OPTIONS FOR ROOMMATE SELECTION Updated 3/2014

Detailing the Steps for Simple Roommate Search & Advanced Roommate Search

I.

Simple Roommate Selection – Part 1: Selecting Your Roommates!! Before you are able to select a space, you must first indicate who you would like to have as your roommate for the upcoming academic year! In order to do this, click on the “Room Selection >>” option in the left navigation bar of the MyHousing Overview, then select “Roommate Selection” as shown in the subsequent pop-up menu. An image of the screenshot can be seen here:

After clicking this link, you will be sent to the Roommate Requests page. Using this screen, you can search for your future roommates using any of the criteria shown below; you do not need to search using all the criteria, only one field is necessary. We suggest you find your potential roommates using the email address search; all student email addresses have been inputted into the MyHousing system, and will assist you with finding the correct student. Once you have inputted your information, please click “Request Student as Roommate”. If you receive a message that “No matching students were found”, it may indicate one of the following:  You misspelled information in the selection field  The student is not eligible for room selection  The student is of the opposite gender See the following image for an example of the requests screen:

Once you have “found” your roommate, you will need to wait until your future roommate confirms your room request. Until your roommate confirms the request, you will see a “DOES NOT MATCH” indicator, in red font, listed in the status area in your “Future Roommate Requests” information. Students who have statuses of “Not Eligible” or “Student Assigned” are unavailable to be selected as roommates and are unable to participate in room selection. Information on “Unmatched Roommates” will also help explain why certain statuses are being displayed. Shown below are two screens, the first screen shows a student who has requested a roommate who is awaiting confirmation of a request. The second screen shows a roommate request that is pending, awaiting a student to select to “Decline” or “Confirm” the request.

II.

Advanced Roommate Selection – Part 1: Updating Your Personal Preferences and Personal Profile If you currently are in need of selecting a roommate, but are unsure of whom you would be interested in selecting, you can utilize the “Advanced Roommate Search” Process. If interested in utilizing the “Advanced Roommate Search” Process, you will need to complete personal information in order for other students to find you through the MyHousing System. A. Setting Your Personal Preferences … The first step in participating in the Advanced Roommate Search Process is to complete the Personal Profile in the MyHousing System. In order to input this information, you would need to log into MyHousing, and while on your MyHousing Overview, click on “Personal Preferences” to be brought to the screen below. Be sure to click on the semester for which you will be looking for housing. In the screenshot shown below, the student will be inputting preferences for Fall 2014.

Once your preferences have been updated, click “Submit My Personal Preferences” to save this information. Following this point, click back on the Personal Preferences link in the Left Navigation Bar and begin to complete the “Personal Profile/Roommate Contact Information.” In this section, you can indicate a preferred method of contact if you are looking for students to contact you regarding your roommate information. B. Setting Your Preferred Contact Type… In order to set your “Contact Preference Type”, please click back on the “Personal Preferences” link in the Left Navigation Bar and proceed to the area marked “Personal Profile/Roommate Contact Information.” In this section, you will be able to select the method you would prefer to have a potential roommate contact you. Currently, you are able to include your Facebook information, your Twitter handle or your Email Address. Please be aware that by including this information, it will be visible to any student who is interested in participating in the Advanced Roommate Search Process, unless you un-enroll in the Advanced Roommate Search Process. Once

you have updated this information, click “Submit My Personal Profile” to save all this information. For a screen shot of what this may look like on your computer screen, see the following image:

C. Setting Your “MyProfile” Information… In order to set your “My Profile”, please click back on the “Personal Preferences” link in the Left Navigation Bar and proceed to the area marked “Personal Profile/Roommate Contact Information.” In this section, which is a “free-form” area of the Advanced Roommate Search Profile where you can include a small amount of information about yourself, you will be able to input any information about yourself that you feel other students would be interested in knowing. Please be aware that by including this information, it will be visible to any student who is interested in participating in the Advanced Roommate Search Process. Once you have completed the information, please click on “Submit My Personal Profile” to publish this information to your Advanced Roommate Search Profile. D. Making Your Personal Profile/Advanced Roommate Search Profile Private… If you are not interested in participating in the Advanced Roommate Search Process, you will need to go into the “Personal Preferences” section of your MyHousing Account and select to make your personal profile private. In order to do this, check out the “Personal Profile/Roommate Contact Information” section, and change the “Make Profile Private” dropdown to reflect “Yes.” Once you have done this, click “Submit My Personal Preferences” and your profile will no longer be able to be viewed during the advanced roommate search process.

III.

Advanced Roommate Selection – Part 2: Selecting Your Roommates!! After you have updated your personal profile information, you should then click on the “Room Selection>>” option in the left navigation bar of the MyHousing Overview, then select “Roommate Selection.” You will then be prompted to select the term for which you would like to search for roommates, as shown in the subsequent pop-up menu. An image of the screenshot can be seen here for the Fall 2014 Semester:

After clicking this link, you will be sent to the Roommate Requests page, which will have the option for the Simple Roommate Search, as well as the Advanced Roommate Search. Using this option, you can search for your future roommates using any of the criteria listed in the Advanced Roommate Search area; you do not need to search using all the criteria, only one field is necessary, but by indicating more information, you may find more applicable potential roommates. A screen shot below shows you both the “Simple Roommate Search” and “Advanced Roommate Search” Options active for a student to utilize:

Once you have selected the items you would like to search for in a potential future roommate, click on the “Begin Search” button, which will allow you the opportunity to view other students who have filled out Personal Profiles that match the criteria you have indicated in the “Advanced Roommate Search” section. All the students who are enrolled in the Advanced Roommate Search Process who are eligible will be listed in this screen (as shown) and will also be able to be requested as potential roommates. The following image shows an example of some student profiles who have been identified as potential matches, based on the criteria indicated through the search performed.

If you are interested in requesting an individual as a potential future roommate, you would need to click the “Request This Student” button on the Search Results screen, and a request will be sent to the student’s MyHousing account and Saint Rose email. Students could then view the profile of the student that has submitted the request (as shown below) and also Confirm, Remove or Send Messages through MyHousing to individuals they are interested in living with.

As with “Simple Roommate Selection,” once you have “found” your roommate, you will need to wait until your future roommate “confirms” your room request. Until your roommate confirms the request, you will see a “DOES NOT MATCH” indicator, in red font, listed in the status area in your “Future Roommate Requests” information. Students who have statuses of “Not Eligible” or “Student Assigned” are unavailable to be selected as roommates and are unable to participate in room selection. Information on “Unmatched Roommates” will also help explain why certain statuses are being displayed.

IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER ABOUT SELECTING ROOMMATES!  All our housing options require you to fill a room/apartment to capacity!  It is absolutely required that all roommate requests be mutual o If your roommate group is not completed and mutual by the time your selection period begins, you will not be able to select a room!  We highly recommend that you and your group create a back-up plan in case your first choice of housing is not available at your selection time. The spaces that are available at the time of your selection will change as your selection time gets closer. o Plan to have a few options available and be prepared to select and deselect roommates throughout the selection process!  You can add and subtract roommates throughout the process so you can see different room types; please remember to inform any student who you are dropping out of your roommate group. Should you have any additional questions, please contact the Office of Residence Life at [email protected] or via phone at (518) 454-5295.