I have recently been accepted to Mac for September 2010, and I'm wondering a few things....

- When do the residence forms for September become available?

- What are the restrictions to choosing your rooms, I've heard you cannot choose similar rooms? Not quite to sure if that's true or not...

- What would you say is the ideal room on campus?

- How expensive is food on campus? What's a good size meal plan to look into buying...

- How safe would you say living on campus is?

- To have a roommate, or to not...?


Sorry for the grouped up lot of questions, I'm currently working full-time to cover expenses for Mac and need some input from students already there. Also there aren't many good pictures on the school's website to actually show you what residence looks like so I'm a bit concerned as to whether I should move in or get an apartment near by...

Alright, in order:

- I honestly can't say I know when the forms will come out. Be patient!

- When the forms DO come out, you rank the type of room you would like. There is then a lottery system to determine who gets which type of room. It's uncommon for first years to get single rooms, but not impossible.

- The ideal room on campus is the room you live in while you make friends in first year. A lot of people get upset when they get their room assignment, because they didn't get Mary Keyes or Les Prince, but honestly, it's the people who make the experience. Don't get worked up if you get an older residence.

- The size of meal plan all depends on how much you like to eat. Food is... not cheap, but not super terrible. I think you can get a decent dinner (no drink) for about $6.00. I was really worried about running out, but I always had money left over at the end of the year.

- Generally speaking, living on campus is very safe. The residences are access controlled, so only residents and their guests can get it. Campus security is only a phone call away, and there are community advisors in every building, on duty from 9 pm until morning to make sure everything is quiet and secure.

- I would strongly recommend having roommates in first year, especially if you don't know a lot of people going to Mac. It's a great way to get to know someone right away. I'm not gonna say that roommates don't sometimes pose problems, but it's usually pretty fun overall.

Congrats on your acceptance! Have fun in the fall!

Thank you for your help. I would be a transfer student at Mac and do think having a roommate might be easier although I would be two years younger than everyone starting in year one... Also from what I understand I will not be guaranteed residence and this makes me a little worried.. does anyone know how many rooms Mac has all together for students?... I've heard that first years get priority and would that mean transfer students fall into the 20% of rooms left for upper year students?

Here is the Residence Information for transfer students:

http://housing.mcmaster.ca/Residence...tudents.htm l

Originally Posted by shes-a-diva*

I have recently been accepted to Mac for Also there aren't many good pictures on the school's website to actually show you what residence looks like so I'm a bit concerned as to whether I should move in or get an apartment near by...

I was worried about the pictures in the room as well. I am in Hedden Hall, and the picture of the room they showed me was very small. It looked like it barely had enough room for the two beds, desks and dresser. Of course, when I got there the room was much bigger and I brought as little as I could thinking there would not be enough room. Then again, I am living in the corner room, and I'm pretty sure they are bigger than the rest of the rooms in Hedden. (Also, the view is awesome, looking right into Cootes Paradise. FTW)

I would DEFINATELY recommend living in rez for at least 1st year, it`s an experiencce you really need to have, my year in rez was tons of fun and met lots of people...we would do things every night together, study groups, going out, movie nights in... game nights...
I have never lived in rez at Mac so I can`t help you there, but in terms of apt vs. rez for first year, go rez

There's only 10 bed spaces for transfer students?

That does seem small but I imagine they based their numbers on average demand so I guess the demand for residence from transfer students is relatively low.

They reserve 80% for first years and 20% for upper years generally and obviously those numbers are based on demand so the transfer student spaces probably are too. So I wouldn't worry about the low number of spaces, apply and see what happens.

Now I wish I could show you pictures of an actual residence room but I have no idea how I lived in residence for 2 years and don't have a picture of either of my rooms, lol. I will tell you that the rooms are generally a decent size but vary by building, and also the number of occupants which is probably obvious. I lived in a double room in Hedden first year and it was a decent size for two people but the triples in the building seemed a bit cramped. Also residences are generally clean and I say generally b/c students are messy, they definitely mess up the place but they are cleaned on a daily basis by friendly cleaning ladies (or occasionally men, but most are women).

As it has been said there's no ideal room, a room is just a room. They all have the same amenities, bed, desk, cabinet/drawers for clothes etc. Some are just older than others or slightly bigger or layed out differently. Its the people that make it. Its a lottery and you no longer get to select which buildings you'd prefer so it would be a waste to give you details on each building but if you're curious there is a section on here with Pros and Cons for each residence building. This should be used mostly to look at the Pros every building has, but the Cons can be useful to know what you might be dealing with if you live in a certain building. Every building has the same kind of standards for living so to speak so its not like they have horribly disgusting places with rot and stuff in any of the buildings. The cons are just little things like distance from places etc.

I lived on residence for 2 years and felt safe, even when I lived in a single room and was all by myself. I feel pretty safe on campus really. I mean I would go to an event or something on campus that would finish around midnight or later and would walk back to my room in the dark and feel fine. I would NEVER do this anywhere else. Also the option to call SWHAT made me feel safer too, I never called them but it was good to know if I need I could rely on them if I didn't feel comfortable walking alone in the dark. Basically they are a student walk home team, if you need a walk home after dark anywhere on campus, or within a certain distance off campus they can help. Like if you had night class and just felt uncomfortable walking back to your room in the dark they'd walk you back.

You probably won't have a choice of whether or not you get a roommate. Most single rooms are reserved for upper years and first years with a highschool average over 95%. That said I don't know how it works for transfer students, they might have single rooms for them too. That said having a roommate isn't that bad, I've heard far more good stories about having a roommate than bad ones. I won't lie to you and say everyone has a great experience with having a roommate but I will say most of the people I knew in residence did. Only one person I knew personally in the two years I lived in residence had a poor experience with roommates.

As for on campus food it can be a bit pricey, but that said I chose the smallest meal plan each year and still had money left over at the end (approx $200). Its better to choose a smaller one and then add on more if you need it. If you choose a larger one the money in the basic portion is not refundable so you either have to spend it or lose it. Having a smaller meal plan you can add on later if you run out. I will say I went home most weekends though, and I had a mini-fridge and kept drinks in my room. The biggest drain on your meal plan is drinks so I would recommend investing in a mini fridge (they're relatively cheap really) and keeping drinks in your room. You can bring them with you when you go out to eat on campus too so just toss one in your bag to have with your meals if you're eating in the food establishment and not your own room. You might occasionally want to buy a certain drink with your meal and that's fine too, I didn't always bring my drinks or not buy drinks, I just generally kept stuff in my room too so I wasn't wasting all my money on them. I kept to a one bought drink a day or less rule. Maybe with my breakfast and lunch I would just have something from my room and with dinner I would buy. It depends on your schedule too, if you have classes all midday you might have to just quickly grab lunch and a drink so then with breakfast and dinner you'd have a drink from your own stock when you have more time. You'll fine a system that works for you in terms of purchasing food.

Hope that helps. If you have any other residence questions feel free to ask, I lived on residence like I said for 2 years in two different buildings so I and other people on this site have first hand experience living in res.

I get that you can't choose your buildings just preference in room. If I were to choose Single with Washroom, Double with Washroom, and say Single with no Washroom would that work?

I'm also quite petite about 110pounds and a light eater but I guess I assumed food on campus would be like $10/meal making me think I'd need like a regular sized meal plan instead of the small one. I guess drinks is a big expense and would greatly impact spending. Do you have to pay for a fridge? How does that work... I already have a mini-fridge at home I could probably bring would that work?

And I really want to live on res even though I'll be two years younger than everyone in first year, mostly for the experience as I finished one year of college and never got to live on res, just had an apartment near by. Falling into the 20% category of rooms sucks.... I hope the likeliness of me getting a room on campus is good =(

You can make whatever choices you want on your form, but nothing is guaranteed. That being said, because you're a transfer student, I assume that if you're accepted, you'll have a much better chance of getting the room type you would like. I know the 20% of returning students generally get the first crack at single rooms.

You don't have to pay for a fridge if you have you own that you can bring. There is (or was when I was in residence) the option of renting one for the year, and I think the prices were pretty reasonable, but if you have your own, and its not too difficult to bring, then that's a better option.

Good luck with your application!

Also, if you live in a triple room, the room will come equipped with a mini fridge so you won't have to pay for one.

I definitely recommend having a roommate in your first year at mac. Having a roommate will not only help you make friends but also help you learn more about yourself. Living in rez is a learning experience made all the more interesting with a roommate.

@ sniderj - I have been accepted I'm just worried about actually getting a room now ! I'm hoping a lot of 2nd, and 3rd year students would opt to living somewhere off of res as opposed to on res where everythings party hardy like 24-7

@ moops - I'm considering having a roommate just for the sheer experience of having someone to talk to/go out for food with/study with etc.


Does anyone know if the rooms with washrooms include showers? Or whether they just have a toilet? (Sorry if the question sounds a little dumb)

Originally Posted by shes-a-diva*

@ sniderj - I have been accepted I'm just worried about actually getting a room now ! I'm hoping a lot of 2nd, and 3rd year students would opt to living somewhere off of res as opposed to on res where everythings party hardy like 24-7

@ moops - I'm considering having a roommate just for the sheer experience of having someone to talk to/go out for food with/study with etc.


Does anyone know if the rooms with washrooms include showers? Or whether they just have a toilet? (Sorry if the question sounds a little dumb)

Most upper year students do opt to live off-campus but it isn't true that residence is party hardy 24-7. Most people came to University to study. Many students do get carried away with the partying and it can get loud in residence but it generally isn't 24/7, not in my experience in first or second year anyway. Weekends are generally the loudest, but I went home most weekends and managed to avoid the shenanigans some people got up to over them. Mon-Thurs afternoon are usually pretty normal, occasional loud nights but CAs manage to keep things under control. Residence isn't exactly the best place to party though so it isn't normally parties in residence that you have to watch out for (although there are people who party in residence), its people come back from bars etc drunk and being loud and getting up to no good. Again though this to a degree depends on the people in your residence too, some residences each year get reputations for more partying etc.


I've never been in a room with a washroom so I don't know if they include showers. That said rooms with washrooms aren't that common, you're unlikely to get one. There's only a select few scattered around campus as far as I know and most go to like HPAs and whatnot. Even if you make all your choices X w/ washroom you're not guaranteed one of these rooms. It takes some getting used to but the public style washrooms in most of the residences aren't that bad. I was lucky in first year to live in Hedden where it was all single occupancy, private locked washrooms throughout the building which is almost as good as having a washroom in your room but in 2nd year when I lived in Whidden I had to get used to the public washrooms with stalls and shower stalls. I hated the idea at first but eventually I adjusted to it and it wasn't so bad.

The rooms with washrooms have a full bathroom. Shower, toilet, and sink. But, as sew12 pointed out, they are rare.

The communal washroom thing isn't all that bad. I lived in residence for three years, and never had to wait for a shower, except once during welcome week because everyone was on exactly the same schedule then.

Well as for the meal plan if you are not very sure then just get the smaller one since you can add money if it runs out.

I dont think Rez's are 24/7 party. I was in Hedden (corner rooms are pretty big!) and some floors were pretty quiet (2nd floor) while the 4th floor was a party floor. I think it just varies year to year depenidng on what kind of students come in.

As for the mini-fridges if you go for a double/single room in a traditional style rez then you will have to get ur own.
ALso for washrooms if you have it in your room you would have to clean it yourself. When I was in first year, i did not have a washroom but the washrooms were usually pretty clean, and there were 3 washrooms around my room so the washrooms were never full. The only time i found washrooms to be dirty was during friday or saturday nights.

I've lived on my own prior to graduating from college and high school so I wouldn't mind cleaning a washroom once and awhile, plus how dirty are they really going to get when you (and your roommate) are probably the only ones using it. I'm pretty sure everyones pretty conscious of their cleanliness.

Now a question that may seem a little off topic, does anyone know how much funding OSAP generally gives you per year? I had received about $10,000 for one year of college (part loan part grants) and was wondering since my family was considered low-income if anyone can give me some figures of approximate funding they/others have received for the one year? I've estimated that one year of university will cost about $15,000 and I'm curious of my next problem will be funding my education...