Single and not ready to mingle: The potential gentrification of student housing

Abstract

As higher education tuition continues to rise in the United States and globally, other costs impacting students, such as fees, parking, and housing, are rising at a similar pace. Concurrently, more higher education institutions are focusing on creating boutique experiences for students, including the option for single-unit housing. This paper analyzed the costs associated with single-unit housing at the ten largest college campuses in the United States compared to the costs associated with multi-unit housing and off-campus living. The changes in preferences for students associated with their college experiences, when partnered with higher costs of living and off-campus housing, create an unsolvable, wicked problem.

Keywords

• single-unit housing
• residence life
• student affairs
• demography
• wicked problems