{"id":234059,"date":"2026-04-16T10:33:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T10:33:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/234059\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T10:33:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T10:33:10","slug":"usf-students-prepare-for-semester-move-out-with-family-plans-storage-units-and-roadtrips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/234059\/","title":{"rendered":"USF students prepare for semester move out with family plans, storage units and roadtrips"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/a>USF students living in on-campus dorms are required to move out by May 8 at noon. ORACLE PHOTO\/ELLIE FROST<\/p>\n

USF students are preparing to move out of the university\u2019s dorms on May 8 by noon \u2014 with the help of storage pods, family and packing routines.<\/p>\n

For move-out, students are required to remove all personal belongings, such as posters, clothes and room decorations, and reset all furniture to original positions, according to USF Housing and Residential Education<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Any items left behind or furniture not reset will result in a $30 charge, and a $100 late fee will apply to students checking out past noon on May 8, according to USF Housing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

USF provides students with carts to move items from their dorms, with designated key drop-off locations on the north and south sides of campus, according to USF Housing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With the move-out deadline quickly approaching, some USF students said dorm move-out feels hectic and stressful, while others said the process is quick and easy with a routine.<\/p>\n

Related: USF shifts to priority-based housing for 2026-27 academic year<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Owen Swatko, a sophomore exercise science major from New York, lives in USF\u2019s Holly Apartments<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Swatko said he has lived on campus since he started at USF and feels that the move-out process is rushed and disorganized.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels like as soon as we move back in for spring, [residential assistants] and everyone in housing is already talking about how we need to prepare for move-out,\u201d Swatko said.<\/p>\n

Still, Swatko said he is planning to move out as close to the May 8 deadline as possible because of a packed exam schedule, which all fall on the last few days of finals week.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe classes I\u2019m taking require a lot of time set aside for homework and studying, so I realistically don\u2019t have time to get ahead, packing-wise,\u201d Swatko said.<\/p>\n

He added that he was unable to land a dorm for the summer following USF\u2019s housing distribution system changes this spring, which apply to the 2026\u201327 term.<\/p>\n

This change transitioned<\/a> USF\u2019s housing system to a priority-based model designed to help freshmen and rising sophomores secure housing first, with some rooms reserved for upperclassmen seeking to live on campus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I applied to the dorm over the summer, USF was unable to get me a slot \u2014 so I now need to worry about possibly getting a sublet on top of everything else,\u201d Swatko said.<\/p>\n

But since he is from New York, Swatko said moving everything twice would be more expensive and inconvenient than finding a nearby sublease.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m planning to live off-campus next semester [at The Retreat<\/a>], but my lease doesn\u2019t allow summer move-in, so the only other option for me would be to get a storage unit,\u201d Swatko said.<\/p>\n

Swatko said he feels there should be a few extra days after finals week for students to move out, which would help those in similar situations sort out their living and move-out plans.<\/p>\n

USF Housing offers a Break Stay<\/a> option \u2014 allowing students to stay in the dorms for a few extra days after the May 8 deadline for a per-night fee<\/a>. Applications for extensions opened on March 24 and close on April 29.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just feels really rushed, and I have no time to actually prepare for what I need to get done,\u201d Swatko said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Related: OPINION: USF\u2019s upperclassmen deserve on-campus housing too<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dylan Nichilo, a junior accounting major, lived in Summit Hall<\/a> for his freshman year, Holly Apartments in his sophomore year and now lives in USF\u2019s Cypress Apartments<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nichilo said he always aims to move out immediately after his final exams \u2014 meaning he has to have everything ready to go days in advance.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy last exam is on May 7, so I have my stuff packed before my mom comes from Naples to help me,\u201d Nichilo said.<\/p>\n

Nichilo said he will live with his mom in Naples after moving out of his dorm, but is planning to visit his dad in New Jersey for most of the summer.<\/p>\n

He said he will store his belongings at his mom\u2019s house or in a storage unit while he is in New Jersey.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m packing, I try to split everything into what I\u2019m taking back to [New] Jersey and what I need to leave here for school,\u201d Nichilo said.<\/p>\n

But Nichilo said having finals on top of packing makes it difficult to make time to study, pack and drive home.<\/p>\n

\u201cMove-out is probably stressful for everyone, but I feel like USF doesn\u2019t take into account some students are hours or even states away,\u201d he said. \u201cThe timing of the move-out seems very poorly planned.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related: USF\u2019s Full House: Tampa housing reaches full capacity<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

But while some students feel USF\u2019s move-out process is disorganized, others said it is an easy process for new and returning students alike.<\/p>\n

Carolyn Hoekstra, a sophomore biomedical sciences major, said she has lived on campus both years \u2014 first in Summit Hall, and now in Holly Apartments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hoekstra said her family lives about 30 minutes north of USF in Lutz, which makes moving out \u201c10 times easier.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI live less than an hour away, so my plan is usually to slowly move stuff out as I go home over the weekends to lessen the amount of stuff I need to pack up on the last day,\u201d Hoekstra said.<\/p>\n

She said this helps smooth the process and allows her to move in and out in fewer trips.<\/p>\n

Additionally, Hoekstra said her routine of organizing clothes and room decorations into boxes in advance helps prevent her from feeling overwhelmed while moving out.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe process of moving out is stressful enough as is, but sticking to my process helps eliminate any further stress I have due to exams and stuff like that,\u201d Hoestrka said.<\/p>\n

She added that she feels USF\u2019s move-out process is easy and clear to students since the university explains its rules and tips about packing and moving out.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe process for it is pretty simple, and they try to make it easy for everyone, whether you\u2019re out of state or live in Florida,\u201d Hoekstra said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"USF students living in on-campus dorms are required to move out by May 8 at noon. ORACLE PHOTO\/ELLIE…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":234060,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-234059","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234059","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=234059"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234059\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/234060"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=234059"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=234059"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=234059"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}