Frequently Asked Questions: Accommodation Services at the University of Essex

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Am I guaranteed a room?
What happens if Essex is my insurance choice or I come through Clearing?
How do I apply for accommodation?
When will I know where I will live?
How do I know which residence to choose?
Can I live in university accommodation in my subsequent years of study?
How much will it cost and when do I have to pay?
Do I have to move out of my room during vacations?
Where can I eat if I don’t want to cook?
What do I need to bring?
Can I connect to the internet from my room?
Can my family and friends telephone me in the room?
Is there accommodation adapted for students with individual needs?
What alternatives are there to university accommodation?
Where do I collect my keys?
What if I arrive late?
Can I send luggage in advance?
Can I bring my car?
Do I need a TV licence?
What if I want to move out of the room?
Can I arrive early?
Can parents stay in the room at the start of term?
Can I bring a pet?
Can I have decorative candles in my Room?

1. am I guaranteed a room?

New undergraduate students studying at the Colchester and Southend campuses who do not live within the borough of Colchester (if studying at Colchester) will be guaranteed a room provided they have successfully submitted their application form by the published deadline. Students living within the borough of Colchester who would like university accommodation should still apply but allocation of accommodation is dependent on availability.
Bridging Year students will be considered for accommodation when they have submitted the application form and paid their Tuition Fees deposit to the International Office
New Overseas Postgraduate students studying at the Colchester campus are guaranteed a room provided the application form and £250 deposit is received by the published deadline.
New EU and UK postgraduate students are not guaranteed a room but will receive allocations whilst there is room availability. Students will be considered for accommodation when they have returned the application form and a £250 deposit. Allocations will be made as forms are received.

2. what happens if Essex is my insurance choice or I come through Clearing?

In order to apply for accommodation undergraduate students will have to have Essex as their firm choice. Insurance choice students will not be able to apply for accommodation until Essex becomes their firm choice and their details have been updated within the necessary systems. In the event that all rooms are let, clearing students will be informed of this when they are made an academic offer and they will be advised of alternative accommodation arrangements. The deadline for the accommodation guarantee is 24 August 2012, undergraduate applicants who apply after this time are not guaranteed university accommodation.

3. how do I apply for accommodation?

Please see the appropriate web page from the below::

4. when will I know where I will live?

Undergraduates
Your allocation will be confirmed to you by email once your academic place has been confirmed and the Accommodation Office has been notified of this by the Admissions Office. Students with unconditional offers are likely to hear from us by mid-August, whereas students with conditional offers should hear from us two to three weeks after A-Level results are published.
Postgraduates
Your allocation will be confirmed to you as soon as your application has been received and processed. Wherever possible you will be notified by email. Overseas students who do not send a deposit with the form will not be allocated a room in advance of arrival.

5. how do I know which residence to choose?

Please refer to the description of the Colchester campus residences and the Southend accommodation pages and choose the locations which suit your lifestyle and budget.

6. can I live in university accommodation in my subsequent years of study?

Undergraduates
Students are normally required to make their own accommodation arrangements in the private sector in their second year. International students who are classified as overseas by the University for fee purposes are normally invited to apply for a room in their subsequent years of study.
Postgraduates
International research students who are classified as overseas by the University for fee purposes are invited to apply for a room should any be available.
Final Year Ballot
Wherever possible we aim to retain some rooms for final year UK and EU undergraduate students. The number of rooms available is known in January each year and details of availability and the application procedure are published on our website in early February.
If there are more applicants than rooms the selection process is carried out randomly by ballot.

7. how much will it cost and when do I have to pay?

Please see our residence rents page for details of the weekly accommodation charges.

The first instalment is due during October and if payment is made on the internet by the due date a discount of £16 is given. Payment cannot be made by internet until after you have registered.

Further details of how to pay will be supplied with the letter of allocation that you will receive upon acceptance of your accommodation offer, alternatively further details are available here.

8. do I have to move out of my room during vacations?

Undergraduates
The room is allocated to you for the full period of your study year so you do not have to move out during the Christmas and Easter vacations. If you require accommodation after the end of the third term you can make an online booking during the second term.
Postgraduates
The room is allocated to you for the full period of your study year so you do not have to move out during the Christmas, Easter or summer vacations. If your course is of only 9 months duration then you will be allocated to your room up to the end of the third term.

9. where can I eat if I don’t want to cook?

There are a number of catering outlets on the main Colchester campus providing a range of food from fast foods and snacks to a traditional meal. See more about this on our campus facilities page.

University Square at Southend is located close to the centre of Southend where there are plenty of cafés, sandwich shops and restaurants to suit all tastes and budgets from traditional fish and chips to the familiar franchises. Close by is also Westcliff-on-Sea, an area which offers a wealth of independently owned eating outlets from countries around the world including China, Italy, Greece and India.

10. what do I need to bring?

In the kitchen you will need to bring your own cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery, saucepans and frying pans. In the room you will need to bring all your own towels and bedding. You can, if you wish, pre-order all the essential items that you will need in your study-room before you even leave home, everythingEssex (www.everythingessex.co.uk/packs/) provides a variety of packs of indispensable items to ensure you quickly settle in your university accommodation.
See also our page about facilities in the residences.

11. can I connect to the internet from my room?

There is a socket and cable in the room for you to connect your own computer to the university network if you are living in university owned accommodation. Internet access is provided free of charge in university accommodation and through your StudentCom portal you can also access a range of additional services. Further details are available from our StudentCom information pages.

12. can my family and friends telephone me in the room?

Telephone services within accommodation are provided by our internet partner, StudentCom. the Freewire Phone service is what the techies call VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol system. Basically, all your calls go through your University’s internet connection. Instead of a conventional handset, you get a ‘virtual’ phone on your PC screen. You can hear people on the other end through your PC speakers, and they can hear you through your computer’s microphone.

Either during the internet set up process or shortly afterwards we strongly recommend installing the appropriate software and signing up for the phone service, this will generate your unique contact number and will allow you to make calls to University departments and services on the Colchester campus at no cost by simply entering the four digit extension number and allow you to receive calls whilst your PC is turned on.

This is very important should you wish to call a Residents’ Assistance or the Patrol Staff outside of office hours.

If your family and friends download the Freewire softphone client from the StudentCom website you can talk to your heart’s content absolutely free of charge. Alternatively you can receive calls directly from a standard landline or mobile phone when people not on Freewire are calling you, they’ll need to dial a Freewire Telephone access number first:

From the UK: 0844 546 000
From overseas: +44 207 983 9388

Once connected, they’ll receive automatic prompts to enter your handset number or Freewire ID.

Without these access codes, callers from outside the Freewire network won’t be able to get through, so it’s important to make sure anyone who calls you regularly has them to hand.

Further details are available from our StudentCom information pages.

13. is there accommodation adapted for students with individual needs?

The University has some accommodation available for students with a physical or sensory disability or a medical condition that severely restricts their mobility.

At Colchester there are eight rooms in the Houses and four in South Courts adapted for students who are using a wheelchair. The kitchens are also designed with wheelchair users in mind. These rooms have a vibrating fire alarm for students with impaired hearing and there are further eight standard rooms with this particular facility.

At University Square, Southend there a seven adapted rooms which are suitable for wheelchair users.

New students to the University should apply on line the same as other applicants and use the additional information field to indicate that they require adapted accommodation.

Returning students should contact the Student Support Office who will be able to discuss your requirements and provide application forms for adapted accommodation, for return to the Student Support Office.

14. what alternatives are there to university accommodation?

If you prefer to make your own accommodation arrangements there is a Students Union letting shop on campus, StudentLets, which holds a database of private sector properties for rent.

15. where do I collect my keys?

Please select the appropriate campus below for details of key collection:

Arrival information - Colchester campus

Arrival Information - Southend Campus

16. what if I arrive late?

For a limited period at the beginning of the academic year your keys will be available on a 24 hours basis. Further details of the arrangements for the 2011/12 intake will be available from here during July 2011. Outside of this period keys can be collected out of office hours from the information office (Colchester campus) or University Square reception (Southend campus) only if you notify the accommodation office of your expected out of hours arrival in advance.

Rooms will be held for expected students only until close of business (17.00) on Tuesday 4 October 2011. If you have not advised us that you will arrive after these dates, the room will be offered to another student. Further details can be found in the accommodation brochures.

17. can I send luggage in advance?

It is not recommended that you send items in advance. If this is necessary packages should be clearly marked with the senders name, the University location, an e-mail address and a contact telephone number and addressed to your allocated room. Please note that any such items sent to the Colchester campus will be delivered to the Central Stores location on campus and that you will have to collect the items from there during working hours.

18. can I bring my car?

It is not possible to permit students (other than disabled students) to register a vehicle for parking on campus at Colchester. It will however be possible to bring a vehicle onto campus on intake day at the beginning of the academic year for the purpose of unloading.

There are no parking facilities at the Southend campus which is a city centre campus. There are public car parks with local charges associated with them that are designed as short stay rather then long stay. It is not advisable to bring a car with you whilst studying.

19. do I need a TV licence?

All TV sets used in the residences are required by law to be licensed. See our facilities page for more details.

20. what if I want to move out of the room?

Students are not able to give notice that they intend to leave their accommodation. This means that once the cancellation period following your acceptance of the allocation has expired you will be bound by the terms and conditions of the contract. Further details.

21. can I arrive early?

The earliest date that rooms are available is Sunday 2 October 2011 and it is not possible to move in before that date. Details of bed and breakfast accommodation available in the locality can be obtained from StudentLets. Alternatively please see the Colchester tourist information web site: places to stay for accommodation around Colchester or http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/accommodation/ for accommodation around Southend.

22. Can parents stay in the room at the start of term?

It is not possible for any visitors to stay in your room during the first two weeks of term as it is disruptive to the process of students settling in.

23 Can I bring a pet?

Our university accommodation is not suitable for pets and no pets may therefore be brought into or kept in accommodation.

24 Can I have decorative candles in my Room?

No. Candles, tea-lights, aromatic oil heaters, joss sticks or any other device which has a naked flame, other than smokers materials, is prohibited in University owned or administered residential accommodation except with the prior written permission of the Registrar & Secretary.

Candles and other prohibited devices will be removed from residential accommodation by University staff including where these are for display purposes only.

The Fire safety officer has completed fire risk assessments and these can be inspected at the Safety Office. Contact details are available from http://www2.essex.ac.uk/safety/