Not Your Parents’ Dorm Room: Changes in Universities’ Residential Housing Privacy Levels and Impacts on Student Success

Abstract

New student residence halls are being built to meet students’ demands and needs, creating complex living units that prioritize private spaces over social group spaces despite potential negative impacts on student success and well-being. This study examines all university residences located in a large urban center in Northern America, quantifying students’ different levels of privacy in living units classified by the Housing Unit Classification (HUC). Using the Hierarchy of Isolation and Privacy in Architecture Tool (HIPAT), this study measures the level of privacy in residence units typologies and analyzes the possible effects on the experiences of students, crowding and isolation, academic performance detriment, or success in various residence units. Increased private space in units is typically in apartments or suites. Increases in privacy levels of residences’ living units reflect possible lowering of students’ socialization in the built space, with probable negative consequences on grade point average (GPA), program completion, feelings of isolation, and overall well-being.