Housing Policies

Resident students are required to submit a signed residence contract each year they live on campus.

Students are held personally responsible for the condition and furnishings of their own room and jointly responsible for public areas. A resident is also responsible for the loss, theft or damage of college and/or personal property by the resident or guest(s).

Residents may have no more than 2 guests per resident in their room, to the extent that it does not negatively affect the shared living environment created by the residence hall atmosphere. A guest is any person who intends to visit or sleep in a residence hall room and is not a resident of that room. Rooms may not be used by any person(s) without a resident of the room present.

Overnight guests may stay only a maximum of 5 nights in a one month period. An overnight guest may stay no more than 2 consecutive nights during one visit. The permission of the room’s other occupant(s) must be obtained by the hosting student for an overnight guest.

Items to Bring With You

Click here for a PDF version of this list of what to pack.

Current Students Recommend Packing

Every resident student is issued one room key, and one front door key or fob, when they check in. The College strongly advises each student to lock their room whenever they leave and when sleeping. If a student loses their key(s) and/or fob, or they are stolen, a lock change will occur at a cost to the student.

Students can pick up parking stickers during check-in at the Public Safety Office for a nominal fee. Don’t forget to bring your car registration and plate number to secure the sticker.

All resident students can receive mail on campus. Your mailing address will depend on where you live.

Resident students on the Troy campus can pick up mail and packages through the College Services department in the John Paine Building. Troy resident students will receive an email from College Services when a package or letter arrives for them and should have mail addressed to them as follows.

[your name]
Russell Sage College
65 1st Street
Troy, NY 12180

Students who are housed in the Albany Campus Residence Hall have mailboxes that are assigned to them that are located in the College Services department in the basement of the Administration Building. The mailboxes may only be opened with a key, which students receive upon checking into the residence hall. Students will receive an email from College Services when a package or letter arrives for them and should have mail addressed to them as follows.

[your name]
Russell Sage College
[your mailbox number]
140 New Scotland Avenue
Albany, NY 12208

Students living in University Heights College Suites have their mail delivered directly to UHCS and will be notified by UHCS management when they receive mail with instructions for pick up. UHCS students should use the following format for addressing mail and packages:

[your name]
Apt # [insert number]
100 Union Drive
Albany, NY 12208

Opening and closing dates and times for room occupancy are specified in the college calendar and must be observed. Residents must vacate their rooms during vacation periods when the residence halls are officially closed.

When the residence halls are closing, information will be distributed to residents regarding appropriate closing procedures. Failure to follow these procedures will result in charges for improper checkout.

At the end of each term, the student is expected to vacate their room within 24 hours of their exam or at the final closing deadline, whichever comes first.

Out of consideration for people with allergies, because of possible health hazards and in consideration of state and local health standards, only fish kept in an unheated bowl or aquarium are permitted. This policy includes “residing” as well as “visiting” pets.

Creation of an environment conducive to study is a primary objective in the residence halls. This requires that each resident show consideration for others by keeping the noise level low and contained within the space of his/her room so that students who are studying will not be disturbed. Quiet hours are standard as follows: weeknights 11 p.m. to 8 a.m.; weekends 1a.m. to 9 a.m. Courtesy hours (students are required to be considerate of the needs of others and govern the noise level of their stereo, gatherings and personal activities) exist at all times. Strict quiet hours, known as study hours, (24-hour quiet hours) will be in effect during Reading Days and examination periods.

Russell Sage College respects a student’s right to privacy, but when the interests of the college community require, or when any safety, repair or maintenance necessitates, the college reserves the right to inspect any college room.

Russell Sage College students living in University Heights College Suites have the opportunity to elect to live in coeducational apartments by indicating the choice during the room reservation process by signing a coeducational housing preference form.

Coeducational suites must have an even distribution of gender identities, here defined as two pairs of students who identify in the same way. Each gender pair will share the same side of the apartment as well as the bathroom adjacent to their single rooms.

Coeducational housing is opt-in only. If no preference form is signed, it will be assumed that the student wishes to live in a single-gender suite, and will be housed as such.

At Russell Sage College, all full-time undergraduate students are required to live in College-owned on-campus residence halls for their first three years of College housing eligibility. This requirement applies regardless of the number of college credits earned prior to enrollment.

Students may be exempt from the residency requirement if they reside with a parent, legal guardian, or spouse. Requests for exceptions based on age, financial circumstances, or family considerations are reviewed on an individual basis and must be approved by the Director of Residence Life or their designee. Students who are granted commuter status must reside within a 30-mile radius of the campus where their academic program is located.

On-campus housing at Russell Sage is designed primarily for traditional-aged college students (ages 18–22); however, the College accommodates residential students between the ages of 16 and 24. Students outside of this age range who are interested in College-owned housing should contact Residence Life at residencelife@sage.edu to discuss housing options based on their individual circumstances.