Find a roommate at Iowa State

Updated October 2026

First-year students at Iowa State do not have to live on campus. For Fall 2026, roommate requests are due May 1, 2026, and Fall 2027 dates are not posted yet. Here is how choosing a roommate works at Iowa State, and which halls first-years live in, with every fact linked to Iowa State’s own housing pages.

Iowa State first-year housing at a glance

Do first-years have to live on campus?	No. Iowa State has no live-on requirement for any student Source
Academic calendar	Semesters Source
Housing application opens	June 20 (Fall 2026 cycle; Fall 2027 dates not posted yet) Source
Housing application deadline	March 1, 2026 (priority) (Fall 2026 cycle; Fall 2027 dates not posted yet) Source
Roommate request deadline	May 1, 2026 (Fall 2026 cycle; Fall 2027 dates not posted yet) Source

Checked against Iowa State’s housing pages on October 16, 2026. Dates change every year, so confirm in your housing portal.

How does roommate matching work at Iowa State?

Choosing your roommate: Students create a roommate group with the person they want to live with; the group can then select spaces together during room self-selection

If you do not choose: Students without a roommate request are assigned based on the date they submitted their contract and their room preferences; no matching questionnaire is described

Deadline: May 1, 2026 (Fall 2026 cycle; Fall 2027 dates not posted yet).

First-year residence halls at Iowa State

Hall	Style	Good to know
Buchanan Hall	Suite	Suite-style building where two singles or two doubles share a full bathroom
Eaton Hall	Suite	Two double rooms connected by a shared bathroom, with sinks in each room
Martin Hall	Suite	Two rooms (four people) share a living area, sinks and a toilet/shower room
Geoffroy Hall	Traditional (shared hall bathrooms)	Each house shares two bathrooms with enclosed toilet and shower rooms
Friley Hall	Traditional (shared hall bathrooms)	Group bathrooms on each floor with private shower stalls
Maple Hall	Suite	Sinks in each room and semi-private bathrooms; the hall is substance free

Finding a roommate at Iowa State on Bunky

Bunky’s Iowa State community is only Iowa State students, so everyone you see is looking for a roommate at your school. A chat opens only when you both like each other or your chat request is accepted, so there is no guessing and no cold messages. Profiles go beyond a photo and a bio, with prompts, dealbreakers, move-in dates and budgets. Start before the deadline above so you have time to talk to a few people.

New to this? Read how to find a college roommate and the questions to ask a potential roommate.