Marquette University’s student parking permits sold out this year before first- and second-year resident students could purchase them.
There are about 3,400 total parking spots on campus and 1,750 were made available to students for the 2025-26 school year, Michael Jahner, director of Facilities Management and university engineer, said. Even after allotting 150 more spots than last year, parking permits completely sold out after commuters and upper-level students purchased them.
Students unable to purchase a parking permit either choose to get on the waitlist or find parking elsewhere. Jahner said there are currently 900 students on the waitlist — 50 of which he said will actually get a parking space.
“In the past, we haven’t had to put the waitlist up as soon as we had to. We just haven’t seen them sell that fast before,” Jahner said. “Commuters figured out that they need to buy the permit right away. They can’t wait. So that’s, I think, why they sold out faster.”
In 2024, 9% of first-years were commuters. Each undergraduate class year at Marquette comprises roughly 2,000 students, meaning an estimated 200 students in each class are commuters based on last year’s data.
The order of sales for 24-hour/overnight parking permits is as follows:
- First week: Commuter students
- Second week: Upper-level and graduate students in on-campus housing
- Third week: Upper-level and graduate students in off-campus housing
- Fourth week: Sophomores
- Fifth week: First-year students
This system went into place about two years ago, after several university offices and students discussed the unfairness of selling permits solely based on class year, Jahner said.
“Since we sold out earlier than the past, we didn’t even get to sophomores. But what we’re seeing is less commuter students that are on the waitlist, meaning more accessibility for those who really need to have a car on campus,” Jahner said.
While the Wire can’t confirm how many commuters are currently on the waitlist, Marquette Parking Services gives commuters priority during sales, giving them a better chance of guaranteed parking.
Marquette Parking Services aims to accommodate students who depend on a car and access their parking spot frequently. While this might be a roadblock for some, like students who live in dorms or off-campus housing, the tiered system is designed to benefit commuters and upper-level students, who tend to use cars more.
“Commuters should definitely have priority. If we can’t find a parking spot, we won’t get to class on time. I would be worried about finding a spot, which is hard to do,” Amelia Molinski, a first-year commuter student in the College of Health Sciences, said.
Molinski admits that getting a permit wasn’t a simple feat. Information was shared in Marquette Today and posted on the parking website, but since students never directly received any emails, she felt she had to do her own research. Finding that only a certain timeframe was reserved for commuters, she made sure to purchase a permit online as soon as they were made available.
Every year, fall permit sales start in May and spring permit sales start in November, and students are responsible for knowing when to purchase their parking permits. Detailed information is posted on the Marquette Parking Services website one month prior to the sale.
Students unable to secure a parking spot at either Marquette’s Wells Street or 16th Street parking structures are encouraged to purchase a parking permit through other local options, including City of Milwaukee Parking, ParqEx, Interstate Parking, Impark and SpotHero.
Daily two-hour metered parking is also an option for students with cars. To pay, drivers can use change or download the MKE Park App.
“Many students are struggling to get a parking spot now, and it’s putting people in an unsafe situation,” Claire Nichols, a sophomore in the College of Business Administration, said.
Nichols’ hometown is an hour and a half from Marquette’s campus, so she chose to bring a car to campus last year for easy travel back and forth on weekends. Because permits sold out before she was able to purchase one, she parked her car in a lot on 21st street.
“I didn’t always feel the safest walking over there by myself, especially at night,” Nichols said. “It was uncovered, unprotected. I drive a Kia, which we all know are susceptible. Within three days of school, a police officer said, ‘if you have a Kia, you can get a free parking lock.’ I still use that every single day.”
Walking several blocks past campus, out of reach from MUPD blue lights and away from the ‘Marquette bubble,’ is not something all students feel comfortable with. Nichols said off-campus parking lots are definitely more out of the way, and they cost a lot more.
Marquette offers permits for $125-$551 per school year, depending on commuter status, and $844 for 24-hour parking permits for the whole school year.
Local parking structures charge about $100 a month for 24-hour parking, costing students who can’t get a Marquette parking permit about $900 for a school year, regardless of commuter status.
Because of limited spaces and high demand, some undergraduate students are forced to find alternative parking options this year. Nonetheless, Marquette Parking Services is doing the best it can, Jahner said, and only wants to help students.
“Be aware of when you can buy a permit and jump on right away. If you really don’t need a car, don’t bring a car to campus,” Jahner said. “There’s a policy that we’re trying to follow and I totally understand the frustration, but it’s just a limited resource.”
This story was written by Elena Metinidis. She can be reached at [email protected].
This story was updated to clarify information about the communication students received from the university regarding parking permits, and also to clarify the order in which parking permits are sold to the student body.
