With the 15% increase in freshman enrollment, MU worked with and rented from Rise on 9th, U Center on Turner Avenue and Campus Lodge in order to fulfill housing demands for the 2019-2020 academic year.
At $4,150 per academic year, the Campus Lodge location costs less than the MU residential halls, such as the Hatch and Mark Twain halls, which range from $5,999 to $9,995 per year. The Rise on 9th and U Center on Turner Avenue locations cost the same as single suite residence hall rooms at $9,995. The apartments are also fitted with kitchens, private bathrooms and living rooms.
However, the apartment-styled locations are restricted to undergraduate students, according to the Residential Life website.
According to the Columbia Missourian, these new locations will feature programs used in normal residence halls, such as having resident assistants on staff, floor meetings and study halls. The Missourian also reported that 1,229 students are returning to Residential Life locations, a 58% increase from the 776 students who returned to the locations in the previous year.
After the 2015 student protests, MU saw a decrease in enrollment. However, in the past few years, freshman enrollment for MU has gradually increased. In 2017, the freshman enrollment body held 4,134 students, in 2018 the number increased to 4,673 students and in 2019, there were 5,460 freshman students who paid for fall semester enrollment deposits, all according to the MU News Bureau.
MU has introduced new dining plans for the 2019-2020 academic year. There is now one universal block plan that allows access to 13 locations on campus, costing $3,670 for the full academic year. There are also three different tiers of the Tiger Plan, which allows access to all 29 campus dining locations.
The normal Tiger Plan costs $850 per academic year. The Tiger Plan Plus option costs $1,600 per academic year and the Tiger Plan Platinum option costs $2,000 per year.
With the new meal plans and housing options, the overall cost of living for students will decrease, as compared to the previous year’s housing and dining options.