Accommodation offers
Information about when you will receive an offer of University accommodation, how to secure your student home and what to do if your offer is not what you hoped for.
On this page
When you will hear from us
The date that you will receive an offer of accommodation will depend on your student type and guarantee status.
The offer dates are listed on the Application key dates for 2024/25 page.
Deadline to accept your accommodation offer
On your offer date, we will send you an email inviting you to login to the Accommodation Portal to view and respond to your accommodation offer.
You must accept your offer by the deadline stated in your offer email. If you miss the deadline, your offer will be cancelled and we will not be able to make you an alternative offer.
The deadline is usually within two working days of your offer date.
Understanding your accommodation offer
Your accommodation offer will include all the information on your tenancy with us. Our video below explains what it means to sign a tenancy agreement with the University of Bristol.
How to accept your accommodation offer
You must accept your offer within the deadline stated in your offer email. To accept your offer, you need to:
- Login to the Accommodation Portal.
- Click on My Accommodation Offer and review the details including the tenancy dates, cost and payment terms.
- Select Begin acceptance process from the dropdown and click Save and continue.
- You will need to read your accommodation contract and agree to the terms and conditions. If you are offered University-allocated accommodation, you will need to read and accept the terms stated in the tenancy agreement - this is a legally binding contract with the University, your landlord.
- Postgraduate students need to pay rent in advance at the point of acceptance. Exactly how you pay depends on which residence you have been offered.
- Click through all stages of the acceptance process until you reach the final page titled Reservation Complete.
- You will then receive a confirmation email with details of your accommodation reservation.
Please ensure you regularly check your emails as we will send information about arrivals and moving in in the following weeks.
Rent in advance payments
Postgraduate students offered University-allocated accommodation need to pay £500 rent in advance at the point of acceptance.
Postgraduate students who are offered accommodation in one of our nomination properties (Chantry Court, Deans Court or Woodland Court) have a slightly different procedure for paying rent in advance. Visit the Nomination properties page for further information.
To make a payment, you will need a debit or credit card with a three-digit security code on the reverse of the card.
Undergraduate students do not need to pay at the point of booking. We will contact you to let you know when your invoice will be available to view in your financial statement.
If you're unhappy with your offer of University accommodation
We understand that some students may feel disappointed with their offer of accommodation. If this is the case, please be aware that some residences, room types, locations are oversubscribed which means that we cannot allocate everyone a place in one of their accommodation options. We will not be able to offer you an alternative offer. Please also be aware that you cannot swap offers with another student.
Your options:
- You can decline your offer and look for accommodation in the private sector. By doing this, we will not be able to make you another offer of University-allocated accommodation. See section below for guidance on how to decline your offer.
- You can accept your offer and move into the residence. You will then be eligible to apply for a room transfer in certain periods during October and February. Before the room transfer applications open, the Residential Life team can offer support with whatever concerns or worries you may have.
- If your offer of accommodation is not suitable for your health or disability needs, you can contact us, but we cannot guarantee a suitable room will be available. You will be required to provide medical evidence in support of your health requirements.
Declining your offer of University accommodation
We ask for you to think carefully before declining your accommodation offer. You will not be given another one and you will need to look for accommodation in the private sector.
To decline your offer, you will need to:
- Login to the Accommodation Portal.
- Click on My Accommodation Offer.
- Select Decline offer from the dropdown menu.
- Once you have successfully declined your offer, you will receive a confirmation email.
- You will then need to look for accommodation in the private sector.
Cancelling your offer
Find out how to cancel your tenancy if you have changed your mind about living in University accommodation after accepting your offer but before moving in.
Please note you are unable to swap your tenancy with a friend or to offer your room to another student. If you cancel your booking before moving in the University will re-allocate the room to another student.