Amid student housing crisis, UCLA becomes first UC campus with four-year room guarantee

LOS ANGELES — It's just 35 miles between UCLA and Whittier, the hometown of Albert Hsu. The first-year Bruin could have commuted and saved $14,000 a year in campus housing and meal plan costs. But that was not even a consideration, because Hsu wanted the classic college experience of independent dorm life, new friends, group study sessions — and, at UCLA, the choice of more than 1,200 student organizations.

All of that, Hsu said, enriches him personally and helps him academically. "Friends are a source of moral support, and club activities help you release stress," he said. "So I didn't want to commute. I wanted that full college experience."

Ever since UCLA built its first four dorms six decades ago, in a quest to shift away from a commuter campus, the university has known that students who live on campus do better. Now, UCLA has reached a unique milestone. With two new apartment buildings