. Turn right into the lot and park where you are welcome to remain, free of charge, until 7pm

*You are also welcome to park in the M-2 lot, in front of the Wick/Weller Houses

Route to Kilcawley House- Traffic coming from the West

  1. From 422, take the Wick Avenue exit
  2. At the top of the exit, turn right onto Wick Ave.
  3. At the next light turn right onto University Plaza
  4. Bear to the right around the traffic circle (with the large silver penguin statue) where you will be directed to pull up onto the boulevard/sidewalk to unload your car

Route to Kilcawley House- Traffic coming from the East

  1. From 422, take the Wick Avenue exit
  2. At the top of the exit, turn left onto Wick Ave.
  3. At the second light turn right onto University Plaza
  4. Bear to the right around the traffic circle (with the large silver penguin statue) where you will be directed to pull up onto the boulevard/sidewalk to unload your car

Route from Kilcawley House to M-81 parking lot (after car is empty)

  1. After unloading at the Penguin circle, continue back down University Plaza towards Wick
  2. Turn left onto Wick Ave and continue straight
  3. Turn left at the second traffic light onto Westbound Service Rd
  4. Continue onto 422 and then get off at Fifth Ave (turn left onto Fifth at that first light)
  5. At the next light, turn left onto Eastbound Service Rd again to pass the stadium
  6. This time, get into the right-hand lane
  7. Turn right into the lot and park where you are welcome to remain, free of charge, until 7pm

*You are also welcome to park in the M-2 lot, in front of the Wick/Weller Houses

Route to Wick & Weller Houses- Traffic coming from the West

  1. From 422, take the Belmont Avenue exit
  2. Go straight through the light onto Madison Avenue, getting into the right-hand lane
  3. When you cross 5th Avenue, you’ll stay to the right to get onto East Bound Service Road
  4. Continue on East Bound Service Road and pass the Watson & Tressel Training Site before turning right to enter into M2, the Wick & Weller parking lot

Route to Wick & Weller Houses- Traffic coming from the East

  1. From 422, take the Wick Avenue exit
  2. You’ll hit a traffic light as you exit 422. Continue straight through the light, but stay to the right hand side
  3. Continue straight and turn left onto Elm St once you hit the stop sign
  4. At the traffic light, turn left onto the service road, where you pass the Watson & Tressel Training Site and then enter into M2, the Wick & Weller parking lot, on your right hand side