Your 2026 guide to move-in on Northeastern University’s Oakland campus
The largest-ever incoming class at Northeastern University’s campus in Oakland, California, is set to arrive in the Bay Area.
OAKLAND – Hundreds of new students from the Bay Area and beyond will arrive at Northeastern University’s campus in Oakland, California, on Thursday, Sept. 3, and Friday, Sept. 4, ready to begin the next chapter of their lives.
The 941 undergraduate students and 159 graduate students, who represent the largest-ever incoming class in Oakland, will be spread across nine dormitories nestled throughout the verdant, 135-acre campus. Students will arrive during designated move-in windows based on their housing assignment. Arrival times will be scheduled between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Students themselves won’t have to move their luggage as helpers will be stationed just inside the campus entrance along Richards Road. While these hired movers transport their belongings to their rooms, the students will pick up their Husky card and room keys and begin orientation programming, where they’ll learn about student employment opportunities, campus sports and navigating the Bay Area.
Open on the move-in days will be the campus gym, fitness center, pool, tennis courts and athletic fields, if students are itching to begin using the facilities now available to them. Also available will be the Reuse Depot, which offers students a chance to supplement, replace or otherwise acquire dorm supplies, clothes and other essential items for free.
Those who’d like to get a better sense of the campus can opt into one of the campus tours being offered at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on both Sept. 3 and 4. Each of those days will also end with a special campus social event – a movie night at 8:30 p.m. on Sept. 3 and a campus carnival featuring food, games and student club activities on Sept. 4 at 8:00 p.m. A family orientation will take place on each move-in day at 4 p.m., giving them information about what to expect as their child begins their college career.
Once students are settled in their rooms and begin familiarizing themselves with the Oakland campus and its resources, they will also participate in several keystone events and activities, including additional informational programming, a convocation ceremony, the Week of Welcome and more.
Here is other important information to know for students and their families as Northeastern Oakland welcomes them to the 2026-2027 school year.
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Getting to campus
Students and their families be directed to the proper drop-off point on the Oakland campus upon their arrival. Volunteers will greet them and navigate them to the Graduate School of Business, the move-in hub where they will receive important documents and move-in items.
Students may also use rideshare services if traveling from Bay Area airports in Oakland and San Francisco. The AC Transit 57 line bus stops on MacArthur Boulevard directly adjacent to the campus entrance.
Orientation
Orientation weekend takes place from Sept. 5 to Sept. 8. Students will get to know the campus and its myriad offerings, including academic and extracurricular opportunities, clubs, student groups, advisors, research opportunities and more.
Two student orientation sessions will take place on Saturday, Sept. 5, the first from 9:15 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. and the second from 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. Students will be divided into two groups, and attend the orientation sessions in their group’s corresponding order.
Students may also attend optional workshops and events, as well as learn about the abundant Makerspace opportunities, the renowned campus art museum and the faculty and campus staff who will be assisting them during the year. Social activities will be on offer throughout orientation, including a pool party, silent disco, picnic lunch, scavenger hunt and yoga session on the meadow.
Families can also attend a planned social event at the central Adam’s Plaza on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 10:00 a.m., where they can enjoy a coffee tasting service at the campus’s Equator coffee shop, which was co-founded by a Northeastern graduate.
Students will also be treated to an array of delectable food from Oakland restaurants as part of the Taste of Oakland event, a popular yearly fair where new students can mingle while sampling food and drinks from vendors right on campus.
Convocation
Convocation will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 8, where undergraduate students will gather together to hear from Dan Sachs, dean of Northeastern’s Oakland campus, and others ahead of their first day of classes.
This year, the Oakland campus convocation will take place at Holmgren Meadow at 3:00 p.m.
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Week of Welcome
Welcome Week, in many ways, marks the kickoff of the fall semester and includes a host of exciting programming and events in tandem with the start of classes.
Intramural sports will begin at Haas Gymnasium on Wednesday, Sept. 9, where Campus Sports and Recreation (CSR) will introduce students to casual sports leagues and tournaments that they can participate in while in Oakland.
A number of campus facilities will host open houses during Welcome Week, including the XR Lab, Global Experience Office and The Rothwell Center, which houses the Center for Belonging and Center for Student Involvement.
The CSR Res Hall Royale, a Latine-themed event with food, games and competitions to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month, will take place on Sept. 15 at the soccer field, At the Student Involvement Fair on Sept. 16, hundreds of students will have the opportunity to meet student leaders, join campus groups and clubs, and explore campus resources.
A CSR Boba and Yoga event on Sept. 17 will let students enjoy a tasty drink and a stretch before their second week of classes comes to a close. Perhaps on the other end of the spectrum, and, to round out all the festivities, an XR Lab arcade night on Sept. 18 will provide games and immersive media experiences.
Early arrivals
Ujima Global Scholars, who are supported through a partnership with the John D. O’Bryant African American Institute, and Trail Blazers, first-generation, Pell-eligible student supported by the Mills Institute, will be arriving early to Oakland on Monday, Aug. 31. They will be joined by students with disabilities as part of Northeastern’s ACCESS Experience and pre-orientation leadership students who work as peer mentors for incoming undergraduates.
These early arrivers will check in at 9:00 a.m. at the Oval, where they will also receive their dorm keys and Husky card. The Reuse Depot will be open on Aug. 31 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
