The SDSU housing issue has led to strong communication between incoming and current students via social media.
San Diego State University receives thousands of applications every year from incoming freshmen and transfer students, making it one of the most populous universities in California. Due to this, a significant challenge the university faces is overcrowded housing, resulting from the high number of students admitted and the limited availability of housing spaces. While solutions for the housing crisis are currently being developed, housing for transfer students is never guaranteed, as freshmen are given priority. Conversations surrounding housing at SDSU have been circulating online for years, most notably on Reddit, with some of the most popular inquiries including transfer housing, dorm options, and students seeking lease agreements. Users are often current or past students communicating with incoming students, offering answers to their questions and providing advice.
Transfer inquiries about on-campus housing
The transfer housing topic is a pretty significant one on the Reddit platform. Because SDSU does not have sufficient housing, it is unable to offer and guarantee housing for transfer students. They are often left wondering what their housing options are for the school year. By searching “SDSU Transfer Student Housing,” you are provided with multiple Reddit posts surrounding this topic, with some chats even dating as far as five years ago, proving this problem has been significant for quite some time.
Source: Reddit Discussion Thread https://www.reddit.com/r/SDSU/comments/1ks5h9r/housing_as_a_transfer/
Accessed on October 11, 2025
In another discussion regarding transfer housing, user @ChucklesQuad responded to several inquiries from incoming transfers, mainly offering advice on potential off-campus housing locations and providing estimated rent prices. User @HopefulFuture_ identified themselves as a former transfer student and offered firsthand information on off-campus housing options, prices, as well as store and food options in the surrounding area. From viewing the conversations, the Reddit platform serves as a valuable resource for incoming transfers to directly communicate with past and current students and hear their perspectives. The conversations on this platform are often friendly and helpful, as current students are aware of the difficulty in securing housing and are helping others gain insight into the off-campus housing community.
Source: Reddit Discussion Thread https://www.reddit.com/r/SDSU/comments/1ks5h9r/housing_as_a_transfer/
Accessed on October 11, 2025
Freshman housing inquiries and recommendations
Incoming freshmen are often curious and excited about their upcoming college experience, and social media provides a great resource tool to learn about current students’ firsthand experiences. When it comes to the freshman housing experience, many students have a lot to say, particularly on TikTok. A popular video trend, such as the TikTok videos posted by @Ijillie and @ben_giller, is the "Pros and Cons" of the SDSU dorms. In these posts, the user simply engaged with their audience by talking to the camera, listing their personal pros and cons of the dorms the university has to offer. These videos received thousands of likes and reshares, with incoming freshmen interacting with questions in the comments. Because TikTok is a platform where these sorts of informative videos thrive, communication between incoming and current students is very prominent here. Many answers that Freshmen may have regarding dorms are answered by the current students, and provide them with better knowledge of dorm life that can ease them when choosing their dorm. Longer form videos like @aesthetic_inspo_101 below dive in deeper to SDSU housing and serve as a great resource that is targeted directly to freshmen.
https://www.tiktok.com/@aesthetic_inspo_101/video/7496919716095708447
Conclusion
In conclusion, community conversations regarding SDSU housing primarily take place on Reddit and TikTok. Both platforms provide very informative perspectives from current students to incoming students about the current housing situation, and allow a collaborative two-way communication culture between the two groups. Whether it's direct messaging through Reddit or watching a creative, informative video someone posted, these types of content have proven effective for students to learn about housing via social media rather than coming in blind to the housing atmosphere at SDSU.