ADA Accommodations

Students with disabilities may request housing accommodations while completing the housing application, available at portal.housing.berkeley.edu

The first phase of the application process has several steps, including an “Accommodations” section where forms are linked for students to indicate that they have a disability need for an accommodation in university housing. For confidentiality reasons, the housing application does not allow students to input personal information regarding their disability. 

Please complete and submit phase one of the housing application, including the application fee, before the deadline for students in your classification (first year, transfer, continuing student, etc.). Accommodations requests submitted after the deadline will be considered on a space-available basis after those received by the deadline.

In addition to submitting the housing application, students who wish to request an accommodation based on a disability-related need may complete the ADA Housing Accommodations Request Form, which is also linked in the housing application, and provide supporting information. 

Students may provide supporting information that establishes that they have a disability (there is no need to share any diagnosis information), that describes the needed accommodation or modification requested, and that shows the relationship between the student's disability and how the requested accommodation is necessary to use campus housing. Documentation may be faxed, emailed, or delivered in person.

Here is a letter that you may wish to share with your medical provider to provide this information:

ADA Accommodations - Medical Professional Instructions

Priority is given to students who provide documentation by the stated deadline due to limited resources in our inventory. It is recommended that students contact the Cal Housing office to verify that all of their documentation has been received by the deadline. While priority is given to students who provide documentation by the standard deadline, students may submit requests and documentation at any time during the academic year due to disability needs. 

Upon receipt of a complete housing accommodations request, the Housing Disability Specialist will review the documentation provided to determine a reasonable accommodation, and may offer an alternative accommodation that meets the student’s disability-related needs as described by the provided documentation.

Students who receive a housing offer will be notified of the offer via email to their berkeley.edu email address and will be given the opportunity to accept or decline the housing offer online by completing Phase 2 of the application (portal.housing.berkeley.edu). By declining an offer, the student is indicating they do not wish to live on campus, and they will not receive an offer for a different space.

If a student believes their housing offer does not meet their disability needs, they may reach out to the Accommodations Coordinator and/or Housing Disability Specialist with additional information.

Below are some examples of accommodations students have requested in the past related to a disability or medical accommodation:

1. Automatic Door Opener
2. ADA compliant bathroom (including roll-in shower)
3. Visual doorbell
4. Strobe light fire alarm/smoke detector
5. Ability to rent more than one MicroChill unit
6. Room with additional space for medical equipment
7. Semi-private bathroom
8. Ground floor room or room on a lower floor
9. Location close to Tang Medical Center for access to health care
10. Room removed from traffic noise, distractions from outdoors, and other loud ambient sound
11. Room with less allergens
12. Placement with a requested roommate
13. Private room or room with fewer roommates
14. Substance Free Environment (Freeborn Hall)
15. Emotional Support Animal
16. Professional healthcare attendant
17. Bathtub

Students requesting an emotional support animal as an accommodation to address the functional limitations of a disability are encouraged to fill out the Emotional Support Animal Approval Application.

Students with trained Service Animals are encouraged to contact Cal Housing in advance of arriving on campus to notify our staff of the presence of an animal and to ensure the housing assignment provided to you meets the needs of you and your animal. You may do so using the Service Animal Acknowledgment Form.

Students may self-identify as a person who may require evacuation assistance in the case of an emergency. For more information, see Emergency Preparedness for Disabled People.

The Disabled Students' Program (DSP) on campus can assist students with disabilities with receiving accommodations in the classroom. Students seeking academic accommodations need to register and provide documentation to the DSP office.

The Disability Access and Compliance office can assist students with requests for mobility access, communication access, and event access on the UC Berkeley campus. They can provide resources for accessibility with information about navigating the campus with a mobility or visual disability.

If you have concerns we have been unable to resolve for you, you may report a grievance to Disability Access and Compliance.

Students with disabilities who are living in on campus housing and believe that their current room is not a reasonable accommodation may request a room change or transfer by using the Room Change Request form. More information about this process and form are available at housing.berkeley.edu/forms

Students who are seeking a transfer request as a disability accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) may submit the ADA Housing Accommodations Request Form. Students may provide supporting information that establishes that they have a disability (there is no need to share any diagnosis information), that describes the needed accommodation or modification requested, and that shows the relationship between the student's disability and how the requested accommodation is necessary to use campus housing. Documentation may be faxed, emailed, or delivered in person.

Here is a letter that you may wish to share with your medical provider to provide this information:

ADA Accommodations - Medical Professional Instructions

Priority consideration for a room change will be provided to students whose documentation clearly demonstrates that their current on campus residence is not a reasonable accommodation for their needs.

If students have existing documentation on file and wish to request a room change, they should complete the Room Change Request form and email housingaccommodations@berkeley.edu.

If the request for a housing transfer is not due to medical/disability needs as supported by a qualified individual, students will have their room change request reviewed in the standard room change process, based upon the date of their room change request submission and our housing availability. Please keep in mind that room changes are not guaranteed. We typically have an extensive waitlist of students seeking to change rooms.