Plans for a 300-student residence hall geared towards upperclassmen were drawn up last year, but lower freshmen enrollment and other variables indicated that there was likely not enough demand to justify building the facility for the fall 2021 semester, administrators said.

When rising Mercer University senior Nora Essien told her parents that she may have to live off campus next year, they were worried. The 21-year-old business major comes from a low-income family where...