Parent stands next to college aged child

Student Housing

Information for Parents

Alleviate your Concerns

A student's transition to college can be a challenging time for parents. For the first time, your child will be living away from home, doing laundry (you hope), deciding when and what to eat (not just pizza, please), and far away from your watchful eye. As a parent, you will be anxious, and Student Housing has gathered information to help alleviate your concerns.

Holidays and Exam Times

When making travel accommodations for students, please reference the academic calendar to verify exam schedules, holidays, and school breaks.

Students typically have two major exam periods per semester: midterms and final exams. Each instructor schedules midterms, so they may fall whenever the instructor deems appropriate. Typically, they take place sometime in late October or early to mid-November for the fall semester, and in March or April for the spring semester.

Unlike midterms, the Office of the Registrar schedules final exam times. Each course is assigned a final exam day and time during the last week of classes in the fall and spring semesters. Even though final exam times are assigned to classes at the beginning of the semester, they often have to be changed. Therefore, if you are buying your child plane tickets home or planning a vacation, make sure to plan around the final exam period.

View the Academic Calendar

Parking

Students living on campus are not permitted to bring cars to campus. For those living off campus, be aware that USF has limited parking and therefore cannot offer a parking space to every USF community member. Parking on campus is by permit only. USF students may enter the student parking lottery for full-time and part-time parking permits. 

Learn More About Parking

Public Safety

The Department of Public Safety is committed to maintaining a safe and secure campus for all students, faculty, staff, and visitors. Some of the services Public Safety offers include:

  • 24-hour campus patrol by Public Safety Officers, on foot, in marked vehicles, Segways, and electric motorbikes.
  • A Dispatch Communications Center that operates 24-hours per day. USF community members may call the 24-hour emergency number to report accidents, crimes, suspicious persons, hazards, and other emergencies.
  • Direct-dial emergency phones located outside campus buildings, in most parking lots and all multi-level parking garages. These phones are housed in yellow boxes and are labeled with red and white signs.
  • A safety escort service that operates from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. with the USF campus shuttle, Monday through Sunday. Uniformed Public Safety Officers also assist in providing safety escorts when the USF shuttle is not in service.

Privacy

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), also known as the Buckley Amendment, protects students enrolled at USF. Under this federal law, students are afforded the right to privacy. Institutions of higher education may not disclose personally identifiable student information without the consent of the student, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. This means that information such as grades, GPA, class schedule, hours enrolled, financial aid, tuition and billing information, etc., may not be disclosed to any third-party, including parents, without the written consent of the student. The directory information that may be disclosed without student consent includes the following at USF: student's name, school of enrollment, credit hour load (full-time, part-time), periods of enrollment, USF email address, degree(s) awarded and date(s) of conferral, honors, participation in athletic activities, weight and height of athletic participants, major and minor fields, and dean's list. Learn more about FERPA .

Students may choose to authorize the release of information to a third-party (i.e. parents) by completing the Student Consent to Release Information form.

The Haven Recovery Residence

The Haven Recovery Residence offers recovery support services and recreation and social activities for students who are committed to their college education while learning to lead a full and satisfying recovery lifestyle. Staffed by a dedicated Haven Program Director and live-in House Managers who are students in recovery themselves, parents can be assured that their student is living in a safe, supportive and secure environment.

Books

Your student will need to have required textbooks for the courses in which they are enrolled. They can go to the USF Bookstore in University Center, order the books online, or even rent textbooks. 

Shop the bookstore

You can view what books are required for each course and even find the ISBN numbers in the online schedule of classes. Find course materials and select “View Book Info” to view required books for that course.