By John Gerritsen of RNZ

Many universities are reporting an increase in applications for halls of residence next year.

Students told RNZ competition for accommodation at Canterbury University was especially hot and many were on waiting lists.

Other universities also expected to be fully or oversubscribed for 2025.

It is a sharp turnaround from this year, when most universities had empty spaces in their accommodation.

Canterbury said it received 4097 applications for 2800 accommodation places next year, while Otago said it had 4700 applications for 3755 places and Victoria 4424 for 2741 places.

The universities said the numbers included students who had applied to other universities and might not take up an offered place, as well as students who might not achieve university entrance and would be forced to withdraw their application.

Victoria University said because of those factors it expected to offer all its first-year applicants accommodation, even though it had the highest level of over-subscription.

But students on wait lists for Canterbury’s halls of residence told RNZ they had little hope of securing a place.

A woman told RNZ her daughter missed out on a hall of residence place at Canterbury and it had turned her plans upside down because the degree she wanted to study was not offered elsewhere.

“Ohthere’s been a lot of tears. You know, you have a dream to do a specific degree that you can only do at one university and then to not be offered a hall, it could be her whole future at stake ... she may have to rethink her whole academic future now,” she said.

She said her daughter was on a waiting list, but she was aware many others had also missed out and it was unlikely her daughter would get a place.

She said flatting was an option but it would be a last resort.

“Kids entering university are different ages, some of them are very, very young and flatting might not be an option for those younger ones, but I guess if we have to look at that, then we do that but it’s not ideal, you don’t get quite the same social interaction and absorption into university life as you do when you go into the halls,” she said.

A head boy and head girl at different secondary schools told RNZ they also failed to secure a place in a hall at Canterbury for next year.

They asked to remain anonymous because they were on waiting lists, though they had been accepted for halls of residence at other universities and were likely to take up those offers.

They said they would rather be in a hall of residence somewhere than in a flat at their first choice university.

Victoria University is investigating options for another hall of residence for students in second year and above. Photo / RNZ

“A big part of university is connecting with other like-minded students and young people and if you’re not in a hall environment it’s very difficult to do that,” the head boy said, adding that it would be difficult to secure a flat in a city with which he was not already familiar.

“I’d like to have that university hall first-year experience, so yeah for me I’d rather go to my second-choice university and be in a hall than flat in my first-choice university,” the head girl said.

Victoria University said it had a small increase in hall applications over last year.

“Students often apply and receive accommodation offers for more than one university, applications are also received before students get their NCEA results in January. Because of this some accommodation offers are declined between now and our halls move-in day in February.

“We currently anticipate being able to offer accommodation to all our 2025 first-year students and it’s still not too late to apply,” it said.

Victoria said it was investigating options for another hall of residence that would provide independent living to students in second year and above in 2025.

The University of Auckland said its 4418 beds were 99.8% full at the start of this year and it had a waiting list for its self-catered residences.

It could not provide figures for 2025 applications and said it would push out its previously set goal of increasing its supply of accommodation to 7500 beds by 2026.

AUT said there were vacancies in its 901 beds across two residences, but it expected to be fully subscribed next year.

The University of Waikato said its accommodation in Hamilton and Tauranga was “close to capacity” this year.

It said it would have 1231 beds available next year.

Applications for 2025 were higher than at the same time last year because of increasing demand from both domestic and international students, it said.

“The university is currently exploring options for additional accommodation to meet demand at both the Hamilton and Tauranga campuses.”

Massey University said accommodation on all three of its campuses was undersubscribed this year, but it expected its Manawatū and Wellington accommodation would be full next year.

It would have 292 beds in Auckland next year, 668 in Manawatū and 427 beds in Wellington, the latter figure being less than it had in 2024.

“There are a variety of factors that may be impacting the current number of applications for student accommodation, including an easing of pressure in rental markets and more students opting to continue living at home,” the university said.

Victoria University said its accommodation was undersubscribed this year, but it had 4424 applications for 2741 places next year. It was “exploring options to provide more beds in 2025 for our independent living offering”.

Lincoln University said it had 665 beds and expected full occupancy for 2025.

The University of Canterbury said it received 4097 applications for halls of residence, up from 3451 last year.

It said there were 2800 places available in affiliated halls and it was in weekly contact with those on its waitlist.

“We recommend those on the waitlist explore other options such as flatting or private boarding,” it said.

“UC provides the UniLife programme throughout the year, to help first-year students who are not in halls to connect and make friends.”

It said domestic students were the main factor in this year’s increased applications.

The University of Otago said its halls were slightly below capacity this year.

“For 2025 we are recruiting for our colleges from a school leaver cohort that is appreciably larger than this year, and at this stage we are seeing increased college demand consistent with this,” it said.

It had 3755 places available next year and received more than 4700 applications by the cut-off date of September 30, meaning it was well positioned to start 2025 with full colleges.