Talk to roommates
Allergies and schedules are easier to sort out before move-in day.
Campuses decide ESA requests their own way, and some reject the shortcuts students find online: the University of Central Arkansas says outright that an ESA certificate is not accepted. If your animal is a dog, Arkansas law also sets a 30-day lead time. Start the free screening early, and a clinician licensed in Arkansas decides whether a letter fits.
The screening is free and fits between classes. An Arkansas-licensed clinician reviews it, and if your ESA is a dog, Arkansas requires a client-provider relationship of at least 30 days before the letter, so start well before move-in day.
Between classes, answer questions on your health, your animal and your plans for housing in Conway.
An Arkansas-licensed clinician reviews the answers and meets you by video around your schedule when appropriate.
If your need is supported and you choose a plan, your letter is emailed. Ask your school whether it also needs its own form completed.
Conway, the Faulkner County seat with 64,134 residents in 2020, is home to three colleges, which earned it the nickname the City of Colleges. At UCA, the Office of Accessibility Resources and Services weighs each emotional support animal request for on-campus housing case by case under the Fair Housing Act. What counts is documentation from a qualified professional on UCA's own form, not a certificate bought online.
Clear pricing for emotional support animal and psychiatric service dog letters written by a licensed mental health professional. Your screening is free, and you pay only if a clinician supports a letter and you decide to continue.
Best option for most renters with one emotional support animal
For people who have more than one emotional support animal in the home
For people who may qualify for a task-trained psychiatric service dog
Save more with combined document bundles
ESA letter and certificate in one package
Complete PSD documentation: letter, certificate and ID card
Arkansas law: documentation for an emotional support dog may be provided only after a client-provider relationship of at least 30 days, except for students verified as homeless (Ark. Code 20-14-1003).
Four items an Arkansas student can order, each on its own card.
For a UCA residence hall or a lease off campus.
Names each animal your clinician supports.
For a task-trained dog, which campuses treat as a service animal, not an ESA.
A summary only; UCA does not accept certificates as documentation.
Arkansas notice (Ark. Code 20-14-1002): A certificate, identification card or tag does not entitle an emotional support animal to the rights and privileges accorded by law to a service dog. Misrepresenting an animal as a service animal may subject an individual to a civil penalty under Ark. Code 20-14-310.
Three things to settle before the first night in the hall.
Allergies and schedules are easier to sort out before move-in day.
Arkansas requires dogs and cats 4 months or older to be vaccinated.
Decide early where your animal stays over holidays and summer.
Three rules that decide how a campus request and a dog letter work in Arkansas.
UCA reviews ESA requests for campus housing under it; since May 2026 HUD no longer presumes untrained-animal requests reasonable.
Dog letters need an Arkansas-licensed provider, license details on the letter and 30 days of relationship first.
Fraudulently passing off an emotional support dog as a service animal carries civil penalties up to $2,500.
Six questions students ask, one at each desk.
Through the Office of Accessibility Resources and Services, known as OARS. Submit the OARS Student Application, and have a qualified professional complete UCA's ESA Request Form.
No. UCA states that an ESA certificate is not accepted as documentation.
Yes. The ESA Request Form may be supplemented by evaluation reports.
OARS approves emotional support animals for on-campus housing case by case under the Fair Housing Act.
Call 501-450-3613 or fax 501-450-5664; students who are deaf or hard of hearing can text 501-269-8038. The office is at 201 Donaghey Avenue, Student Health Suite 212, in Conway.
Yes. A provider may document the need for an emotional support dog only after a client-provider relationship of at least 30 days, so start early if you want the paperwork in place before move-in.
Four more Arkansas pages, from the home of the UCA Bears outward.
General information for Arkansas students, current as of October 2026, and not legal advice. Colleges set and change their own procedures, so confirm with your school's accessibility or housing office before you rely on a step or deadline. Screening does not guarantee a letter. In a crisis, call or text 988.
Screen now, and a clinician licensed in Arkansas can tell you whether your animal's support is a need a letter can document, in time for your housing request.