University College Cork - Main Campus (Gaol Walk / Western Road) Accommodation 2027

Where to get accommodation / who to contact

• UCC Campus Accommodation (lottery, six residences): [email protected], +353 21 481 8400. Apply: https://www.ucc.ie/en/campusaccom/student-accom/
• Office of Accommodation & Community Life (advice, private-complex list, StudentPad, complaints): South Lodge (behind the Boole Library), College Road, Cork T12 RXA9; [email protected]; +353 (0)21 490 3849. https://www.ucc.ie/en/accommodation/
• UCC Students' Union welfare: [email protected]. https://www.uccsu.ie/can-we-help/welfare-info/accommodation
• Disability Support (accessible rooms): [email protected], 1st floor, The Hub.
• Threshold housing advice: freephone 1800 454 454.

1. At a glance

• Location: College Road, Cork city, on the western side of the city centre (Western Road and Gaol Walk boundaries). UCC's Accommodation & Community Life Office is at South Lodge, College Road, Cork T12 RXA9.
• UCC states its campus accommodation is six purpose-built apartment complexes within walking distance, all operated separately from the Accommodation & Community Life Office by Campus Accommodation (UCC) DAC (head office University Hall, Victoria Cross, Cork).
• Other UCC teaching sites: the Brookfield Health Sciences Complex (Nursing, Medicine and Therapies schools plus a crèche) is about 500 m west of the main campus on a 3.5-acre site, so it is covered by this guide. Hospital placements (for example at Cork University Hospital) are placement sites, not a separate undergraduate residential campus; UCC publishes a placement travel and accommodation page for nursing and midwifery students.

2. College-owned campus accommodation (Campus Accommodation, UCC)

• 2026/27 rent per residence (UCC Campus Accommodation pages; 37-week licence, 29 August 2026 to 15 May 2027; rent excludes utilities):

• Utilities 2026/27: EUR 700 a year at each residence shown above (an earlier version of this guide said EUR 650; UCC's residence pages say EUR 700). Payment due dates are set in the licence agreement.
• Residence details per UCC: Victoria Lodge, 15 minutes' walk, apartments with single study bedrooms (one per apartment non-en suite); Victoria Mills, about 10 minutes' walk, 90 apartments, all en suite; University Hall, 10 minutes' walk, refurbished 2017; Mardyke Hall, 5 minutes' walk, 14 apartments (2 to 4 bedrooms), 48 bedrooms, one en suite bedroom per apartment; Castlewhite, adjacent to campus, 63 apartments, 280 students, no en suite rooms; Crow's Nest, about 5 minutes' walk, 66 apartments, all en suite, not available to first-year students. Crow's Nest and most others offer postgraduate, green living, alcohol/substance-free and quiet housing options, subject to availability. Aras Ui Thuama (Irish-language residence, nine apartments beside University Hall, 021 490 2314) takes full-time students with fluent Irish after a special application form and an interview, and UCC says some places are reserved each year for first-year students; UCC's page gives no 2026/27 rent.
• UCC's accommodation advice page separately gives a campus accommodation range of EUR 3,816 to EUR 8,585 for the year; the per-residence pages above list EUR 3,892 to EUR 8,756 rent before utilities, so use the per-residence figures.
• Deposit: no deposit is required to apply. A booking deposit of EUR 300 is paid to confirm an offered room. For first-year students in 2026/27: EUR 250 refunded if cancelled by 12 noon on 28 August 2026 (after that, none); first instalment due 28 August 2026; lease started 29 August 2026.
• Allocation: random-selection lottery, open to full-time, full-academic-year students (single-semester and part-time students do not qualify); no booking deposit is needed to apply. The 2026/27 applications closed on 9 March 2026 at 5 pm (UCC FAQ). For 2027/28 UCC lists applications opening February 2027 and closing March 2027, with one month to apply. UCC says no late applications are accepted and you cannot join a waiting list once the window closes; the first round of offers is issued shortly after it closes, with further offers later in the year subject to cancellations (for 2026/27 UCC told applicants they would be updated in mid/late April).
• Contacts (UCC Campus Accommodation): general [email protected], +353 21 481 8400; University Hall [email protected]; Victoria Mills [email protected], +353 21 486 7615; Victoria Lodge [email protected], +353 21 494 1200; Crow's Nest [email protected], +353 21 434 7255; Castlewhite [email protected] and Mardyke Hall [email protected], +353 21 490 2867. University Hall reception hours are 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday (UCC contact page).
• Guests are not permitted at any UCC Campus Accommodation location during the academic year (Campus Accommodation policy).
• Apply: via the Campus Accommodation portal at https://www.ucc.ie/en/campusaccom/student-accom/

3. Private purpose-built student accommodation (from UCC's published list)

UCC publishes a list of private complexes with distance, price range and deposit. Each complex has its own application process, and you can apply to several plus the campus lottery. Single-semester stays are available at many; couple-friendly studios are offered by Bottleworks, Coleman Court and some Fresh locations. Prices are the year shown in UCC's list.

UCC's advice page gives EUR 4,600-20,710 as the 2026/27 range for private complexes. Complexes for which UCC lists no price are not shown. UCC's international page says private complexes open for bookings in January.

4. Private renting and digs

• UCC's 2026/27 advice: private rentals, house shares and digs typically EUR 650-850 per month. House-share availability increases April-May; owner-occupied (digs) are best searched over the summer.
• UCC StudentPad (https://www.uccstudentpad.ie/Accommodation): free searchable listings for current and prospective UCC students (register with a student, CAO or postgraduate application number); includes digs and a housemate finder. UCC states it has not inspected listed properties and is not responsible for advertisements. Report suspicious adverts to [email protected] with screenshots.
• Digs can be 5-day or 7-day arrangements. UCC states owner-occupied digs are a contract (licence), not a tenancy.
• Context (RTB Rent Index Q1 2026, standardised average across whole-property tenancies, not a room rate): Cork City EUR 1,903/month for new tenancies and EUR 1,422/month for existing tenancies.

5. Getting around

UCC lists these bus routes (Bus Éireann Cork city services): 205 (Rossa Avenue/MTU to UCC College Road, Kent Station, every 15 minutes); 208 (Curraheen to Lotabeg via the city, every 10 minutes daytime, stops on Western Road); 220/220X (Ovens, Ballincollig, Crosshaven); 216 (Bandon Road near the main entrance); 219 Southern Orbital (Mahon/Douglas, about 10 minutes' walk from UCC). Cork student fares on a Student Leap Card per about.leapcard.ie/cork (fetched 30 September 2026, year not stated on page): EUR 0.85 per city bus journey, EUR 2.55 daily cap, EUR 10.20 weekly cap. Bus travel information: Bus Éireann Travel Centre (021) 450 8188.

6. Supports

• UCC Student Assistance Fund 2026/27: open now for full-time registered EU students (and some non-EU students eligible for the Free Fees Initiative) on courses of at least one year; based on 2025 household income, with income thresholds in line with SUSI (above EUR 58,470 you may not be eligible); funds are limited, one application per year, once-off award, no official closing date (closes once funds are dispersed); 'Rent' is among the cost categories listed. https://www.ucc.ie/en/sfsa/saf/
• UCC Student Accommodation Bursary 2026/27 (within the SAF): ringfenced funding for students from Irish Traveller and Roma backgrounds and those with care-system experience (ages 16-18, not eligible for an aftercare allowance) living independently; applications open, closing Friday 16 October at 12 pm. https://www.ucc.ie/en/sfsa/further-supports/studentaccommodationbursary/
• Office of Accommodation & Community Life: South Lodge (behind the Boole Library), College Road, Cork T12 RXA9; [email protected]; +353 (0)21 490 3849. UCC states this service does not guarantee accommodation.
• UCC Students' Union welfare: [email protected] (https://www.uccsu.ie/can-we-help/welfare-info/accommodation). The SU page points to RTB and Threshold for tenant advice.

7. Accessibility

UCC Disability Support: [email protected], 1st Floor, The Hub, UCC main campus. UCC states accessible campus rooms are prioritised for students with significant physical or mobility difficulty or a vision disability, that disability registration is not linked to accommodation, and that you must apply to the campus lottery separately. Private complexes near campus also offer accessible options.

8. International students

UCC's international guidance: start searching in January; the service is not a guarantee of accommodation; private shared houses cannot require more than one month's rent as deposit plus one month in advance; beware social-media scams and check listings against Google Maps and market rates.

9. Timeline for September 2027 entry (2026/27 cycle shown)

• January: private complexes open bookings; begin searching (UCC says many options are gone by end of February).
• February to March 2027: UCC states the 2027/28 Campus Accommodation window opens in February 2027 and closes in March 2027 . The 2026/27 window closed on 9 March 2026 at 5 pm.
• After the window closes: first-round offers are issued shortly after; UCC told 2026/27 applicants they would be updated in mid/late April. Further offers follow cancellations.
• April-May: house shares; summer: digs.
• Note for 2027 school-leavers: the lottery window falls before Leaving Cert results and CAO offers.

10. Check before paying

• Do not pay a deposit or rent without seeing the property (UCC advice).
• Student-specific accommodation: the deposit is capped at one month's rent and you cannot be asked for more than one month's rent in advance (more only if rent and tuition are paid to the same provider and the landlord agrees); agreements should not exceed 41 weeks unless you ask (RTB).
• Digs are a licence, not a tenancy: get terms in writing (rent, bills, guests, notice).
• Disputes: Residential Tenancies Board; free advice from Threshold.

11. Official sources used

• https://www.ucc.ie/en/campusaccom/student-accom/ and the residence pages /victorialodge/, /mills/, /castlewhiteapartments/, /universityhall/, /mardykehall/, /crows-nest/, /aras-ui-thuama/ under https://www.ucc.ie/en/campusaccom/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/accommodation/accomadvice/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/sfsa/saf/ ; https://www.ucc.ie/en/sfsa/further-supports/studentaccommodationbursary/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/accommodation/accommfrequentquestions/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/accommodation/campusaccommodation/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/accommodation/privatestudentcomplexes/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/international/studentinfohub/beforeyouarrive/accommodation/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/access/support-while-in-ucc/disability-support/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/build/commuting/publictransport/bus/
• https://www.ucc.ie/en/build/projects/completed/hscomplex/
• https://www.uccsu.ie/can-we-help/welfare-info/accommodation
• https://www.uccstudentpad.ie/Accommodation
• https://www.parchmentsquarecork.com/student-accommodation-cork/accommodation/rates-2026
• https://rtb.ie/renting/types-of-tenancies/student-specific-accommodation/
• https://rtb.ie/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/RTB-Rent-Index-Q1-2026.pdf
• https://about.leapcard.ie/cork