Stricken by a deterioration in its infrastructure and equipment, the Ivorian university has experienced a renewal of its space by the rehabilitation of all its university infrastructure since 2012. This study aims to analyze the causes and consequences of different residential practices of students enrolled at Alassane Ouattara University. This investigation is possible thanks to a gray literature on the issue of student housing, cartographic backgrounds on the space studied, as well as field work including interviews, a questionnaire and direct observation. The results of our case study reveal that UAO students can not all find accommodation in university residences because of their inadequacy. Thus, the latter then adopt several modes of housing with their many consequences for their accommodation namely, university residences, students hosted and students renting excluding residences academics. Moreover, despite this multiple mode of residence, students prefer the proximity of university sites for their accommodation to the extent that they all prefer to approach these sites to benefit from the services offered.