Transfer students were required to either live on-campus with a random roommate in traditional double rooms or off-campus. This comes after the permanent closure of Branscomb Quad following the 2024-25 academic year and a record transfer class of 400 students. Most transfer students who chose to live off-campus selected The Broadview apartment complex located at the intersection of Broadway and 20th Avenue, marking Vanderbilt’s first public-private partnership for off-campus housing.
The current housing empire contrasts with that of previous years, when transfer students had to fill out a housing application to reside on campus. Transfers were then assigned to available vacancies in upper-division residential communities.
Sophomore Claire Conner, a transfer student, estimated that of the entire population of transfer students at Vanderbilt, roughly 200 are at The Broadview.
“The message that most transfer students got, at least from the transfer students I’ve talked to in my experience, was that [Housing and Residential Experience] said on-campus housing was very limited,” Conner said. “If you did get a place [on-campus], you wouldn’t have any say in things like where you lived or who you lived with. And if you chose to live on campus, you couldn’t get back off campus.”
In a statement to The Hustler, Housing and Residential Experience said that the development of the Central Neighborhood prompted changes to how transfers were assigned housing, including allowing transfers to live off-campus.
“Traditionally, all transfer students have been required to live on campus; however, due to reduced capacity, we were able to offer an option for incoming transfer students to choose between residing on or off campus for the upcoming academic year, pending space availability,” the statement reads.
Half of the incoming transfer class who wanted to live on-campus were randomly assigned to available accommodation in a manner that guaranteed transfer students were housed in upper-division residence halls, according to HRE.
Sophomore Lucas Li, a transfer student, said he enjoys living in The Broadview. Li said he was worried that he would have little opportunity to select housing on campus since he was accepted off the waitlist, so he elected to move into The Broadview. In general, Li noted that he felt fortunate in how he settled into housing, especially because he heard that some people only received their assignment less than a week before moving in.
“So far, it’s been good,” Li said. “I have no major complaints, and pricing was pretty comparable.”
Nate Beck, a sophomore transfer student, also remarked on the positive aspects of The Broadview, especially the many amenities offered by the complex.
“There is a study space and gym downstairs and other amenities which I haven’t fully explored yet,” Beck said. “And the rooms themselves are very nice. I live in a single, but I have my own kitchen and bathroom, and it’s just a very convenient place to live.”
Gigi McMahon, another sophomore transfer, readily chose The Broadview out of several options. Although McMahon was required to live off-campus, she ended up choosing to live in The Broadview over non-Vanderbilt-affiliated housing.
“I actually really like living here,” McMahon said. “I like the study spaces and the gyms. So, I would say there’s honestly a lot that they offer, and [moving in has] gone very smoothly.”
