STUDENT HOUSING SPECIALISTS

Getting housing right is a complex challenge for today’s colleges and universities.  You need to plan for flexible, technology-intensive spaces that anticipate what student demands will be for years to come. The barren multi-bed dorms of the past are being transformed into high-tech, comfortable spaces that support academic success, and reflect the wider campus community.  

Research completed in 2006 by the Association of College and University Housing Officers - International (ACUHO-I) and MGTof America, Inc., indicates that 80% of new higher education residential construction is either apartments or super suites.  Most students had their own room and often private bath in their homes, and they expect the same on campus.  And most importantly, today’s students were born into a digital world and demand connectivity.  The quality of housing is often the deciding factor for students wavering between schools.

Innovative housing design reflects innovative thinking!  Arctecon’s focus on integrated building technology makes our team uniquely qualified to tackle the challenges of the next generation of student housing.  These include: 

• A positive community experience
• Wi-Fi everywhere
• Spaces for large and small social gatherings, outside of the rooms
• Outside social areas, with outdoor cooking
• Flexible spaces that students can modify to their needs
• “Smart Walls” in dorm room that are wired so that students can decide where to place their equipment
• Ample storage - including bikes
• Parking
• Kitchens/kitchenettes
• Security (alarms, safes in rooms)
• Privacy

Students and their parents are spending more on amenities such as microfridges (combination appliance with refrigerator, freezer and microwave in one unit), large screen TVs, and often bringing in their own furniture and fixtures. 

Student housing is also being incorporated into the overall campus design in new ways.  No longer relegated to the campus fringe, housing is now being designed closer to student support services and recreational centers.  This can be an integral part of supporting a student’s academic success.  

The Arctecon team understands the complexities of creating innovative student housing, and stand ready to assist you in serving your students’ housing needs and create spaces that will remain vital in the long run.