Ohio State recently replaced the lottery number system for room selection with randomly generated time slots.
Scott House, located at 160 W. Woodruff Ave., is one of 42 residence halls on campus. Credit: Christian Harsa | Senior Reporter
Ohio State recently eliminated the lottery number system for room selection, moving to randomly generated time slots.
The new system is meant to simplify the process, Dave Isaacs, communications and media relations manager at the Office of Student Life, said. Students were previously sent two messages, the first being a lottery number and the second being a day and time during which they could make their room selection.
“In analyzing our systems and processes, we realized that sending the lottery number to students really didn’t accomplish anything. And frankly, caused some angst and more questions among students,” Isaacs said.
One email will now be sent to students that will include their randomly generated time slots, which will open every 15 minutes from 9 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. on weekdays.
These time slots will remain open for the duration of the selection process.
Ella Giesecke, a first-year in sociology and marketing, said she thinks the new process will be beneficial to students.
“If you’re getting the same end result whether you have a lottery number or just a time slot, I feel like having that number and anticipation would just make students more stressed out,” Ella Giesecke said.
According to Isaacs, In previous years, approximately 7,000 students were assigned random lottery numbers, which gave lower numbers priority in selecting housing.
“If you had a higher lottery number, then you’ll spend the entire time stressed before you get your time slot, but on the other end, if you have a lower number, you may think that you’re going to be in a better dorm and something may not work out and you’ll be more disappointed in the end,” Ella Giesecke said.
Giesecke’s sister, Abby Giesecke, a fourth-year in visual communication design, said the new process provides a simpler experience for first-years.
“Incoming freshmen are already worried about location, so a lottery number would just make those worries worse, in terms of getting a bad number and then a bad living situation,” Abby Giesecke said.
Having experienced the previous system, Abby Giesecke said the lottery number system was confusing as a first-year.
“If it hadn’t been for my roommate who had an older sibling that went here already, I would have had to really look into it to understand it,” Abby Giesecke said.
Although this change will relieve students of unnecessary stress, Abby Giesecke said she was disappointed to hear that the new process isn’t similar to the football ticket selection, which prioritizes based on class rank.
“As a sophomore, it’s kind of your last chance to live in a nice dorm or quad that you wanted. It isn’t something that for sure should be implemented, but it could help make more sense,”Abby Giesecke said.
The university hopes this change will help create a more clear and concise process when selecting housing, according to Isaacs.
“We recognize that getting that number was causing some anxiety for students. That alone made it worth looking for an alternate plan,” Isaacs said.
