Johnson & Wales juniors to live on campus. How will it impact housing in the city?

Wheeler Cowperthwaite, Providence Journal
·7 min read

PROVIDENCE − Johnson & Wales University will start requiring its third-year students to live on campus, joining two other Rhode Island universities that only allow their seniors to live off campus, a policy that will take effect in 2026.

The new policy will only impact students who start at the university in the fall of 2024, putting that cohort's third year of college in 2026. Previously, students were only required to live on campus for their first two years.

Currently, about half the student body lives on campus, Vice President of Student Affairs Melanie Tucker wrote in a news release.

This year, 2,052 students are living on campus and next year the anticipated number is 2,263, university spokeswoman Rachel Nunes wrote in an email.

Currently, a little over half of third-year students opt to live on campus, but student living patterns have been disrupted by the pandemic, she wrote.

Of the first-year students at the school, this year 77% live on campus, she wrote. All of them, as well as sophomores, are required to live on campus unless they meet certain exceptions.

Why has the Johnson & Wale's policy changed?

According to a news release, the policy change, increasing the on-campus housing requirement from sophomores to juniors, was done to increase student retention and engagement and over concerns of a lack of housing in Providence.

“Here in Providence, JWU is committed to working with the city by freeing up community housing and allowing more options for those who live and work in the Providence area, contributing to an overall vibrant city for our students to call home," Providence Campus President Marie Bernardo-Sousa wrote in a news release.

How big an impact would it make?

The federal National Center for Education Statistics pegs Johnson & Wales undergraduate population at 4,158 and graduate student population at 408 for a total of 4,566. The center does not list the date of its data. With 4,158 undergraduates, the only students affected by the change, the theoretical number of students impacted in 2026 decreases to 1,039. An update from July put out by the university states there are 4,542 students enrolled in Providence.

While 1,039 housing units is a huge number, most students living off campus likely live with one or more roommates, bringing down the number of housing units affected to 519 (two students per housing unit) to 346 (three students per housing unit).

Is there room?

Nunes said there is plenty of room for more students at the residence halls and enough room for all the students in 2026 who would be required to live on campus.

What exceptions are there to Johnson & Wales residency policy?

The new university policy allows students to live off campus if they:

  • Are married and/or have dependents

  • Are 24 or older (21 under the old policy)

  • Live at home with parents, within 25 miles of campus (50 miles under the old policy)

  • Have a disability requiring off-campus housing

  • Are not eligible to live on campus

What's the cost to live on campus compared to renting?

The university has eight residence halls in Providence open this year. Another two are undergoing renovations and will be open next year.

Excluding the cost of meals and meal plans, there are three prices for on-campus housing at Johnson & Wales. The cost of dorms per month has been calculated based on nine months per year.

  • $13,600 per academic year, $1,511 a month

  • $12,944 per academic year, $1,438 a month

  • $12,176 per academic year, $1,352 a month

Comparing the cost of on-campus housing, often with roommates, to housing in the greater Providence area requires a few caveats.

Most rentals require 12-month, not nine-month leases, adding three months' worth of rent onto a price. Rentals closest to the campus are downtown, which means they are some of the most costly.

If two students were to pool their monthly costs at the residence halls, they could rent an apartment for $2,704 to $3,022 a month.

Average rent estimates in Providence range from $2,074 per Zillow for all apartments, $2,185 for two-bedroom apartments per the website Zumper.com and apartments.com puts studios at $1,631 and two-bedrooms at $2,588.

What's the cost difference between downtown apartments and the dorms?

To compare costs, The Providence Journal looked at available apartments near the Johnson & Wales campus downtown. Most apartments do not make it clear if utilities are included, while they are included for on-campus housing. No three-bedroom apartments were available.

Studley building, 82 Weybosset St.: For small studio, one-bedrooms and "micro-loft" apartments in the newly transformed Studley building, converted from offices to housing, the market rents range from $1,500 a month for a 242 to 343 square feet room with a "Murphy bed" to $2,000 for a 367 to 425 square feet one-bedroom apartment.

The cheapest apartment is about even with the most expensive on-campus option.

G Reserve apartments, 170 Westminster St.: At the Union Trust Company Building, rents for two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments range from $2,635 (920 square feet, $1,317 split two ways,) to $3,100 (800 square feet, $1,550 split two ways).

The cheapest two-bedroom apartment is just a little bit cheaper than the cheapest on-campus option but the more expensive apartments exceed the price of the dorms.

Providence G, 100 Dorrance St.: A two-bed, one-bath apartment is $2,500 (815 square feet). Split two ways, that's $1,250 a month.

Splitting an apartment at the Providence G is cheaper than living on campus, but could easily be just as expensive with utilities.

Emblem 125, 125 Clifford St.: Marketed as a "sanctuary in the city," studios run from $1,904 to $2,252 (450 square feet), while two two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments rent for $3,255 (1,093 square feet, $1,627 split two ways) and $3,594 (1,166 square feet, $1,797 split two ways).

These apartments, even when split with a roommate, are far more expensive than on-campus housing.

How long do students have to live on campus at Rhode Island colleges and universities?

Johnson & Wales will join two other Providence-based institutions requiring students to live on campus for the first three years: Brown University and Providence College.

An additional three Rhode Island colleges require students to live on campus for the first two years and four have no residency requirements.

Johnson & Wales University residency requirements in Providence

The Providence campus of Johnson & Wales University requires students to live on campus for the first three years, a change from a requirement of two years. The change will affect juniors in 2026.

Brown University residency requirements

Brown University, in Providence, requires students to be live in campus housing for the first three years, with some exceptions, including those who live with their parents, are 23 or older or live with a spouse or "legal domestic partner."

Providence College residency requirements

Providence College requires students to live on campus for the first three years, with some exceptions, like living with parents, married students and graduate students.

Rhode Island College residency requirements

Rhode Island College has no residency requirement for students and is mostly a commuter school.

Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) residency requirements

The Rhode Island School of Design, or RISD, in Providence, requires students to live on campus for the first two years. There are exceptions for married students, students who live at home and students who will be 21 by Sept. 1.

University of Rhode Island residency requirements

University of Rhode Island, in South Kingstown, has no residency requirement. An estimated 95% of first year students live on campus, according to the university's website.

Bryant University residency requirements

Bryant University, in Smithfield, does not require students to live on campus.

Roger Williams University residency requirements

Roger Williams University, in Bristol, requires students to live on campus for their first two years. Exceptions include students who live with a parent up to 40 miles away, married students, students with dependents and students 21 and older.

Salve Regina University residency requirements

Salve Regina University, in Newport, requires students to live on campus for the first two years.

New England Institute of Technology residency requirements

The New England Institute of Technology, in Warwick, does not require students to live on campus.

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Reach reporter Wheeler Cowperthwaite at wcowperthwaite@providencejournal.com or follow him on Twitter @WheelerReporter.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Johnson & Wales requires juniors to live on campus starting in 2026