Student Group Reservation Process

Reservable spaces in Earl Hall and St. Paul’s Chapel can be booked via Virtual EMS (VEMS) by all recognized student organizations who are in good standing, as determined by their home department(s). A recognized student organization is defined as an official student organization that has gone through the recognition process overseen by one of the governing boards at Columbia University and/or are recognized directly by a school/department.

Process for Student Organizations

  • Meet with your assigned adviser to discuss event reservation needs
  • Once the event is approved by your adviser, place a space reservation request through UEM’s Virtual EMS portal and alert your adviser.
  • Place service request tickets (custodial, labor) as determined by the guidelines in the "Ticketing Requirements" section below; this process may vary depending on school/department. Some schools/departments require the adviser to place service request tickets, others train students on the process. Please check-in directly with your student organization's adviser. 

Timeline for Space Requests:

  • Student organizations should submit the space request as soon as a date is identified. We highly recommend submitting requests for the entire semester at the beginning of each year or semester. However, a minimum of 10 business days is required to ensure there is sufficient time to review and respond to requests and have an event review (if needed)
    • IMPORTANT NOTE: Depending on the details of the event, 10 business days may not be sufficient time to review and approve the request.

Ticketing Requirements

Custodial Services 

  • A custodial ticket is required for all space reservations in Earl Hall and the Chapel.
  • For recognized student groups who are part of the Facilities & Security Fund, most standard facilities-related costs associated with student organization programming can be charged to the Facilities & Security Fund. Student organizations should speak to their adviser or governing board rep for guidance and more information. 
  • After submitting a space request, student organizations will be notified by UEM that a custodial ticket is required, and the group should submit the custodial ticket(s) as soon as possible.
  • Once a student organization has been notified that a custodial ticket is necessary, please ensure the following steps are completed:
    • The student organization works with their assigned adviser to submit a ticket online, using the student organization’s chartstring (adviser can provide this to the organization). Please note that tickets must be submitted a minimum of three days prior to the event date.
    • Student group sends the ticket confirmation (including work order number) to UEM’s Student Events team at [email protected]
  • Once received, the space request will be confirmed in EMS and the student organization will be notified by UEM when it has been approved.

Labor Services

  • If a Labor Services ticket is needed, it can be submitted on the same ticket as the Custodial Services ticket. You do not need to submit a ticket for Custodial and Labor Services individually.
  • Labor services are needed when a student organization decides to alter the default furniture setup in a particular space.
    • In the event that the student organization decides to change the furniture set up on their own without placing a ticket, they assume full responsibility for ensuring the room is reset to default setup, following their event.
    • Should a student organization fail to comply, their chartstring will be billed for the cost to reset the space and the organization risks being denied space in the future.

Public Safety Guard Services 

  • UEM will submit Public Safety Guard Services requests on behalf of the student organization.
  • Guard services are required for all student organization events when any of the following is true:
    • An event with 100 people or more. Support with access/crowd control is necessary.
    • An event that occurs prior to or past normal building hours. Official building hours of Earl/Chapel for the 2022-2023 academic year are: 9am - 9:30pm during weekdays and 12pm - 8:30pm during weekends (subject to change without notice due to emergencies). 
    • When an event is open to non-CUID holders, guard services may be required and is determined by specific event details and Public Safety recommendations.
    • As determined by the University.