This information is intended to help students understand Augustana College’s housing residency requirement. The College attempts to retain as many students as possible in all on-campus housing facilities because we firmly believe that it is educationally advantageous for students to reside on campus. It is also financially advantageous for students since full halls make it possible to maintain lower room and board rates.

Also, see Frequently Asked Questions about Off-Campus Approval for more specific answers to some of your questions.

Financial Aid Policy Related to Housing and Meal Plans

Students who move off-campus will typically see an adjustment to their Augustana gift assistance, typically a 10% reduction for moving out of on-campus housing and a 10% reduction if they do NOT enroll in a meal plan.

Visit the Financial Aid Policy Related to Housing and Meal Plans (PDF) for more information about the policy.

For information specific to a student's financial aid package, please contact the Financial Aid Office at 605.274.5216 or at financial.aid@augie.edu.

Applying to Live Off-Campus

There are several scenarios that can approve off-campus living.  These scenarios are dependent upon many factors, including the number of years you have lived in college housing and where, off-campus, you intend to live.  Please be sure to read through the information provided below, as it will help you to determine which application you will need to complete.

Automatic Approval

Students are automatically approved to live off-campus if they meet any of the following criteria:

• Enrolled as a part-time student (fewer than 10 credits per semester); or
• Married student and/or students with children; or
• Students who graduated high school in, or prior to, 2010.

Students meeting this criteria do not need approval through the Residence Life Office to move off-campus.  However, we do require that students within three years of their high school graduation date notify the Residence Life Office if they are eligible to move off-campus because they meet one or more of the criteria above.  Simply submit our Notification of Automatic Off-Campus Approval form to send us that information.

Approval to Live with Family

Students wishing to commute from their home, living with an immediate family member (parent or guardian), will be approved, but need to apply through the Residence Life Office.  Once notified of a student's intent to live off-campus with family, the Residence Life Office will send a letter to your parent or guardian asking for confirmation of the arrangement.   Once received singed letter of confirmation from parents, student housing status will be changed to approved to live off compus.

In order to apply to live off-campus with family, simply submit an Application for Off-Campus Approval with Family. The information you submit will be sent to the Residence Life Office and the confirmation letter will be mailed out to your parent or guardian within a few days. Again, be sure that signed letter of confirmation is returned to the Residence Life Office to complete the approval process.

Extenuating Circumstances

For students wanting to live off-campus who do not meet the automatic criteria for off-campus approval, are not interested in living off-campus with family, and are not eligible for the third year student waiver process, there is also a Petition for Off-Campus Approval Due to Extenuating Circumstances. 

Third Year Student Waiver Process

The Third Year Student Waiver Process is only used during Room Selection for the coming year and is specific to applying for off-campus approval in your third year at Augustana. 

For current second year students who do not meet any of the criteria for automatic approval and who are not interested in living off-campus with family in the coming year, there is a waiver process by which they can apply for off-campus approval. 

Students wishing to be included in the waiver process must meet the following criteria:

• Must have graduated high school in 2011; and
• Must have earned at least 50 credits by the end of Spring Semester 2013; and
• Must currently be in good academic standing with the College.

Students meeting these criteria for eligibility will need to fill out an Application for Off-Campus Approval as a Third Year Student (Online Form). All students who apply will be entered into a drawing. The drawing will determine our priority list for waiving students from the residency requirement and allowing them to move off-campus as a third year student.

It is not likely that all third year students who apply to live off-campus through this process will be approved for the coming year.  After determining occupany needs in the spring, an initial group of students will be waived. Additional students may be approved as needed throughout the spring and summer terms.

Important Note:
Students may apply only as individuals.  However, if a group of students is interested in moving off-campus together and any of their names are drawn, they will be allowed to "pull-in" up to two additional students at that time.  All three students will then be approved to move off-campus. Each member pulled-in, however, must also have submitted an application and be eligible as stated above. No more than three students will be approved to move off-campus as a group due to Sioux Falls city ordinances.