Moving In & Getting Settled

All Residents are required to sign up for a move-in appointment. Students will receive the link to sign up for a move-in appointment that is open one month before move-in.

Fall Semester

• New Student Fall Semester Move-in will be the morning that Orientation begins (the Wednesday before classes start)
• Transfer Student Fall Semester Move-in will be the morning that Transfer Orientation begins (the Friday before classes start)
• Returning Students Fall Semester Move-in will be the start of the Housing Lease & Contract (Friday before Fall classes start)

Spring Semester

• New & Transfer Student Spring Semester Move-in will be the weekend before classes start
• Returning Students may return to their on-campus living arrangements for the Spring Semester at the start of the Spring term of the Housing Lease & Contract (Saturday before Spring classes start)

Early Arrivals for sanctioned University activities only. You will receive additional information if you are part of an approved activity. No early arrivals will be approved outside of these sanctioned activities.

• Fill out your Emergency Plan at housing.western.edu
• Sign up for a move-in time (you will receive a sign-up link in your email one month prior to move-in).
• You will have 30 minutes to move all items into your room.
• Prior to move-in, you will receive an email with move-in details specific to your hall.

Fill Out Your Emergency Plan

• Come during your assigned check-in time. If your travel plans change, contact the Office of Residence Life at reslife@western.edu or 970.943.2101.
• Vehicles will be guided to an unloading zone. Please move your vehicle to street parking after you’ve unloaded your belongings.
• Check-in will take place at each residence hall.
• Residents are responsible for their own cleaning supplies.

Please go directly to your assigned residence hall or apartment complex and follow signs to the resident check-in area. Staff will be available at the check-in area to assist you, and outdoor and indoor signs will direct you to the right location for your check-in area.

You will receive additional information about the check-in date and time from the Residence Life Office.

It’s important to log in and check your Western email regularly in the weeks leading up to the semester’s start. The link to login, along with lots of other great resources, can be found on students.western.edu. You set up your email after you paid your enrollment deposit; instructions were sent to the email address you used in the application for admission.

In your Workday account, you will plan your schedule, register for classes, access financial aid and pay your bill, view your grades, and more. You can log in from students.western.edu.

• Review your class schedule—before classes start, be sure to log in and select academics, then current classes, to check for any room, day, or time changes in your class schedule.
• Check your holds and outstanding action items
• Confirm your personal data, preferred name, etc.
• Submit your immunization information
• Review and accept your financial aid awards
• Authorizing your family and supporters to see your account

Need help getting started in Workday? Check out this resource page for a variety of “How-To” guides.

The Housing and Campus Life Portal, available on students.western.edu is your first stop for all things living on campus. This is your one-stop shop for all things related to on-campus housing, meal plans, and campus life. If you have signed up for campus housing but don’t have an assignment in your Housing & Campus Life portal, email ResLife (reslife@western.edu) or call 970-943-2101.

You can log in into the portal from students.western.edu.

• Submit your ID photo – log in using your Western email, then select a profile to upload a photo for your student ID (photo hints from visaphoto.com).
• Check Your Flex$ and Mountaineer$ – select accounts to see your balance or add money.
• Family deposit to your Mountaineer$ – your family and friends can add money to your card on the portal home page using your email address.

The first bill you get will have all of your charges but possibly not all of your financial aid and scholarships awards—don’t panic! Ten days before classes start, you should log in to your Workday account and see what has been credited, as well as make a payment, create a payment plan, or add a payer to your account.

The Center for Disability and Accommodations (CDA) works with students, faculty, and staff to ensure that all of Western’s students have equitable access to campus curricula, facilities, services, and resources through universal design, accommodations, and creative solutions. More information and the accommodations request form is available on the CDA webpage.

All new students go through our orientation program before starting classes at Western. Be sure to complete the student health and wellness courses before coming to campus, along with the online orientation through Canvas.

Additional details were sent to your western.edu email address and can also be viewed on western.edu/orientation.

Western uses the learning platform Canvas to manage courses. Each instructor will use this platform differently, depending on the needs of their class. You can access your syllabus for each course, as well as a variety of things, from a schedule of lectures to your homework and assignments to your grades. Your instructors will communicate how they will use Canvas. You should anticipate that it will be different from course to course; it’s your responsibility to pay attention and ask clarifying questions when needed. You can log in from students.western.edu. 

For your convenience, each complex has coin-operated laundry facilities. All laundry machines accept Mountaineer Cash—a declining balance on your Mountaineer Card.

Your address should read:
Your name
Western Colorado University
C.P.O. # (Campus Post Office Box Number)
1 Western Way
Gunnison, CO 81231-(4 digit C.P.O. # again)

Mail will always be delivered to the Mail Center in the University Center. Mail and packages typically cannot be delivered directly to your residence hall.

For your convenience, Colorado Collegiate Rentals offers refrigerator and microwave rentals.

Rent Now

GradGuard Renters Insurance is a wise investment for college students and their families. With the plan, personal items that are stolen or damaged by a covered cause of loss can be replaced, subject to a low deductible. GradGuard Renters Insurance also protects students financially from large-scale, unintentional damage they may cause to their residence hall or bodily injury they may cause to others for which they are legally liable.

Purchase a Policy

Occasionally, cancelations may require us to make changes to your housing assignment. We will contact you as soon as possible if we need to change your room assignment or if you need information about your roommate. As cancellations occur, we will fill the spaces in order of application date. After arriving on campus, students who wish to move need to contact the Assistant Director/Resident Director of the hall in which they are currently living to request a housing change. No room changes will be allowed until two weeks after classes start. Non-emergency room changes will result in a standard processing fee.

Residence halls are open during Labor Day, Mid-Fall Break, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and President’s Day holidays. Special arrangements may be made for students interested in staying in the residence halls over Fall Break Week and Spring Break. Information about signing up for these breaks will be advertised closer to each break. Only residents living in Pinnacles, Chipeta, and the Mears Complex may apply to stay over Winter Break for an additional charge. Residents in Ute Hall and Escalante Complex are not permitted to stay over Winter Break due to lack of access to a kitchen (all on-campus dining is closed for the duration of Winter Break) unless they obtain permission from their Resident Director.

• Carpet sweeper or mini vacuum
• Dishes
• Fan
• Humidifier
• Mattress pad
• Microwave
• Sheets, pillowcases, blankets (make sure you get the right size for your bed)
• Small refrigerator
• Stereo
• Television

• Alarm clock
• An area rug or scrap carpet
• Calendar
• Desk lamp
• Plants
• Posters (we recommend poster putty to avoid putting holes in the walls)
• Surge protectors (no extension cords)
• Table lamp(s)

• Bathroom cleaning supplies
• Toilet paper and toiletries

• Laundry bag or basket
• Hangers
• Laundry detergent
• Sewing kit

• Weapons or fireworks (i.e. paintball guns, BB guns, knives larger than 3 1/2”)
• Candles and incense (candle warmers are O.K.)
• Pets (other than fish)
• Toasters, electric frying pans, or any other kitchen appliances that have a hot plate
• Vaporizer pens, oils, or wax
• Hookahs
• Any upholstered furniture (sofas, recliners, futons, and bean bag chairs)