PITTSBURGH (TNS) — Hundreds of University of Pittsburgh students will live in off-campus apartments and hotel rooms this school year as the university anticipates a record number of students on campus in August.

Pitt will house 400 students in the Hampton Inn in South Oakland and Webster Hall Apartments and Pennsylvania Apartments in North Oakland. The university also has added 300 beds to existing facilities on campus, spokesman Jared Stonesifer confirmed to the Post-Gazette.

Students who have not received their housing assignments will receive them this week.

“The University of Pittsburgh is excited to welcome a record class of first-year students to campus next month,” Stonesifer said. “… All [leased] locations are less than a mile from the heart of campus, and meet the university’s standards for safety, amenities and access to campus resources.”

The Hampton Inn, located on Hamlet Street near the Boulevard of the Allies, is a 15-20 minute walk from central campus. The apartment buildings, both located on North Dithridge Street, are significantly closer to campus. Students who live in these spaces will have a resident’s assistant and other supports offered to on-campus students.

In 2020 and 2021, the university leased three hotels to manage student overflow, the University Times reported.

Overbooked housing comes as demand for a Pitt education remains high. The university received a record 65,000 freshman applications for the 2025-26 school year, and in May Pitt graduated its largest class ever.

Housing uncertainty had sparked tension in Facebook and Reddit groups online, including a Facebook group called, “Homeless at Pitt.”

One incoming freshman, Brynn Campbell, started a change.org petition to hold Pitt accountable for overbooking housing. In the petition, Campbell said the situation has created stress and challenges for impacted students.

“This critical oversight has not only disrupted the start of what should be an exciting new chapter in our lives, but also left the students and their families scrambling for solutions,” part of the petition reads. “The inconvenience and anxiety caused by this situation are unacceptable and point to a larger issue of lack of transparency and planning by the University of Pittsburgh. Students have received little to no clarity about housing, transportation, dining access and laundry facilities.”

Pitt move-in starts Aug. 17 and continues throughout that week. Freshmen have until this Friday to sign up for Ship2Pitt, a free shipping service that allows students to send up to four boxes to Pitt prior to arriving on campus.

All Pitt students admitted for the fall semester of their freshman year are guaranteed on-campus housing through their junior year as long as they meet academic and eligibility requirements.