Purpose: The adaptation of emerging building designs for single room occupancy in off-campus university student housing during the COVID-19 pandemic is evolving. However, assessing its effects on student satisfaction to compensate for COVID-19-associated impacts is missing. As a result, the study examines the satisfaction of students with emerging building designs in single-room off-campus student housing in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach: The study is quantitatively based on positivist philosophical thinking. A purposive sample of 202 purpose-built student housing facilities was selected across public and private universities in Ghana. Using systematic stratified sampling, the study sampled 1,212 student residents through a survey. A principal component method (PCM) was used to assess the availability of 10 emerging building design and basic building services variables across the study location. Multiple regression was employed to determine the satisfaction and predict potential variables for policy formulation. Findings: The analysis revealed that private space for social distancing, the availability of hands-free fittings in the toilet and bathroom, and the availability of hands-free fixtures in the kitchen unit was common single-room self-occupancy support systems. However, there is a huge gap in the availability of key emerging building designs and basic building services and their associated effects on students' satisfaction across the study locations. Therefore, relevant proposals to serve as fundamental requirements for developing an off-campus student housing model during pandemics were indicated. Research limitations/implications: It is seen that emerging building designs across the housing sector are equally evolving among off-campus student housing. The study helped to understand that student satisfaction with emerging building designs and basic services is a motivational need for students. However, the preparedness of student housing owners to adopt and satisfy the requirements of these design require further studies. Originality/value: While COVID-19 and its associated effect keep evolving in building design requirements, it is equally relevant to assess the students' satisfaction with these designs and services among single room occupancy-made off-campus student housing. This research is limited to Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]