PurposeTheaimofthispaperistoinvestigatetheproblemsofmeetingstudents’ housing needs in many cities that could not adapt to this change with its infrastructure against the rapid increase in the number of Turkish universitiesandstudents,whoareeducatedintheseinstitutions, in recent years.In addition, it is to develop alternative suggestions concerned with design criteria for increasing qualifications of the dormitories as one of the primary housing alternatives for students. Design/Methodology/ApproachUsers’preferencesandtheirmanagementareveryimportantforespecially multi-user design processes. Hence, through a survey, it was plannedtodeterminethephysicalconditionsandthespatialcharacteristics of the existing dormitories beside their conformities in terms of the users’ satisfaction. At the end of the extensive literatureresearch, the evaluation criteria which included basic psychological(privacy, sense of crowded, belonging and socializing, etc.) and physical (dorm rooms, social and service areas in the dorms and the dorms’ environment, etc.) factors were prepared for the survey. Then their validity was tested via the survey questions and the SPSS software. The obtained findings in the study were discussed in the frame of previous literature researches and their results. Evaluations were made in terms of the development of architectural planning principles of dormitory buildings. FindingsSome outstanding findings and evaluations were listed as increasing the more customized using areas in the rooms, rehabilitation of study areas, multiplying variations of study and socializing areas, organizing social areas as partial units instead of the only central space for different functions, avoiding large-scale dormitories for decreasing the perception of crowded sense, creating flexible environments according to the conditions, etc. Besides, although the spatial planning of the dormitorieswascommonlycompatiblewiththestandards,theorganization disorders like overcapacity and change of functions have been found to cause dissatisfaction. Many of these are thought to be innovative inputs for the design stages of dormitory buildings even if design contexts are different.Research Limitations/ImplicationsThe survey is conducted in Karabük with 250 students from different facultiesinKarabükUniversitywhosedevelopmentprocesshassignificantly affected the city and the city life in the last decade. So, the conditions of dormitories in Karabuk are examined. Practical Implicationsit is necessary to consider the users’ opinions and expectations about these buildings in the frame of their changing lifestyles and thus to review the criteria and approaches in designs of such buildings.Social ImplicationsThefastandimmediatesolutionswhichhavebeendonewithoutconsidering in detail are often not useful.So, on behalf of solving this rapidly growing problem which has encountered in many cities in similar ways, improving them in line with the current user needs and thus increasing qualities in the students’ education and life standards, it is important to examine the conditions of the dormitory buildings which have been constructed or will be constructed.Originality/ValueIn this study, unlike the other dormitory studies, the design problems anduserinteractionshavebeenevaluatedwithamoreholisticapproach from interior organization to the decisions on an urban scale.