Josselyn House
Olivia Josselyn House (Joss for short) is one of Vassar's nine residential houses. Today Joss houses 237 students and is home to the Transitions living room.
Transitions Program
Residential Life
⭐ Transitions Program
Transitions caters to first-generation, low-income, and/or undocumented students at Vassar. Students are initially invited to the program, but anyone is welcome to join once they are on campus. The program focuses on building community and creating a sense of belonging amongst these populations.
Events
There is a variety of programming and events that are put on throughout the academic year to foster an inclusive and tight-knit community. Incoming freshmen are invited to participate in Foundations, a pre-orientation component for incoming students the week before New Student Orientation. This program allows you to get acclimated to college life, meet people from similar backgrounds, and learn about the resources available to transition students at Vassar.
Additionally, Transition provides a lot of research, employment, and networking opportunities that are specific to its members. From the Transitions Research Project to the Senior Summit (a career and networking event), you will have a lot of chances to get connected with professionals in your field and build relationships/connections with them.
Monthly lunches, faculty dinners, and recreational programming are also quite common, and a great way to continually interact with the Transitions community. There are also student leader positions for students in their second year and beyond
⭐ Residential Life
Vassar’s focus on residential life results in a tight-knit community and causes over 98% of our students to live on campus! Most students reside in their originally designated dorm for three years then move to apartment-style living as upperclassman. We have no exclusive housing (the only exception to that general rule is Strong House, which is historically an all-female dorm that students can elect to live in), so there is no freshman-only dorm, which ensures a diverse community in the residential houses. Each house is also equipped with a multi-purpose room, parlor, kitchen, computer/printer rooms, and laundry room.
Resources
In order to support students, every house has a House Team that provides programming, support, and resources throughout the academic year. The House Team is composed of student fellows, house fellows and interns, house advisors, and house officers. As a first-year, you will be assigned a student fellow; student fellows are sophomores that live in your hall and are there to help you with academics, dorm living, conduct weekly check-ins, and support you in any way. For more information on student fellows and the other members of the House Team, visit this website!
Events
Besides providing support for students, House Team also hosts many events throughout the year. From preparing students for selecting classes during registration to providing study breaks to hosting fun community events, House Team is a great way to connect with the people in your house!
As a first-year, you will also meet and interact with your house and team during orientation week. You’ll get to know the other students in your hall/house, understand what resources are available, explore the town, as well as compete in our Brewer House Competition!
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