Learning & Themed Communities

While each of our on-campus communities has a unique feel to them, some have an intentional academic or theme focus that is designed to bring students together. Residential learning and themed communities offer students an opportunity to deepen their engagement with UNH and provide structure for group activities and learning experiences.

  • Residential Learning Communities (RLCs) are for incoming first-year students only. The communities align with a college or a course of study within the college. Many students on the floor will be co-enrolled in similar classes. This is a great way to form study groups where you live, meet other students in your college, and also have the opportunity to interact informally with staff and faculty from your academic college. For information on eligibility, read about the specific RLC you are interested in below. 
  • Themed Communities are focused on a common interest for all residents within that community. A learning or themed community may encompass a floor or an entire hall. Joining a themed community is a great way to meet new friends and be surrounded by like-minded people. Everyone is eligible and encouraged to choose a themed community during the self-selection process. The only exception is the Honors community as a student must be part of the honor's program to qualify. 

 

 

Alcohol and Drug-Free Community

Location: Engelhardt Hall

Welcome to a respectful community of students with a variety of interests, hobbies, and academic majors. Residents of Engelhardt commit to keeping their hall free of alcohol and other drugs. With this common bond, our students find it easy to make friends and become active members of our hall. 

Students choose to live in Engelhardt for a variety of reasons. Once they are here, they say the active community and family feel is what keeps them in the hall from one year to the next. Due to our alcohol and drug-free themed living, our building typically stays clean and residents are respectful to one another as well as focused on their academics. 

Residents can be found hanging out in the lounges or in their rooms with the door open. Students often refer to Engelhardt, or E-hardt, as home, which explains why we have a mix of first-year students through seniors who love living here.

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College of Health and Human Services (RLC)

Location: McLaughlin Hall

HHS Students dressed for Halloween

This learning community opportunity is available to all incoming, first-year students in the College of Health and Human Services – including those students who have selected a CHHS major and those students who are joining CHHS undeclared. CHHS first-year students participate in the Academic and Career Engagement (ACE) program. Choosing to live in this CHHS: ACE Learning Community will extend the benefits of ACE to your residential life experience. CHHS ACE uses personalized academic and career coaching and peer mentors to support academic success and the transition to UNH and CHHS. CHHS ACE also connects first-year students with others who share interests in health and human services and have goals of working to enhance the lives of individuals, families, and communities. First-year students who select to join the CHHS: ACE Learning Community will live together in McLaughlin Hall and be able to extend and expand the supports, resources, and connections of ACE.

If you are part of the College of Health and Human Services as a new student, you will qualify for the Residential Learning Community selection.

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College of Liberal Arts (RLC)

Location: Alexander Hall

Students meeting a staff member during a social

This learning community, housed on the second floor of Alexander Hall, is available to all first-year students in the College of Liberal Arts (COLA) including those who have chosen a COLA major and students who are joining as undeclared COLA students.  This RLC will provide individualized academic and career support that includes programming and resources to help students build community during the transition from high school to UNH and COLA.  Being involved in this residential community is a great way for first-year students to feel connected and to find friends within their classes and their residence hall.

The Alexander staff works to incorporate academics, study skills, time management tips, information on how to select classes and build a schedule, and if undeclared, how to focus in on a major of interest, in regular programming and events.  The Alexander staff work closely with the COLA Dean’s office, the COLA academic advisor group, and junior and senior COLA students on these programming efforts, and they often hold events within the hall!

If you are part of the College of Liberal Arts as a new student, you will qualify for the Residential Learning Community selection.

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Environmental Sustainability Learning Community (RLC)

Location: Haaland Hall

Are you going to be a student in the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture (COLSA)? Are you interested in conservation and sustainability of the natural world? Do you want to live and learn with students who share the same passion? First-year students will live together on a floor in Haaland Hall, in traditional-style rooms, to form a creative environment for group studying and social interaction. This is an exciting opportunity to live and learn alongside like-minded students with an interest in exploring environmental issues and sustainability across disciplines and gain a global perspective!

To qualify you must be an incoming first-year student majoring in one of the following:

  • Biology
  • Community and Environmental Planning
  • Environmental Conservation and Sustainability
  • Environmental Science
  • Forestry
  • Marine, Estuarine and Freshwater Biology
  • Agriculture and Food Systems 
  • Wildlife and Conservation Biology 

If you are part of any of the majors listed above, you will qualify for the  Residential Learning Community selection where you will have priority in selecting the specific area.

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First Year Students Only

Locations:  Alexander Hall  Christensen Hall  Jessie Doe Hall Lord Hall   McLaughlin Hall  Williamson Hall   

Residence halls with all first-year communities have an environment that is supportive and safe for first-year students transitioning into college. Everyone is going through similar struggles, asking similar questions and our staff is available to build community, connect them to campus resources, and help them make the most of their first year of college! Many of these students are taking similar classes as well. Living here gives students the convenience of forming study groups, meeting lots of first-year students, and attending many community building events and hall discussions geared to their specific needs as new wildcats!

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Gender Inclusive Communities

Location: Alexander Hall  Williamson hall

Incoming first-year students, may choose to share a room with someone of any gender identity that is most comfortable and appropriate to their own identity. All LGBTQIA+ students and allies, committed to creating a safe and affirming living environment, are welcomed and encouraged to select this community.      

Lavender is a dynamic housing option for students who are committed to creating a safe and affirming living environment for all LGBTQIA+ students and allies. This community is open to all class years, is located on the fourth floor of Devine Hall and includes a gender inclusive bathroom option. Student are able to choose a roommate of any gender identity.  Devine Hall is a break housing hall and will remain open during UNH break periods for residents.  All LGBTQIA+ students and allies, committed to creating a safe and affirming living environment, are welcomed and encouraged to select this community.

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Honors

Location: Fairchild Hall

We have many students from the UNH Honors program in our hall, and other students who want to live in a building where students have high academic expectations of UNH and themselves. Being a part of this community is a great way to get started at UNH. We study hard, but we also have a lot of fun with each other at the same time.

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InCEPSion (RLC)

Handler Hall

Marshmallow Tower Building

Our Residential Learning Community (RLC), InCEPSion is for students in our College of Engineering and Physical Sciences (CEPS). Residents in the InCEPSion RLC will live in Handler with students from CEPS, Many find themselves in courses with residents on their floor, as well as an increased opportunity to meet with CEPS faculty members informally. While some students on the floor will share majors in CEPS, there are also many students in the halls who have different majors, offering a wide variety of experiences for residents.

 If you are part of the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences as a new student, you will qualify for the Residential Learning Community selection.

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International Connections

Location: Fairchild Hall

With about 150 residents, Fairchild feels more like a home than a residence hall. With our International Connections theme, the Fairchild family spans the globe. Although the proportions of International and American students are always changing, our population of internationally aware and culturally enthusiastic students remains constant.

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Life Sciences Residential Learning Community (RLC)

Location: Peterson Hall

COLSA - Peterson RLC at an outdoor social

Are you going to be a student in the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture (COLSA)?  Will you be taking Biology and Chemistry classes during your first year?  Why not live with other students majoring in life sciences? First-year students will live together on a floor in Peterson Hall and form a creative environment for group studying and social interaction. This community is an interactive learning environment designed to help students succeed in first-year science courses. Students will be able to easily form study groups with people on the floor as well as attend review sessions in a lounge on their floor.  What a great way to make connections to people with whom you share an interest and succeed academically! 

To qualify you must be an incoming first-year student majoring in one of the following:

  • Animal Sciences
  • Biochemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biology
  • Biology
  • Biomedical Science
  • Genetics
  • Marine, Estuarine and Freshwater Biology
  • Neuroscience and Behavior
  • Zoology

If you are part of any of the majors listed above, you will qualify for the  Residential Learning Community selection where you will have priority in selecting the specific area.

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Outdoor Experiential Education

Location: The Minis-Hall House

If you are interested in the outdoors then Hall House might be a great community for you.  With many like-minded people, located near the edge of campus and close to college woods and surrounded by plenty of trees great for hammocking or slack-lining, Hall House is excellent for all sorts of fun outdoor experiences.  Many of the students who choose to live in Hall House enjoy biking, hiking, swimming, hunting, rock climbing, and a variety of other outdoor activities.

Like all of the Minis, the Outdoor Experience is a student-driven theme and the energy around this changes from year to year.

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Paul Professional Partnership (RLC)

Location: Sawyer Hall

Paul Scholars at a social in Stoke

Peter T. Paul College has a living-learning community for first-year Paul College students that was established in 2017, the Paul Professional Partnership (P3) floor. Professional development activities will take place in this close-knit floor in Sawyer Hall for approximately 50 first-year students who will have the chance to learn from upper-class student success coaches who will live on the floor while they work with a dedicated academic advisor on course scheduling and academic planning.

Conveniently located near Paul College, these like-minded students will have opportunities to meet the Dean and Associate Dean of Paul College, to work closely with the Paul College Career and Professional Success Office, and can take part in exclusive networking events and workshops. Additionally, these P3 residents will get the experience of living in one of the largest halls on campus and will have a chance to meet other students from all majors at UNH. If these sound like experiences you want to have at UNH, then this community might be for you!

 If you are part of the Paul Professional Partnership as a new student, you will qualify for the Residential Learning Community selection.

Eaton has a history of attracting folks of creative, visual, or performing arts and music. Whether you major in them or not many Eatonites enjoy the experience that the arts create. If you have an interest in the arts or merely enjoy being around folks that enjoy the arts, Eaton might be a place for you to consider living with like-minded folks. Located towards a quieter side of campus and close to College Woods, Eaton house provides a great backdrop for your own creative processes. Like all of the Minis, the arts theme is a student-driven theme and the energy around this changes from year to year.

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The Clubhouse

Location: Gibbs Hall

Focusing on sports, fitness, and wellness, the Gibbs Hall staff, Hall Council, and students provide many opportunities for our small community to really get to know each other! Gibbs has a very strong intramural base and we are constantly making teams for just about every intramural event. Gibbs also has basketball and volleyball courts located right in back of the building. Come check out this great building and an even better community.

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Transfer Community

Locations: Hubbard Hall

Join us for your first year at UNH! We know that there are a lot of challenges with being a transfer student, so our aim is to make your transition as smooth and enjoyable as possible. Before you know it, you’ll feel right at home here on campus!

We have a community dedicated to transfer students in Hubbard Hall where you won't be the only new face. Dozens of other new transfer students, all with the same questions and concerns as you are woven into this community. In fact, they will probably be your roommates! These communities strive to make the most of your first time at UNH by providing you with the tools and guidance necessary to succeed. We know this isn’t your first time in a college setting, but understand some of the issues that may arise for you as a new student on our campus. Regardless of where you were before, the staff at UNH is here to help you transition and succeed as a Wildcat! 

Apply Today!

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Vet Connect Housing

Locations: Woodside Apartments  

UNH Housing is eager to help you find your home on campus! We are pleased to be offering a specific on-campus housing community called Vet Connect for students with veteran status. We seek to provide a hassle-free environment and a community in place to help serve your individual needs. Vet connect housing offers spaces at the Woodside Apartment Complex where upperclassmen enjoy independence with the convenience and benefits of on-campus living. We understand that you might not be able to predict your schedule. There is no penalty for breaking the housing contract for military obligations.

Military & Veteran Services

How to Apply

Applying is easy - click the link below, log in, and identify yourself as a "Veteran Student" in the pull-down menu. Submit your application and we will contact you!

Submit Online Application