More and more students are abandoning dormitories and opting for private housing, driven by poor living conditions and rising fees. Only 4,063 students have been accommodated this year in Tirana’s two public residences, nearly half the number in 2019, while about 40% of the beds remain empty.
Although the Municipality of Tirana has invested over 5 billion lek in the last ten years and is implementing a 35 million euro project for the reconstruction of 19 buildings, most of the dormitories remain dilapidated. Damp buildings, shared toilets and lack of hygiene are the conditions that students face, while the mismanagement of the “Tirana Ime” platform often prevents the fair allocation of rooms for new students.
On the other hand, the Student Card remains mainly a means of transportation, with a lack of concrete benefits in terms of books, career, or student space. As a result, despite the investments, student life remains challenging.
The battle for a bed
In a small, dimly lit room, Rea Xhukellari, an economics student, prepares her morning coffee in front of the faculty. She shares the apartment with several other girls; most of them work, while Rea relies on her family to pay the monthly rent.
“I pay 20 thousand lek per month, four times the dormitory fee, but I feel more at ease,” she tells ” shteg.org “.
Like Rea, thousands of students are abandoning the ” Student City “, once a symbol of university youth, to live in rental housing – a choice that often increases the financial burden of studies.
“When I came to Tirana, the image of dormitories was very negative. I was lucky not to work, thanks to the support of my family, because life here is expensive and stifling for a student,” adds Rea.
According to data from the Municipality of Tirana, in the academic year 2025–2026, only 4,063 students were accommodated, 622 less than the previous year and almost half of 2019.
The decline is most pronounced among first-year students, with only 902 accommodated this year, compared to 1,570 in 2024.
“There is a great paradox: staggering investments, but fewer and fewer students living there,” says Mateo Yskollari from the organization Qëndresa Qytetare, author of a report on dorm management from September 2025.
In the last ten years, the Municipality of Tirana has invested over 5 billion lek in student housing. Two buildings in the Student City, where 1,871 students live, have been reconstructed, and 10 new buildings have been built after the earthquake, 2 in the Student City and 8 at the Agricultural University.
The “Energy Efficiency Rehabilitation” project is currently being implemented in cooperation with the German Bank KfW, worth 35 million euros. So far, 5 buildings have been completed, while 14 others are still in progress.
One of the students living in the reconstructed buildings is Martina Gllavaj, a student at the Faculty of Law. She has chosen to work part-time, even though she lives in the dormitory. “I currently live in building no. 20, which after the reconstruction offers normal and suitable conditions for student living,” she explains.
Martina chooses the dormitory mainly for economic reasons, as compared to a rented apartment, the monthly fee is much more affordable.
“The main expenses include food and personal needs, and are generally manageable. I work part-time in a flexible environment, which does not interfere with my studies,” she says.
On the other hand, activist Mateo Yskollari notes that reconstructions have only included a small portion of the buildings, while most continue to be depreciated.
“In some buildings, conditions have improved significantly. There are rooms with air conditioning, a refrigerator, hot water, but this only applies to a small number of students. Dozens of other buildings remain substandard, with dampness, shared toilets and a lack of hygiene,” he explains.
The “Civic Resilience” report shows that first-year students often face a lack of information and abuses in room allocation due to mismanagement of the “Tirana Ime” platform. Some rooms that result empty in official statistics do not appear as free in the online application, raising suspicions of clientelistic or selective use of data.
“There have been cases where rooms are given with interference, while waiting applicants do not receive a response,” Yskollari states.
Civic Resistance demands that the application and selection process be audited by an independent structure, to avoid abuses and guarantee equal treatment for all students.
Symbolic card
Martina Gllavaj, a student at the Faculty of Law, is one of the 1,857 students accommodated in the dormitory. She pays the dormitory fee and has a Student Card, but the benefits, she says, are minimal.
“Apart from the public transportation pass, there is nothing that improves student life,” says Martina.
Unlike Student City, this unit does not receive funding from the Municipality of Tirana and has no new investment projects, as it operates on a self-management basis. Some buildings still have problems with central heating and water supply.
Dormitory fees range from 43,000 lek for unreconstructed buildings to 65,000 lek for renovated ones.
Rea Xhukellari describes the Student Card as a symbolic object.
“For me it’s just a symbolic object. Apart from the monthly subscription, there are no real benefits in terms of books or basic services,” she says.
She points out that students often face a lack of basic amenities, from photocopies and discounted books, to information about the faculty and a career center that is not helpful at all.
There is also a lack of canteens and student spaces at symbolic costs, which makes it difficult for students to fully utilize their university period.
But for its part, the Youth and Social Welfare Agency under the Municipality of Tirana describes the Student Card as a tool that offers facilities and benefits in public and private services, including transportation, books, healthcare, cultural and sports activities.
“This card provides young people with a range of facilities and benefits in public and private services, including urban transport, books and academic materials, health and sports services, cultural and entertainment activities, food, as well as other categories. Given that the needs of young people are constantly evolving, work is being done to improve and expand the functions of the card. In this context, the objective is for the Student Card to not remain just an instrument of financial facilities, but to serve as a comprehensive platform of opportunities for young people” – states the official response that “shteg.org” received from the Municipality of Tirana.
According to the agency, work is underway to expand the functionality of the card, including digital services, professional programs and internship opportunities, as well as participation in educational and cultural activities at home and abroad. Currently, 45,683 students are equipped with the Student Card.
Although Martina Gllavaj and Rea Xhukellari face daily challenges in student life, the problem extends beyond dormitories and the Student Charter.
Student residences are emptying, a consequence of the lack of sustainable housing policies. In the early 1990s, Student City was home to over 12,000 students from all over Albania. Today, the long corridors of the buildings are empty.
“Instead of creating real living conditions, investments have been focused on facades, while maintenance, management and social inclusion have been overlooked,” explains activist Mateo Yskollari.
But students say they are not simply asking for material investments, but to be heard and included in decision-making.
“Students must become the foundation of institutions’ decisions, because our importance is being intentionally diminished,” says Rea, adding that the Municipality of Tirana and the Ministry of Education must understand that the voice of students must be heard to create a worthy university life.
“Any problem within the faculty becomes unsolvable due to the student-teacher-dean hierarchy, which makes healthy living within the institution difficult,” she emphasizes.
However, both girls remain optimistic about the future.
“I strongly believe in the change that our generation can bring and I would be very willing to continue my second cycle of studies in my country. Opportunities abroad are always attractive for international experience, but my goal is not to leave permanently, but to return with knowledge and experience to contribute here,” says Martina Gllavaj.
Note: “This publication has been made possible with the financial support of the Albanian Society of Civil Society. Its content is the responsibility of the author, the opinion expressed therein is not necessarily the opinion of the Albanian Society of Civil Society.”
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