Differences Between Housing Preferences and Accommodations Requests

When students first enroll at Marymount, they are encouraged to submit at the same time both their:

• Housing preferences to the Office of Student Living
• Housing disability accommodation needs to the Student Access Services office.

A housing preference reflects what the student would like to have and what is likely to improve their living space experience even if they have a disability.

• If a student has a housing preference, they should focus their request with The Office of Student Living.

A housing need reflects the necessity for SAS to remove or reduce the impact of a barrier caused by a disability. That barrier prevents the student from engaging in a living space in the same way as a person who does not have a disability. For example, if a student can’t use a standard bathroom shower because they are a wheelchair user, then that shower’s configuration represents a barrier to their being able to wash.

• If a student has a disability-related housing need that modifies aspects of residential life to lessen or eliminate the impact of impairments, then it would be necessary to work with SAS.
• When contacting SAS, the difference between a preference-based and a needs-based request is that a student’s need should be supported by clinical documentation that logically outlines the critical nature of the housing modification proposed.
• In order to meet a student’s disability need, housing preferences may not be able to be met due to availability.