After a housing shortage in 2001 and a surplus in 2002, the University of Arizona once again looks to be short on on-campus housing, Residence Life officials said.

As of last week, there were 300 students on the waiting list for undergraduate housing, and Residence Life has already had to turn away students, said Jim Van Arsdel, director of residence life and university housing.

"The waiting list has about 300 names," Van Arsdel said. "We've already talked to them and told them we really do not believe we will be able to accommodate them."

Van Arsdel said he expects the numbers will remain "really volatile" for the next couple of weeks.

He said some students could be placed in temporary housing, a provisional solution for the 2001 housing shortage.

"There is very likely to be some, but I don't think like in 2001," Van Arsdel said. "It is really about two weeks too early to tell."

In 2001, so many students were guaranteed spaces that 500 were placed in temporary housing, including study lounges, hotels and rooms with resident assistants. Some had to stay in the temporary spaces for the entire fall semester. That was the last year students were guaranteed housing for applying before May 1.

In recent years, housing shortages have forced Residence Life to instill a guaranteed housing deadline, and give priority to freshmen. Residence Life has also packed additional students in double and triple occupancy rooms, rented greek houses from cash-strapped chapters and purchased nearby apartments.

In response to the 2001 shortage, the UA decided to eliminate the guaranteed housing deadline, limit returning students to 1,000 and put a four-semester limit on living on-campus.

This year, the UA has the new 300-bed, coed residence hall, Villa del Puente. But Residence Life let the lease for the 300-person apartment Palm Shadows run out, so capacity is about the same as last year, Van Arsdel said.

The shortage in 2001 was due to the growing number of incoming freshmen and a higher-than-average number of sophomores who also wanted to return.

While the number of returning sophomores did not change, this year's waiting list grew as a result of there being 400 more freshmen applicants than last year, Van Arsdel said.

This time last year, Residence Life expected a massive shortage of rooms, but with cancellations, they were able to accept everyone on the waiting list.

Van Arsdel said then that the demand was far above the previous year, and that the outlook was initially "scary."

While the final numbers this year could swing either above or below the maximum occupancy, the situation of some incoming freshmen still looks a little worrisome and uncertain.

Courtland Jones, a pre-architecture freshman, applied for housing in mid-February and now sits on the waiting list.

"I actually applied later on because I was accepted later and I was wait-listed," Jones said.

Jones said she would rather live in temporary housing than be wait-listed. She now must sit tight for the next list to come out in August.

"They really haven't promised me anything," Jones said.

Lori Goldman, director of admissions and new student enrollment, said it is too early to tell what the freshmen class size will be, but it could be a record.

"We're expecting 6,000, but it would be premature for us to be giving any kinds of numbers," Goldman said.

A freshmen class of 6,000 would break the UA's record of 5,949 in 2001. The freshmen class of 2002 was the second highest at 5,808 students, the third being in 2000 with 5,526.