Eastern Illinois University

Eastern is on a 320-acre campus in a small town setting in Charleston, Illinois. There are many activities and organizations for Eastern students to participate in – band, chorus, theater groups, a campus newspaper, a radio station and more.

Eastern also has fraternities and sororities.

Eastern has a thriving Greek Organizations. In fact, more students participate in Greek Organizations than any other on-campus activity.

Other popular student organizations at Eastern include Registered Student Organizations, Intramural Sports, University Board and Civic Engagement & Volunteerism.

The Eastern community comes together each year for Homecoming, Celebration: A Festival of the Arts and Family Weekend.

Does Eastern offer student housing?

Eastern offers housing. Students are required to live on campus through freshman year. First year students are guaranteed on-campus housing.

Most Eastern students live off campus. In 2021, 32% of undergrads at Eastern lived in some kind of on-campus housing and 68% of students lived off-campus or commuted to Eastern. There are 5,385 spots available in on-campus housing for all 6,229 undergraduates. In the 2020-21 school year, 2,13 students chose to live on-campus. On the weekends, about 58% students stay on-campus. First year students are allowed to park a car on campus.

Eastern offers coed housing and .

Is Eastern Safe?

College is like a home away from home. Whether you're walking to class or coming back from late-night studying (or partying!), it's important to feel safe on campus.

Eastern Illinois University is patroled 24 hours a day by trained security. The Eastern campus has emergency telephones or alarms for students to use anytime of day or night. The school also has student security patrols. Campus housing is secure and dorms can only be accessed with secure key cards.

Additionally, Eastern has Alert EIU and warning sirens.

Plan a Visit to Eastern

Visiting colleges is one of the best ways to get a sense of the campus and student body. If you'd like to visit to Eastern, take Interstate 57 to Charleston, IL. If you need to fly, book your flight to University of Illinois Willard airport.

While you're planning, check out other schools in Illinois you may want to visit too. Click the heart at the top of each school's page to save it to your college list.

Want to visit but can't make the trip? Explore Eastern's campus without leaving home by taking a virtual campus tour