By: Raegan Skarda
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (UATV) – The University of Arkansas is implementing changes to on-campus apartment eligibility requirements. The update follows as the university continues to see record-breaking student enrollment.
On Feb. 11, University Housing sent out a detailed email explaining the upcoming apartment options for the 2026-2027 school year. Apartment complexes are now determined by a student’s academic classification. In previous years, all on-campus apartments were available to students regardless of their year in school.
The apartments that will be affected include, The Cardinal, Locale, Marshall, and Atmosphere.
The Cardinal will only be accessible to incoming freshmen, while The Locale and Atmosphere are exclusive for upper-classmen and transfers. The Marshall will prominently house upper-classmen with room reserved for first year students.
University officials and administrators said these adjustments were made to help better support students, allowing them to thrive and help ease the stress. The university broke another enrollment record for the 2025-2026 school year, topping over 34,000 students. Nearly 7,000 of those are freshmen, according to the Office of the Provost.
Because of university policy, all freshmen are required to live on campus – but with ever-growing enrollment rates, that requirement has limited housing options for returning students and transfers. The Student Affairs division chose to do this to give freshmen the best experience, and now they are returning the favor to upper-classmen. The goal of sectioning on-campus apartments by academic year is to create the best community for returning students.
The Cardinal was specifically chosen for freshmen. Officials said the decision was based on capacity, as the number of beds matched the overflow of students traditional residence halls could not accommodate. The Cardinal is on the South corner of campus, which makes it easier for first year students to learn their way around.
On the other hand, The Locale is around a 20 minute walk from campus, whereas The Marshall is about half of that distance. These estimates do not include the upperclassmen that typically drive to campus. The drive from either of those apartment complexes to campus is around 10 minutes.
As enrollment continues to rise at the University of Arkansas, officials said that these housing changes are designed to manage growth, all while maintaining a strong student experience. By separating apartment complexes based on academic classification, this allows officials to have hope in creating stronger communities that better support students in every stage of college, while ensuring student housing remains accessible, structured, and more student-focused moving forward.