Issue 1 of 11 | March 1, 2024

Welcome to the Longhorn Family,

Congratulations on your student’s acceptance to The University of Texas at Austin! We are excited to welcome you and your family to the UT community as you begin the transition from high school to Mooov-In (the term used on campus to describe our students making their way to Austin and campus).

This is the first issue of the Next Steps eNewsletters series that you will receive bi-monthly March-August as the parent or family member of an incoming student. Next Steps eNewsletters are created intentionally for parents and families of our newest Longhorns. Our goal is to make sure you feel connected to the Forty Acres and informed about the support available to your student both in the classroom and throughout campus, and which departments and resources were created specifically for you, our UT family members.

We are looking forward to seeing you on campus this summer for Family Orientation, where you can interact with campus departments, meet with your student’s college or school and connect with other Longhorn families. This newsletter series will provide you detailed information as we get closer to orientation, but you can learn more about Family Orientation right now by visiting our website.

This is just the start of your family’s Longhorn journey, and as we like to say around here ‘what starts here changes the world.’

Hook ‘em!

Meet Texas Parents

Providing support for families as you support your student throughout their Longhorn Journey

Texas Parents is here to help you help your student and is one of the seven departments in the Division of Student Affairs. Our on-campus office consists of full-time professional staff and part-time student staff who are dedicated to serving as your connection to campus resources.



Texas Parents exists to help you better support your student from enrollment through graduation. One of the office’s responsibilities is managing the Texas Parents Association, which you’ll be introduced to in the March 15 issue of Next Steps. Over the coming months, you’ll learn more about the many ways Texas Parents supports Longhorn parents, whether you are a first-time college parent, a UT alum or an expert at sending your kids to college. If you have questions and are unsure where to find the answers, Texas Parents is here to help. You can call 512-471-2353 Monday-Friday, 8 a.m-5 p.m. CT or email TexasParents@austin.utexas.edu.

Meet University Housing and Dining (UHD)

Action Items:

March 1

The first housing contract offers for on-campus residence halls and Dobie Twenty21 are emailed. If your student has already applied for housing, please encourage them to stay updated by checking their email or visiting the housing portal.

March 1

Living Learning Communities (LLCs) application pages open in the housing portal. If your student is interested in applying for an LLC, encourage them to review their options and how to apply in the housing portal.

Where to live is one of the biggest questions in planning for your student's first year. There are a lot of perks to living on campus. Residence halls have lounges, study areas and around the clock security. But two of the bigger picture advantages to living on campus are convenience and community.

Convenience

Living on campus keeps your student centrally located on the Forty Acres. Getting to and from classes is easier, there's more likelihood your student will engage in activities, frequent the library, use the gym and venture out to explore campus events because they're in close proximity.

Community

Whether your student selects a large or small residence hall, many elements create a home-away-from-home atmosphere living on campus. It's an environment that encourages your student to broaden interests, meet others from similar and different backgrounds or become a hall leader. Numerous in-hall leadership and learning opportunities designed to enhance their residency are available to them, along with 24/7 housing staff there to support, guide and advise their journey into independent living. These full-time students and professional staff live in the halls alongside your student, enhancing a sense of community.

Interested in Applying for Housing?

Only students can access the housing portal with their UT electronic identification ( UT EID) and password to complete the application process. The 2024-25 rates listed on the UHD website are preliminary. Final rates will not exceed these amounts and are subject to review and approval by the UT System. You can find frequently asked questions about housing on the future residence pages at housing.utexas.edu. Please contact UHD at housing@austin.utexas.edu or 512-471-3136 with any questions not answered on the website.

Contracts are emailed on the 1st and 15th of the month, starting March 1. Have your student check for this email regularly, and once received, please note the contract offer expiration date listed in the email. A $300 advance payment must be submitted prior to their signing of the contract. If their admission application fee was waived, their housing advance payment is deferred. If they are younger than 18, they will need a guarantor who is 18 or older to sign their housing contract.

If they miss the deadline to sign their contract, the UHD housing reservations team can help at 512-471-3136 or housing@austin.utexas.edu.

Help Me Choose Housing Quiz

Is your student interested in living with UHD but not sure where? They have a quiz to help students identify the best housing options for them based on their preferences. The quiz is not part of the housing application or contract process – UHD does not receive their quiz results. By taking this quiz, they are not submitting their housing preferences or officially choosing where they want to live. The results may show options that are no longer available once room selection begins in the spring. There will be a link to 3D tours on the quiz’s result cards.

You and your student can take 3D tours of any of UHD’s spaces by visiting their location pages on the UHD website.

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What to expect in the next issue of Next Steps



• Registering for New Student Orientation and Family Orientation
• Meet Texas One Stop
• Meet the Texas Parents Association
• Meet Veteran and Military Affiliated Services

You can always review the full academic calendar to get more information on academic and tuition-related deadlines coming up.

2024-2025 Academic Calendar

registrar.utexas.edu/calendars/24-25