Residency Requirement

BEFORE Submitting Housing Application, exceptions:

• Live on-campus for at least eight semesters
• Successfully completed at least 90 credit hours
• At least 21 years of age
• Enrolled for fewer than 12 credit hours in a semester
• Completed at least one year of active military service
• Be married
• Serve as a caregiver to a dependent (such as parenting a child)
• Enrolled in an internship, student teaching, study abroad, or similar academic programs as to which on-campus residence would amount to a substantial and unreasonable hardship
• Have a properly documented Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or other authorized accommodation that has been approved through Shepherd’s Accessibility Services office
• Commute within the allotted commuting distance from a parent or legal guardian’s primary home. The parent or legal guardian’s home must be the primary residence of the parent or guardian and must be the exclusive domicile of the student, and it must be located within one of the locations listed below. NOTE: Living in a location other than the parent’s or guardian’s primary residence within the commuting range does not qualify the student for an exception and room and meal charges may be added to the student’s account.
  • Maryland: Frederick or Washington counties
  • Pennsylvania: ZIP codes 17225 and 17268
  • Virginia: Clarke or Frederick counties ZIP codes 22601, 22603, and 22656
  • Virginia: Loudoun County ZIP codes 20129, 20132, 20141, 20158, 20176, 20180, and 20197
  • West Virginia: Jefferson and Berkeley counties

AFTER Submitting Housing Application, exceptions:

Students may apply to cancel the Resident Agreement/Housing Application after it has been submitted for limited reasons. The student should assume their exception application is NOT approved until formal notification is issued by the Director of Residence Life or designee.  Note:  premature commitment to housing off-campus does not constitute grounds for a release from Shepherd’s Resident Agreement.  Primary reasons a student may be approved to terminate the Resident Agreement after it has been submitted include:

• Be married
• Serve as a caregiver to a dependent (such as parenting a child)
• Be enrolled for fewer than 12 credit hours in a semester,
• Enrolled in an internship, student teaching, study abroad, or similar academic programs as to which on-campus residence would amount to a substantial and unreasonable hardship,
• Have a properly documented Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or other authorized accommodation that has been approved through Shepherd’s Accessibility Services office
• Commute within the allotted commuting distance from a parent or legal guardian’s primary home. The parent or legal guardian’s home must be the primary residence of the parent or guardian and must be the exclusive domicile of the student, and it must be located within one of the locations listed below. NOTE: Living in a location other than the parent’s or guardian’s primary residence within the commuting range does not qualify the student for an exception and room and meal charges may be added to the student’s account.
  • Maryland: Frederick or Washington counties
  • Pennsylvania: ZIP codes 17225 and 17268
  • Virginia: Clarke or Frederick counties ZIP codes 22601, 22603, and 22656
  • Virginia: Loudoun County ZIP codes 20129, 20132, 20141, 20158, 20176, 20180, and 20197
  • West Virginia: Jefferson and Berkeley counties

Important factors to note:

• Current residents must petition for an exemption from continuing in on-campus housing and the University Residency requirement by November 1 for the following Spring semester and by April 1 for the following Fall semester.
• Petitions to terminate a Resident Agreement must be received via email or physical letter in the Residence Life Office and submitted by the student.
• Approval for a termination of the Resident Agreement will result in forfeiture of the $100 Housing Deposit.
• Approval for a termination of the Resident Agreement after occupancy will result in no refund from any room charges and a prorated refund of the meal plan based on a Friday to Thursday increment. Prorated meal plan refunds will be based on meal plan enrollment at the close of business each Thursday; partial weeks of enrollment will be calculated as a full week for calculating meal plan charges and refunds.