Housing & Dining

Each residential community has its own personality, but they all share one thing: they’re full of people as driven and obsessed with their craft as you are.

All students have access to shared lounges, kitchens, laundry facilities, study spaces, wireless internet, and other everyday essentials designed to make campus feel like home.

Little Building
Home to most first-year students, Little Building sits right in the center of campus and was fully renovated in 2019. Its traditional residence hall layout makes it easy to meet people, with shared lounges, community spaces, and quick access to classes and campus life.

Piano Row
Piano Row combines suite-style living with some of Emerson’s most active student spaces, including the Max Mutchnick Campus Center and Brown & Plofker Gym. Students share living spaces and kitchenettes while staying close to campus events, organizations, and activities.

Paramount Center
This residence combines housing with Emerson’s performing arts facilities, including theaters and rehearsal rooms. Because so much of their academic and creative work happens here, many performing arts students choose to call the Paramount home. Suite-style rooms and shared lounges create a collaborative, close-knit environment in the middle of downtown Boston.

2 Boylston Place
2 Boylston Place offers suite-style living with shared lounges, kitchens, and community spaces. Located just steps from campus, it provides a more independent-style residential experience while remaining closely connected to Emerson life.

Colonial Building
Located above the historic Colonial Theatre, the Colonial residence hall features suite-style living, shared kitchens and lounges, and easy access to classes, performances, and the energy of Boston’s Theater District.

Learning Communities bring together students who live, learn, and connect around shared interests, majors, and creative passions.

Students in each Learning Community live together in the same residence hall community while participating in events, workshops, guest speakers, and outings connected to a shared theme. Designed to help students build friendships and connections from day one, Learning Communities offer a way to explore your interests alongside peers who share your curiosity and enthusiasm. Students can apply to join a Learning Community through the housing application.

Film Immersion
Live alongside other students interested in filmmaking while exploring the creative process from script to screen. Through screenings, guest speakers, workshops, and collaborative projects, Film Immersion welcomes students from across Emerson’s film community, no experience required.

Performing Cultures
Connect with fellow students interested in performance, production, and the arts while engaging with Boston’s vibrant cultural scene. Through workshops, performances, and community events, students explore creative expression while building connections across Emerson’s arts community.

Writers’ Block
Join a residential community for students passionate about writing in all its forms, from poetry and fiction to screenwriting and journalism. Through workshops, events, and creative collaboration, students develop their craft while exploring Boston’s literary community.

Off-campus living can offer a different way to experience the city and build a routine beyond campus, while still staying closely connected to the Emerson community.

Many Emerson students choose to live off campus later in their college experience, often in nearby Boston neighborhoods like Back Bay, Fenway, Allston, and the South End.

While most undergraduate students begin their Emerson experience in college housing, off-campus living becomes a popular option over time for students interested in experiencing more independence and navigating life in the city on their own. Emerson’s Off-Campus Student Services (OCSS) team helps support students through the transition with resources for apartment searching, roommates, leases, and city living.

From coffee runs between classes to late-night meals with friends, dining at Emerson College is designed to fit the pace of student life.

Across campus, students can choose from cafés, grab-and-go markets, taquerias, deli favorites, and Emerson’s main dining hall, with options for a wide range of dietary preferences and routines. And because Emerson is located in the heart of downtown Boston, students are also surrounded by some of the city’s best restaurants, cafés, food trucks, and late-night spots just steps from campus.

On-Campus Dining Locations

With cafés, grab-and-go markets, and a full dining hall located across campus, students have flexible options for a wide range of tastes, schedules, and dietary preferences.

Dining Center
Emerson’s main dining hall features all-you-care-to-eat meals with rotating menus, international flavors, comfort food favorites, and cooked-to-order stations.

The Lion’s Den
A favorite student hangout for studying and meeting up between classes, the Lion’s Den serves tacos, burritos, bowls, coffee, pastries, and grab-and-go meals.

C-Store at the Max
Part convenience store, part café, the Max offers snacks, groceries, coffee, grab-and-go meals, and made-to-order grill items inside Piano Row.

Backstage Deli
Backstage Deli brings classic New York deli energy to campus with made-to-order sandwiches, soups, salads, desserts, and quick lunch options.

Off-Campus Dining Locations

Beyond campus dining halls and cafés, Emerson students have easy access to dozens of local restaurants and coffee shops that accept Emerson College Cash (ECCash). Grab tacos from El Jefe’s Taqueria, coffee or pastries from Tatte Bakery & Cafe, sushi from Pick N’ Roll Sushi, or late-night pizza and cookies from spots like Sal’s Pizza and Insomnia Cookies—all just steps from campus in the heart of downtown Boston.