Frequently Asked Questions about Roomsurf

How Do I Sign up?

Click "Get Started Here" and login with your Facebook credentials or sign up with an email address. This is also how to log in each visit.

If you sign up with Facebook, your current profile picture will be your Roomsurf profile picture, but you can change it after you register by clicking "Edit your Profile" on your Dashboard.

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Why should I upgrade?

Upgrading your Roomsurf account allows you to fully engage with all of your matches! Once you've upgraded, you'll be able to send unlimited messages on Roomsurf, contact information for your matches, and ultimately avoid risking spending your freshman year with a dud of a roommate — when you look at it that way, its really a small price to pay!

As a side note: The first 10 students (5 male and 5 female) that join each school network are awarded upgraded accounts free of charge to get matches flowing each year. We do this so Roomsurf is a positive experience for everyone.

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Who can use Roomsurf?

High school seniors, college students, and graduates school students can use Roomsurf.

If you need to find a compatible roommate for on-campus housing, or need to fill an extra room for your place off-campus, you should try Roomsurf to identify compatible roommates.

The vast majority of Roomsurf users are incoming college freshmen, though we do have some transfer students and others looking to live off campus. You can use the Advanced Search options on the Matches page to filter your matches to best suit your needs.

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Why should I use Roomsurf?

High school seniors that are going off to their first year of college should use Roomsurf if they do not want to get stuck with a roommate that they will not enjoy living with. The majority of colleges allow students to mutually request each other as roommates. More than 1,000,000 students have used Roomsurf since 2010. So why leave it to chance?

Roomsurf also makes the process of identifying compatible roommates easier by immediately calculating your matches based on your quiz results.

We match you with everyone of the same gender on your network, and encourage you to talk with many different people before deciding to room with someone.

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What is a Video Profile? How can I create one?

The Video Profile is an opportunity to really shed light on your personality, and the essence of you in a video. This gives other students a better feel for you as a person, and is much better than a text profile and looking at a photo.

All you need is a YouTube account, a video or web camera, and a little dose of personality. Just paste the youtube link into the text box.

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I found someone I am interested in living with, now what?

The next step is to just let them know! Send them a message through Roomsurf, and add them as a Favorite and select to send them a notification. If your potential roommate(s) agree to live with you, the next step is to find out how your school accepts roommate requests. You can do this by calling your university directly, or looking up the process on their website under housing or residence life.

Please note that your school may not be able to meet your request, and we cannot guarantee that you will be paired as roommates with someone you find on Roomsurf.

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I want my college on Roomsurf! How can we add it?

If your college isn't listed, email us at contact@roomsurf.com and we will add it! Be sure to include the full name of the school and the state it's located in. Once added, don't forget to tell other students going to your school about us so you'll have matches to choose from!

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Is Roomsurf free?

The first 10 students (5 male and 5 female) that join each school network are awarded upgraded accounts free of charge to get matches flowing each year. We do this so Roomsurf is a positive experience for everyone. After that, to see the details about your matches you'll need to upgrade your account.

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My college network needs more members! How should I refer friends to Roomsurf?

There are many ways to refer friends.

If you want to get more members on RoomSurf from your college class, post a link to our site in your college class group. These groups are usually for you to connect with your classmates, and share relevant information and resources. So if you like our app, feel free to share away! Sharing is caring.

Ask your class group administrator to make a post about our site and how it can help everyone find the best roommates.

Tweet about us! Use #roomsurf and our Twitter handle @roomsurf, as well as the hashtag for your school or class.

Post a FB status update linking to our site! Be creative and remember, the more people that use Roomsurf the more matches to choose from. Would you rather see how you match against 100 people or 1,000?

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Can I change school networks?

Yes! You can easily change school networks by clicking "Change my School" on your User Dashboard.

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How are matches calculated?

Our approach presents match percentages based on what you want in a roommate. You are asked to answer a question, and then asked how you wish your roommate would respond. After you make these selections, you apply a weight to the importance of the issue. This way the match percentages are based on your personal sensitivity on each question. You can also see your match's answers to each question with the "Compare Us" tab on their profile.

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Can I change my quiz responses?

Select "Retake the Quiz" from the Dashboard. You can retake it anytime you like!

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I thought the college matches students as roommates?

Most colleges allow students to mutually request roommates if they can identify each other. Some do not. Roomsurf provides a medium for students to connect with and identify potential roommates based on compatibility. If students decide they are a good match, they can request each other through the school's established methods. Most schools can not promise to honor every roommate request, but students should at least try to network with each other before getting to campus in the Fall.

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If I send a roommate request to my school, does that mean we will definitely be paired?

Many schools allow students to submit mutual roommate requests, and they do their best to honor those requests. Ultimately the school makes the final decision about roommate pairing, and it is not always possible to meet every request. Our website allows students to meet other students who they may want to room with. Even if your request cannot be met, you now have several friends from your school that you know you get along with!

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When I visit Roomsurf I get signed in automatically. How can I avoid this?

Make sure you are logged out of Facebook on your web browser. After you have done that, click "Get Started Here" on the Roomsurf home page and sign in normally.

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My school doesn't let me pick roommates!

That's ok. You can still use Roomsurf to see how your personality matches with your future classmates. You can also find out how you match with your assigned roommates.

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Can schools use Roomsurf?

Yes! We partner with college and university housing offices to make Roomsurf more accessible to students. Please click on the "For Schools" link in the footer to learn more about how we can work with your institution, integration options, and to schedule an online demonstration.

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Some of my friends didn't have to upgrade their account, but I do. Why is that?

The first 10 students (5 male and 5 female) that join each school network are awarded upgraded accounts free of charge to get matches flowing each year. We do this so Roomsurf is a positive experience for everyone. After that, to see the details about your matches you'll need to upgrade your account.

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How do I deactivate my account?

Click the "deactivate account" link on your User Dashboard. If you're on mobile, you'll find the link under the Menu.

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How do I reactivate my account?

Send us an email at Contact@Roomsurf.com with your Roomsurf username and we will reactivate your account for you.

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Roomsurf is a cool idea - what else ya got?

We've also created Textsurf (www.textsurf.com) where we compare textbook prices from the top retailers. You can find the best prices all in one place, and determine if buying, renting, or going digital is the best choice for you. We also buy back your old books at the end of the semester.

Thousands of students have saved hundreds of dollars each by using Textsurf, so definitely check it out!

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My profile picture won't change! Why not?

If your profile picture won't update after you've chosen a new file under "Edit your Profile", one of two things is going on:

1. Your file is too large. Make sure the file is under 10MB. Resize the picture if necessary.

2. The picture has changed, but your browser is showing the old picture. This sometimes happens - in this case, everyone else can see your new picture. To check this, hold Shift on your keyboard and click Refresh. This forces a new download from the server to show updated information.

If neither of these work, please email us at contact@roomsurf.com with your username and attach the file you want to use as your picture

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I'm a parent, should I create my son or daughter's Roomsurf account?

NO!

Definitely not. We can't stress this enough.

When someone other than the student takes the quiz, it becomes a reflection of what the parent thinks the student should be instead of what they actually are. This skews match results and has a negative effect on finding potential roommates that are actually a good fit.

In addition, the Facebook account used to create an account is forever linked to that Roomsurf account - it cannot be transferred. So if another student views your child's account, they see your name and picture instead of theirs. That's a major problem.

Let your son or daughter sign up and take their quiz themselves, and let them be honest.

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I got accidentally set as the wrong gender - how can I fix it?

If this happened to you, send us an email at contact@roomsurf.com with your username, and we'll help you get it sorted out.

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When I click "Get Started" the pages just refreshes. What do I do?

If this happens, 99% of the time it's a browser issue. Follow these steps to fix it:

1. Clear your browser cache and cookies

2. Close the browser, then open it again

3. Go to Roomsurf before logging into Facebook, and try to login again.

Also make sure your firewall or ad blocker isn't blocking Facebook Connect, for the other 1% of cases.

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