FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON UG HALL APPLICATION
1. How can I apply for a hall place for the Residential Year 2023-24?
All HKUST full-time registered students are eligible for student housing. Hall applications should be submitted through the online hall application system (https://studenthousing.hkust.edu.hk/page/applyhall) within the application periods:
- Continuing UGs: 22 March – 12 April 2023
- New Non-Local UGs: 3 – 16 July 2023 (Tentative)
- New Local UGs: 9 – 12 August 2023 (Tentative)
2. Will I receive acknowledgement of my application?
An email acknowledgment will be sent to your ITSC account upon successful submission of an application. Please remember to check your email including junk or spam mail folder in case you do not receive the e-mail acknowledgment, contact us at ughousing@ust.hk immediately and before the application deadline.
3. Should I apply for student housing if I plan to go on exchange or apply for study leave?
Yes, as we DO NOT accept application anytime after the application period. If both of your hall application and exchange/study leave are successful, you are responsible to inform the Student Housing and Residential Life Office (ughousing@ust.hk). We will then adjust your hall offer and respective hall charges.
If you are already a hall resident in Fall Term and plan to take leave of study, hence not eligible for student housing, you will need to contact SHRLO immediately so that we can adjust your hall offer. Otherwise, you will be charged for the hall fee for the entire Residential Year 2023-24 if you fail to inform us in time.
4. Can I still apply for hall residence after the deadline?
The online application system will be closed automatically when the application period is over. Applications submitted after the application deadline will NOT be considered. You MUST submit your hall application within the application period.
5. How are my hall points calculated?
Eligible students who are not already provided with university housing by other means will receive hall points according to criteria as stated in the UG Hall Allocation Policy and be prioritized in respective pool subject to their local or non-local/NHB status. You can find out the hall point calculation in the corresponding allocation criteria in the UG Hall Allocation Policy.
To support for hall point calculation, you may try out the Hall Point Calculator which generates a preliminary result of your hall points by answering a few questions. Please note that the result is for reference only and the final hall points will be subject to verification of information as required by the UG Hall Allocation Policy.
6. Can I change my reported information (e.g. home address) after I have submitted my hall application?
After submitting the application form, the information on the online system cannot be changed. If applicants wish to change the submitted information, they should write to ughousing@ust.hk before the application deadline. No changes will be considered after the deadline.
7. I am a local student. How to determine my one-way traveling time from home to HKUST?
The average one-way traveling time (TT) is determined by the HKeMobility (http://www.hkemobility.gov.hk/) according to the following parameters:
- The English version of the HKeMobility shall be used;
- Use the default tab “Ride” and “Service Mode: All Services” to search for public transportation;
- Under the Search Settings (by clicking the down arrow/pull down menu in "Route Search"), the following settings will be adopted: “Shorter” in Walking Distance:”,“Normal” in Walking Route; “Adult” in Fare;
- “Departure Time” is set for Wednesday at 8:00am;
- The home address (with block number or name of block, if applicable) as “From”;
- Either "Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (North Station) (Green Mini Bus)" or "Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (South Station) (Green Mini Bus)" as “To”, depending on applicants' selection of closest gate arriving at the campus indicated in the hall applications;
- The route with shortest estimated traveling time and the route with cheapest fare shown in search results will be used for calculating an average time.
8. I am the President of a student group. Is my student group eligible for hall points? How do I know if I am being nominated for higher hall points?
If you are holding a leadership role/ position in one of the eligible student groups listed in the UG Hall Policy (Eligible List of Student Bodies: click here), you should declare the serving position(s) in your hall application. SHRLO will start verifying the application details with respective university offices after the close of application period.
If your student group is not listed in the policy, you may still choose to declare serving position(s) in the hall application. However, there is no guarantee that your reported leadership role(s) will be considered for gaining any hall points.
Nominations can be made among student bodies themselves, while a few by university offices (e.g. School Student Ambassadors). If the nominations are made among their student bodies, applicants MUST indicate in their hall applications that they receive nominations for higher hall points by checking the boxes concerned.
A maximum of 3 nominations will be accepted from each student body for each year (e.g. 3 nominations from Session 2022-23 and another 3 nominations from Session 2023-24).
9. If I check in after the official check-in date, can I pay the hall fee proportionally? How about if I check out earlier than the official check-out date, can I get a refund?
You are charged for the entire period regardless of the length of your stay. In other words, you will still need to settle the hall charges IN FULL even you check in late or check out early.
10. I cannot check in within 7 days from the official check-in date. What should I do?
You should email the Student Housing and Residential Life Office at ughousing@ust.hk IMMEDIATELY to provide your reason about late check-in. If we do not hear from you about late check-in, your hall offer will become null and void but you are still responsible for the hall fee incurred.
11. I am on the waiting list. When can I expect to receive a hall offer?
In the sequence of the waitlist position announced on the Student Housing and Residential Life Office webpage, you will be informed by email about the hall residence offer as soon as a bed space becomes available. Please be patient and check your HKUST mailbox for our updates.