Living-Learning Communities

Housing That's More Than Just Housing

A Living-Learning Community (LLC) offers a unique opportunity for students with common interests and/or identities to live together — connections that help guide students through their academic and social transitions. Some communities are connected specifically to colleges and/or majors; others are designed for students with a shared background.

“... whether it’s cultural or educational; you’ll be able to connect with people who share the same interests as you.”

Denisha, 1st-year biological science major

Request a Living-Learning Community

To request an LLC, be sure to select the community you're interested in when you submit your Residence Hall Contract in the MyHousing portal.

Space is limited in the LLCs and cannot be guaranteed. We recommend filling out your Housing Contract as early as possible to secure your space. Start off right by adding the LLC’s that you are interested in and prioritizing them first in your order preference on your Housing Contract in the Living-Learning Communities section. After you’ve ranked your preferences, you will be prompted to answer a few short questions regarding your interest in your top choice LLC.

As you work to identify roommate(s), don’t forget that they must preference the same LLC as their top choice or your preferences could be in opposition to one another. When you are notified of your Room Selection time period, plan to go online to choose your room and roommate as soon as possible.

Academic Living-Learning Communities

Spend the year with students with similar academic majors, and share academic experiences with peers and faculty. Available programs help residents develop academically, professionally and personally. They can also connect residents to campus partners and student organizations. Additionally, the programs can help guide future academic and employment options.

Click each image below to get more information on the Academic Living-Learning Communities.

CHASS

Focusing on academic transitions and professional success, this community is built in partnership with the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (CHASS) and their students. Achieve academic excellence, foster a sense of community engagement, and prepare for life’s possibilities.

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Enginuity

Focusing on academic transitions and professional success, this community is built in partnership with The Marlan and Rosemary Bourns College of Engineering and their students. Develop well-rounded skills in support of your degree pursuit, career preparation, and readiness for global citizenship.

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Honors

Focusing on academic transitions and professional success, this community is built in partnership with University Honors and their students. Cultivate a culture of contribution, promote creativity and innovation, and celebrate diversity and global citizenship.

Community location:

First-year students: Pentland Hills Residence Halls
All others: Glen Mor Apartments

Room assignment: Same-gender

Pre-Business

Focusing on academic transitions and professional success, this community is built in partnership with the CHASS Pre-Business Program, the School of Business Undergraduate Programs, and their students. Embrace difference, champion better business, empower innovation, and achieve collaboratively.

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

SiMS

Focusing on academic transitions and professional success, this community is built in partnership with the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (CNAS) and their students. Modern science is team-based, and CNAS embodies that principle in everything it teaches and practices.

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Experiential Living-Learning Communities

Students with a similar background can choose to live together in these student-driven communities. They can also work with the respective ethnic, cultural and/or gender offices on campus to celebrate and encourage their identity development. Available programs increase residents' knowledge of the group's common history and contemporary issues. They help develop residents academically, professionally, and personally. These programs also connect residents to relevant campus partners.

Click each image below to get more information on the Experiential Living-Learning Communities.

Global Scholars

Fostering a community for international engagement and global connection, the Global Scholars Living Learning Community (LLC) invites international and domestic students alike to explore their interests in intercultural issues and perspectives by engaging in learning opportunities to become global citizens. The Global Scholars LLC collaborates with the International Students and Scholars office.

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Markaz Middle Eastern

Focusing on serving those identifying and/or interested in the Middle East, North Africa, Central, and South Asia, and their many ethnicities, religions, nationalities, and traditions. The name of this LLC, Markaz, comes from the Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew, Pashto, Turkish, and Urdu word for “center”, and is affiliated with the Middle Eastern Student Center (MESC).

Community location: Pentland Hills Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Mundo

Focusing on serving those identifying and interested in Chicanx/Latinx cultures and traditions, Mundo, meaning “world” in Spanish, seeks to expand students’ academic success and build a sense of comunidad (community) and familia (family). The Mundo LLC is affiliated with Chicano Student Programs (CSP).

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Path Pan-African

Focusing on celebrating and affirming the experience of students of the African diaspora, the Pan-African Theme Hall cultivates an environment for residents to connect with fellow creative, intelligent scholars sharing similar academic and social goals. The PATH LLC is affiliated with African Student Programs (ASP).

Community location: Lothian Residence Hall

Room assignment: Same-gender

Pathways

Fostering a unique, community-living experience for incoming and continuing transfer students, Pathways is designed to help its residents navigate and thrive in the UCR culture while growing and developing personally and professionally to become effective leaders.

Community location: Glen Mor Apartments

Room assignment: Same-gender

Stonewall

Focusing on celebrating and welcoming lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, and asexual students, while welcoming the identities of every resident. Stonewall, named for the historic Stonewall Uprising and a turning point in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights and visibility, cultivates a feeling of family, community, and respect for its residents. The Stonewall LLC is affiliated with the LGBT Resource Center (LGBTRC).

Community location: Pentland Hills Residence Hall

Room assignment: Mixed-gender

Stride-2-Success

Fostering an intentional, community living environment for second-year students, Stride 2 Success is designed to encourage its residents to seize their second-year experience by engaging in topics of leadership & involvement, major & careers, and community & connection.

Community location: Glen Mor Apartments

Room assignment: Same-gender

LLC FAQ's

Check out answers to frequently asked questions!

What is a Living-Learning Community?

A Living-Learning Community (LLC) is a hall or community specifically reserved for students with a common academic interest or a shared identity experience. Students that live in LLCs participate in specific activities that aim to benefit their personal, social, academic, and career goals.
Why should I live in an LLC?
All LLCs provide an experience for students to develop skills that can support their broader success at the university. You should anticipate being active in your LLC through different events and discussions offered throughout your time residing with us. They focus on the specific outcomes of each LLC, the intersecting themes and identities between them, as well as our overall residential experience.

A few engagement opportunities you can look forward to:
- Connecting with a community of peers that can benefit your network in college and beyond, through community meetings and discussions.
- Participating in discussions with students, staff, and faculty on critical topics to the LLCs theme, such as current events, career trends, and societal norms.
- Reflecting on experiences on campus and learning skills to navigate transitions within the college, by facilitating a direct connection to campus resources and opportunities.
- Enjoy fun and engaging events planned with the community in mind, ranging from field trips, guest speakers, academic workshops, social functions, and so much more.
- Providing feedback on your experience in the LLC to assist in its development.
How do I live in an LLC?

Space is limited in the LLCs and cannot be guaranteed. We recommend filling out your Housing Contract as early as possible to secure your space. Start off right by adding the LLC’s that you are interested in and prioritizing them first in your order preference on your Housing Contract in the Living-Learning Communities section. After you’ve ranked your preferences, you will be prompted to answer a few short questions regarding your interest in your top choice LLC.

As you work to identify roommate(s), don’t forget that they must preference the same LLC as their top choice or your preferences could be in opposition to one another. When you are notified of your Room Selection time period, plan to go online to choose your room and roommate as soon as possible.
I already submitted my contract, is it too late to join an LLC?

If you’ve already submitted your contract, you can still make edits. It is as simple as re-opening the contract and updating the information provided.

These changes can occur up until the start of the roommate self-selection process, which typically begins around the fourth week of June. The Housing Portal will indicate when you are no longer able to make changes to your housing preferences.

Living-Learning Community Housing Application Process

For incoming students and continuing students

Interested in residing within a Living-Learning Community (LLC) next year and don’t know where to start? The process of expressing interest in, and ultimately residing within an LLC, is one that spans the entirety of the Housing selection process, from application to placement.

It is crucial during the Housing Application process you are attentive to your UCR email and MyHousing Portal for notifications to quickly take action.

Here is an overview of the key elements of the LLC placement process:

Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Step 7
Step 8

Admitted students must submit their Statement of Intent to Register (SIR) prior to gaining access to the Housing Contract. The Housing Contract and Application are where you can indicate which LLC(s) you are interested in and rank them based off of preference.*

Please note that it may take up to 72 hours before your SIR processes and you get access to the Housing Contract.

*For incoming first years and transfer students

When submitting your Housing Contract, you will be prompted to input information about yourself, living preferences, emergency contact information, and much more!

After you have provided this information you will be brought to the LLC section of the process, where you will be shown the LLCs available to you.

Please note that the Academic LLC offering shown to you is dependent upon which College you are affiliated with.

At the bottom of the LLC section is where you will input and rank the LLCs you are interested in. You can rank up to three LLCs. In addition to ranking your preferences, you will be asked to answer a question for each LLC you prefer.

Please note, these answers are used to evaluate if the LLC’s theme and purpose align with your interest, and are used inform the LLCs events and discussions.

When you submit your Housing Contract you will be prompted to pay the required non-refundable fees.

After your contract has been processed by Housing Services, you will receive information regarding roommate selection. It is crucial that you find roommates who have selected the same LLC as their top choice or else your individual preferences will be in competition with one another.

After you have formed your roommate group and received your time slots, one person must be designated by your group to make the selection. This process works similar to selecting a seat on a plane, but the system will only show you options that meet everyone’s criteria.

The two key criteria that impact your options are:

The system will only show you rooms that have enough beds for your full group.
The system will only show you options that meet everyone’s preferences. This is why we heavily emphasize your entire group listing the same LLC as their top choice.

The person with the earliest time slot is the best person to be designated group leader.

After you have selected your space, you should keep an eye on your MyHousing Portal and your UCR email for any adjustments that are made to your housing assignment.