We offer student housing on the lovely residential Gorham campus and that Portland Commons residence hall on the vibrant Portland campus. Please scroll down for information about applying for housing based on where you are in your academic career here at our university!
The housing application for the 2026-2027 Academic year and Summer 2026 will be available on the Housing Portal on February 2nd at noon.
Returning Students: Information on Housing Selection, Roommates Groups, and Important Dates can be found on the Housing Selection Overview page.
New First-Year Undergraduate Students and Transfer Students with <24 credits
New Undergraduate Transfer Students with >24 credits
New First-Year Undergraduate Students and Transfer Students with <24 credits
The Housing Application for Fall 2026 for new students will available in February. Instructions and eligibility are detailed below. More information on how First Year housing is assigned can be found on First Year Housing Process page.
To apply for housing you must be matriculated (accepted, confirmed, and deposited paid) for a minimum of 48 hours before your access will be updated in the housing portal to allow you to submit an application.
To be eligible to move into housing you need to be registered for a minimum of 6 credits unless you are approved for an exception by the Disability Services Center or the Office of Residential Life.
Tip: Keep your MaineStreet student ID number handy for the next steps. You will need it to sign your housing contract.
Log in to the Housing Portal. Click on the Housing Application in the left hand side navigation bar and then select the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 New Student Application.
- In the housing application, students will be able to rank shared interest communities that determine their housing placement. Click here for more information about the shared interest communities!
- You will automatically be assigned to the required All Access Meal Plan for your first semester. Meal plans are required for all residential students who are in any room type other than apartments with full kitchens.
The $75.00 housing deposit does not show up on your MaineStreet account as a bill to pay like other charges. Pay your deposit when you fill out the housing application.
You can pay in one of two ways:
- Online: Log in to MaineStreet. From the student center, click on pay my bill. Then click on View/Pay bill and access touchnet bill+ payment. The next screen may take a few minutes to load. This will be your student accounts page. From the options at the top of the screen, select deposits. From the dropdowns, select the term and then Housing Deposit.
- By mail: Make a check or money order payable to USM and mail it to USM Residential Life, 37 College Ave., Gorham, ME 04038. Include your name and MaineStreet ID number!
If you have someone specific you would like to live with for the upcoming semester, you will need to form a roommate group. You do this step after you have filled out and submitted the housing application. (Although we try to honor roommate requests whenever possible, they are not guaranteed).
- To form a roommate group, go to the Housing Portal. On the left-hand side click Roommate Groups. From there you can create a roommate group. You will need the email address of your roommate. An email will be sent to your groupmate and they will then need to follow the instructions in the email to accept the group.
- There are three important components that need to be met for roommate groups:
- You must both have a housing application on file.
- You must both be first-year students.
- You’ll want to coordinate your roommate to rank your shared interest communities the same way to ensure a placement you are both happy with. We will prioritize requested roommates even if your community preferences are different.
If you don’t have a preferred roommate, don’t worry! You don’t need to form a roommate group on your own. We will match you with a roommate as closely as we can, based on the lifestyle questions you answered on your application. To ensure the best match possible, please make sure that you have answered these questions as accurately as possible, and that you don’t have anyone else answer them for you, even if they are helping you with the rest of your application.
Vegan? Gluten-free? Halal? Kosher? We have that! Our updated Gorham campus dining hall features diet-specific food stations, including dedicated areas for those with food allergies. Explore dining options.
New Undergraduate Transfer Students with >24 credits
We’re glad you are interested in being part of our campus community! Transfer students are manually assigned to housing , and cannot be pulled into a room, or self-select a room during returner housing selection. Let us know if you have questions!
To apply for housing you must be matriculated (accepted, confirmed, and fully deposited) for a minimum of 48 hours before your access will be updated in the housing portal to allow you to submit an application.
To be eligible to move into housing you need to be registered for a minimum of 6 credit unless you are approved for an exception by the Disability Services Center or the Office of Residential Life.
Tip: Keep your MaineStreet student ID number handy for the next steps. You will need it to sign your housing contract.
Log in to your Housing Portal. Click on the Housing Application option in the left hand side navigation bar then select the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 Returning/Transfer Student application.
- You’ll notice the residence halls aren’t listed as choices, only room types. We will try to assign you to your preferred room type(s), though we may place you where we have open spaces in upper-class student communities.
- Select your meal plan from one of three options. Meal plans are required for all residential students with the exception of those assigned to apartments with full kitchens who may opt-out by emailing us at usm.reslife@maine.edu.
The $75.00 housing deposit does not show up on your MaineStreet account as a bill to pay like other charges. Pay your deposit when you fill out the housing application.
You can pay in one of two ways:
- Online: Log in to MaineStreet. From the student center, click on pay my bill. Then click on View/Pay bill and access touchnet bill+ payment. The next screen may take a few minutes to load. This will be your student accounts page. From the options at the top of the screen, select deposits. From the dropdowns, select the term and then Housing Deposit.
- By mail: Make a check or money order payable to USM and mail to USM Residential Life, 37 College Ave., Gorham, ME 04038. Include your name and MaineStreet ID number!
If you have someone specific you would like to live with for the upcoming semester, you will need to form a roommate group! You do this step after you have filled out and submitted the housing application. Although we try to honor roommate requests whenever possible, they are not guaranteed and are dependent on the availability of open spaces.
- To form a roommate group, go to the Housing Portal. On the left-hand side click Roommate Groups. From there you can create a roommate group. You will need the email address of your roommate. An email will be sent to your groupmate and they will then need to follow the instructions in the email to accept the group.
- There are two important components that need to be met for sophomore and upper-class roommate groups:
- You must both have a housing application on file.
- You must both be sophomores or above (first-year students are housed on first-year floors in Shared Interest Communities).
If you don’t have a preferred roommate, don’t worry! You don’t need to form your own roommate group. We will match you with a roommate as closely as we can, based on the lifestyle questions you answered on your application. To ensure the best match possible, please make sure that you have answered these questions as accurately as possible, and that you don’t have anyone else answer them for you, even if they are helping you with the rest of your application.
You can change your meal plan during the first two weeks of the semester. If you try your meal plan for a week and find it’s not working for you, no problem! Visit Dining Services to complete a meal plan change form and we can swap it for another residential meal plan.
Graduate and Law Students
Find community on campus either in Gorham or in our new residence hall on the Portland Campus!
To apply for housing you must be matriculated (accepted, confirmed, and fully deposited) for a minimum of 48 hours before your access will be updated in the housing portal to allow you to submit an application.
To be eligible to move into housing you need to be registered full-time (a minimum of 3 credits each semester) unless you are approved for an exception by the Disability Services Center or the Office of Residential Life.
Tip: Keep your MaineStreet student ID number handy for the next steps. You will need it to sign your housing contract.
Log in to your Housing Portal. Click on the Housing Application option in the left hand side navigation bar then select the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 Grad/Law Student application.
- You’ll notice the residence halls aren’t listed as choices, only room types. We will try to assign you to your preferred room type(s), though we may place you where we have open spaces.
- Select your meal plan from one of three options. Meal plans are required for all residential students with the exception of those assigned to apartments with full kitchens.
The $75.00 housing deposit does not show up on your MaineStreet account as a bill to pay like other charges. Pay your deposit when you fill out the housing application.
You can pay in one of two ways:
- Online: Log in to MaineStreet and navigate to <Student Self-Service > Student Center > Financials > View/Pay Bill > Deposits > Select Term > Select a Deposit > USM_Housing_Deposit > Payment Amount = $75.00 > select method > continue to PayPath, then finish following instructions.
- By mail: Make a check or money order payable to USM and mail to USM Residential Life, 37 College Ave., Gorham, ME 04038. Include your name and MaineStreet ID number!
If you have someone specific you would like to live with for the upcoming semester, you will need to form a roommate group! You do this step after you have filled out and submitted the housing application. (Although we try to honor roommate requests whenever possible, they are not guaranteed).
- To form a roommate group, go to the Housing Portal. On the left-hand side click Roommate Groups. From there you can create a roommate group. You will need the email address of your roommate. An email will be sent to your groupmate and they will then need to follow the instructions in the email to accept the group.
- There are two important components that need to be met for upper-class roommate groups:
- You must both have a housing application on file.
- You must both be upper-class, graduate, or law students.
If you don’t have a preferred roommate, don’t worry! You don’t need to form your own roommate group. We will If you don’t have a preferred roommate, don’t worry! You don’t need to form a roommate group on your own. We will match you with a roommate as closely as we can, based on the lifestyle questions you answered on your application. To ensure the best match possible, please make sure that you have answered these questions as accurately as possible, and that you don’t have anyone else answer them for you, even if they are helping you with the rest of your application.
Summer Housing
The housing application for Summer 2026 is now available and remains open through July 1st. Current students who are registered for courses either next fall or for summer courses as well as incoming students matriculated for the Summer term and beginning to take classes this summer are all able to live on campus for the summer. More information is available below.
Current students who are taking summer courses are eligible for housing during their summer course dates. Current students who are preregistered for fall courses. If you are preregistered for fall courses but drop said courses part way through the summer you will lose your eligibility and would have to move out of your summer placement. Students newly admitted for the 2026 Summer term and are registered for summer courses are also eligible for summer on campus housing.
For those transitioning from Spring semester housing to Summer housing and living in Upperclass hall on the Gorham campus for the summer your housing transition will occur between May 9th and May 12th. For those living in Portland Commons on the Portland Campus for the Summer your housing transition will occur between May 9th and May 17th with the majority of moves happening May 16th and 17th. These transition dates are assigned based on the availability of your summer room. There is little ability to adjust a transition time once it is assigned so please be aware of these when planning days away from campus in May. Summer Housing ends on August 8th. For those living on campus for the Fall semester transition will occur August 8th through 10th. For those not living on campus for the fall the final day to move out is August 8th.
To apply for summer on campus housing go to the eRez Life Housing Portal. First round of housing assignments for summer housing will begin to go out in Early April.
The spaces that are eligible for summer housing are Portland Commons 1st, 6th, 7th, and 8th floors and all of Upperclass hall. Our other spaces on campus house summer camps and conferences and as such are not available for summer student housing. Our goal whenever possible is to place students in their fall housing placement to allow for continuity from Summer housing to Fall housing.
Summer student housing charges are applied to the student bill. To be considered for summer financial aid to assist with housing costs, students must be enrolled at least half time for the summer semester (6 credits for Undergraduate and Law, 3 credits for Graduate). Students enrolled less than half time for the summer semester have the option to enroll in a payment plan or pursue alternative private loans. Payment plan options can be available through Student Accounts. To pursue a payment plan please contact Student Financial Services at usm.studentaccounts@maine.edu to set up this payment plan. Student Financial Services at usm.studentaccounts@maine.edu to set up this payment plan. All summer housing cancellations must be received in writing to usm.reslife@maine.edu. Cancellations received prior to the check-in date will receive a 100% refund. Cancellations received after the check-in date will be prorated based on the official move-out date. Any cancellation received not in writing or an otherwise improper check-out may result in additional fees.
Summer Intern Housing
The housing application for Summer 2026 Interns is now available and remains open through July 1st. Current college students with area internships are eligible to apply. More information is available below.
Those who are currently enrolled at a college or university and have a local internship and want to live in Maine.
Summer intern housing begins on May 18th and extends through August 8th. Those whose start dates are after May 18th and have end dates prior to August 8th will have their housing charges prorated based on their occupancy dates.
The first step in the application process is completing the intake form. The intake form asks for demographic information, and internship information. This information is used to create a USM profile, USM ID number and email, as well as verify your internship. You need both the USM ID number and email in order to access the Summer Intern Housing Application. Once your USM account has been created you will receive an email with instructions on how to activate it. This will go to the email you provided in the intake form. Once you have activated your account you will be able to fill out the Summer Intern Housing Application on the eRez Life Housing Portal. This link will also be included in your account activation email. Once you have completed this you will want to either monitor this new USM email or have it forwarded to one that you check regularly as it is how you will receive your housing assignment and updates such as how to submit your photo for your USM ID card which is how you will access the building and things like the metro bus.
Payment is required in full prior to move-in via check. Checks can be mailed to University of Southern Maine Residential Life Office 125 Upton Hall 37 College Ave Gorham ME 04038. If your internship has made arrangements to pay part or all of your summer housing please contact the Residential Life Office via email at usm.reslife@maine.edu and include your Internship contact so that payment can be confirmed and arranged with your internship site. We do not offer payment plans for Summer Intern Housing.
Summer intern housing cancellations must be received in writing to usm.reslife@maine.edu . Those who cancel prior to their move-in date will receive a 100% refund. Those who cancel on or after their move-in date but prior to the midpoint of their stay will receive a 50% refund. Those who cancel after the midpoint of their stay will not receive any refund. Refunds take a minimum of 10 business days as checks must be process. Any refund is sent to the home address provided in your intake form.