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If you still need help finding accommodation for the 2025-26 academic year, please contact us and we'll try our best to help you find accommodation owned, managed or approved by the university.
Whether you're an international student, or a UK home student, when you apply to live on campus as a first-year undergraduate, you're joining a supportive college community.
Take a look at our Accommodation at York video, and browse this web page to find out if campus accommodation at York is right for you.
In Shared bathroom accommodation, you'll have a wash basin in your room and share other bathroom facilities with your flat. All shared bathrooms are individually lockable and cleaned Monday to Friday by our cleaning team. Toilet roll is provided for you.
In Ensuite bathroom accommodation, you'll have your own toilet, wash basin and shower in your room. You’ll be responsible for keeping your ensuite clean, but our cleaners will perform a deep clean, usually once a term. You'll need to buy your own toilet roll.
About half of our campus accommodation is ensuite, and the rest has shared bathrooms. When applying for accommodation, at least three out of seven of your choices must be a shared bathroom.
Ensuite rooms come with your own private bathroom facilities within your room. In most cases this will be a wet room, while some accommodation offers a separate shower tray with a sliding door or splash guard.
Ensuite rooms are often popular with students who are new to shared living or who value having their own space.
Because ensuite rooms are in high demand, they can be oversubscribed, so we can’t guarantee availability.
Many students tell us that, in retrospect, they wouldn’t have minded sharing bathroom facilities with their flatmates. If you’re weighing up the extra cost or feeling unsure, it’s worth considering some shared bathroom options too - they’re a great way to save money and are a common choice across our accommodation.
When thinking about bathroom type, it might be worth asking yourself:
If you need an ensuite bathroom for health, welfare or mobility reasons, you should let us know as soon as possible. Given sufficient evidence, we’ll do our best to reserve one for you - find out how on our additional requirements webpage.
Shared bathroom rooms are a great way to save money while still having access to clean, convenient bathroom facilities. Bathrooms are located close to your bedroom (usually in the corridor or hallway) and are shared with other members of your flat. You can find out how many students you’ll be sharing with on each college’s accommodation page.
Shared bathroom rooms are a popular choice and offer good value for money, especially if you’re happy sharing facilities with your flatmates.
There are multiple toilets and showers per flat, and because students tend to keep different schedules, waiting is rarely an issue.
Many students find that sharing bathroom facilities is much easier than they expected. If you move into the private sector in your second year, you’ll usually be sharing bathrooms with your housemates too - so this can be a good way to get used to shared living early on.
Nursing and midwifery students: We understand that your 1st year finishes later than other courses at the University. We would recommend applying for a 44 week contract which is our longest undergraduate contract option. When this contract ends, you will be guaranteed on campus accommodation for the remainder of your 1st year by applying for our summer accommodation which will open in May.
Unsure if you want summer holiday accommodation? Don’t worry, you can always apply for summer accommodation separately nearer the time.
If you're self-catered, you'll make your own meals. You can buy meals individually from catering outlets, or take advantage of the Meals in Advance Deal to purchase meals at a cheaper rate on a termly basis.
Colleges on Campus East come with one evening meal a week included in their rent, but are otherwise self-catered.
If you're catered, you'll be served breakfast and an evening meal (Monday to Friday, during term time) in your college’s dining hall, included in your rent price. You’ll still have access to a shared kitchen for making lunch and weekend meals.
Whatever accommodation you’re in, you’ll have access to a shared kitchen with other members of your flat or house. If you choose catered accommodation, you’ll live with other students who are catered too.
If you’re in a catered room, you’ll be served a breakfast and evening meal every weekday (Monday to Friday, during term time) in your college canteen. Simply turn up, choose from the variety of meals available, and swipe your University card at the checkout. You can eat together in the dining hall or take your meal away - it’s completely up to you.
Catered rooms can be a great option if you want to settle into university life without worrying too much about weekday meals.
You’ll also be saving money (around 17%) compared to buying the same number of meals individually from our catering outlets.
If you’re unsure whether catered accommodation is right for you, it’s worth considering whether you’d be happy cooking breakfast and evening meals during the week - and whether you’d prefer the convenience of meals being ready for you.
You will not be able to apply for catered room. As you’ll be doing placements throughout your course, we wouldn’t want to charge you for meals you might miss.
Although this is catered accommodation, you won’t have your breakfast in the Vanbrugh Dining Room - instead, you’ll have a continental style breakfast, with fewer cooked options, served in the Fairfax House dining hall. This means that these rooms are slightly cheaper, and your breakfast will be conveniently closer to home!
* Prices are averages and correct as of 2025
If you’re in a self-catered room, you’ll prepare your own meals in your shared kitchen or choose to buy individual meals from our catering outlets. This option offers more flexibility around what and when you eat.
Self-catered rooms usually come with larger shared kitchens, as you’ll be using them more regularly.
Self-catered accommodation suits students who like having full control over their meals and don’t mind spending a bit more time cooking.
Top tip: You can order online groceries to be delivered to your nearest reception. Chipping in together with your flatmates will help spread the cost of delivery and save you a walk with heavy bags.
All rooms on Campus East (Anne Lister, David Kato, Langwith, Goodricke and Constantine) are self-catered. However, for first year undergraduates, one weekly college meal is included in the price. One day a week (depending on your college) you can redeem one evening meal from the Piazza Building canteen, located centrally on Campus East. This is a good opportunity to get out and meet some students from your wider college community, and have a break from cooking dinner.
MAD can be a good option for those unsure about which catering option to pick. In effect, it lets you turn your self-catered room into a catered room on a termly basis. You’ll save up to 18% compared to buying the same meals individually.
You’ll have the added flexibility of being able to redeem your meals at three different catering outlets across campus. However, you won’t be living with other catered students, so you won’t have quite the same social experience as in a catered room.
If you’d like that added flexibility, or maybe just want to not have to worry about cooking during exam season - and want to save some money, this might be the option for you.
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm (excluding public holidays)
Accommodation Services