Frequently Asked Membership Questions

Each co-op has a workchart to organize the work of all of its members. In dining co-ops, each co-oper does 4-5 hours of volunteer work per week. Some co-opers are elected to positions (such as committee representatives, food buyers, bread bakers, and Directors of the Board), while others sign up for jobs on the workchart (such as cooking, cleaning, chopping vegetables, and soaking beans). 

Still other co-opers have “All-OSCA” positions, working not for a specific co-op, but for OSCA as a whole (such as the President, Treasurer, Membership Secretary, Operations Manager, and Housing Coordinator). 

Housing co-ops have a separate workchart that generally involves one hour per week of household chores.

The Spring Upperclass Lottery opens at the beginning of each Spring semester for students returning to Oberlin and seeking co-op placement the subsequent Fall. Each participant is assigned a random lottery number, so everyone has an equal chance of getting into a co-op, regardless of seniority. (The two exceptions are co-opers holding All-OSCA staff positions, and students new to Oberlin for whom 100 spaces are saved for the summer new student lottery.) 

The Spring Lottery is only open to students returning to Oberlin; students new to Oberlin should enter the Summer Lottery. 

If you do not get into your first choice co-op from the Spring Lottery, or did not participate, you may still be able to join OSCA by signing up on the Wait List.

If you miss the Spring or Summer Lotteries, or do not get into your first choice co-op from a Lottery, you may still be able to join OSCA by signing up on the next year's Wait List. OSCA places students from the Wait List until Add/Drop each semester. After Add/Drop, however, OSCA cannot make additional placements into OSCA co-ops until the next semester.

Sometimes releases (and additions) happen slowly depending upon where in the semester they occur. If you received a "Leaving OSCA" message, that means we processed your co-op release with Residential Life, and you must follow-up with them directly to ensure your release has been processed successfully at their end.

Winter Term co-ops are separate from regular semester co-ops, meaning that you are likely in the other co-op after Winter Term has ended. Check your email for a "Welcome to OSCA" message to confirm which co-op you have been assigned if you are new to OSCA in the Spring. 

For example, if you dined in Pyle in the Fall, and in Harkness over Winter Term, you are a member of Pyle for Spring. However, if you were placed from the Wait List into another co-op for Spring, then your dining co-op will not be Pyle, and may not be Harkness... again, check your email for a "Welcome to OSCA" message to confirm your co-op. 

If you are still confused about what co-op you are in, please email the Membership Secretary at office@osca.coop.