So what does it take to get kicked out of residence? Is it a common thing? Let's hear some stories about people getting kicked out in the past ;D.

1. not having the average
2. having 2 or 3 majors, I believe gets you out
3. doing something REALLY bad

Having 2 majors gets you kicked out of residence..?

Yeah so... I was talking to a bunch of people on a Mac Facebook group, and they were all like, "You can totally drink in residence." I was kind of surprised that the university condones it... but yeah, I imagine that getting drunk and doing something stupid, especially if you're underage, will be frowned upon.

3 majors gets you kicked out (of the building, they usually try to place you somewhere else ONCE. If you screw up again, you're SOL). 3 minors also counts as a major, so watch out. One guy on my floor this year got 2 majors during Welcome Week, and managed to stick around till April exams.
Drinking in residence is fine, as long as you are of age. You can drink in your room, and in the common room, but make sure you don't have open alcohol in the hallways (the nalgenes that come in your faculty swag bags are great for this! haha). However, underage drinking is NOT condoned, and you will get a major if you're caught (it is illegal, after all). Drinking games are also not allowed, just as an fyi....

Guys, one of the most common pieces of misinformation that has floated around for YEARS is that 3 majors means that you automatically get kicked out of residence. From someone who used to be staff, listen - it just isn't true. Now, don't go celebrating - getting 3 is definitely going to get you meetings with the Residence Manager (RM) and you'll probably be put on a behavioural contract, which if you breach can have the effect of getting you booted out. All I'm saying is that it's not quite so cut-and-dry of a "3 strikes and you're out" rule. You do ONE really stupid thing, and you can be out, or on a contract. Conversely, you can get 4 majors, and still be in depending on the circumstances (major offences cover a very wide range of things). Again, you'll be on a tight leash at that point, and it's definitely not good, but I just don't like seeing incorrect policy being thrown around as if it was gospel - there is discretion on the RM's part, and it can work either for or against you.

As for drinking...I was waiting for this to come up, heh. The reality is, literally 99% of the incoming residents will not be 19 yet. There is a difference between someone saying "you can totally drink in residence" as a statement of what that person actually did versus what is university policy and provincial law. The policy (and the law) is, you can only drink if you're 19. Get caught drinking under 19, and that's both a major offence and a $75 fine. The staff in the residence knows how old everyone is, and who can legally drink (from Sept. to Dec., it's pretty much no one). So, the reality is, you can't have wild floor parties and think no one will care, because it's the staff's job to enforce the rules.

What is comes down to is this - drinking and responsibility, whatever your age, go hand in hand. Staff aren't naive enough to think that everyone will be a perfect little angel all the time, but they expect the residents to be respectful and responsible. If you're causing a problem, it will be dealt with. If you do not appear to be causing a problem, then there's really not much that needs to be done. Think about that - it sounds so simple, and yet so many residents get in so much trouble for not heeding that advice...

Your CAs will have a floor meeting about this and lots of other things on the first night after you move in. I suggest you listen carefully at that meeting, because more than anything else, knowing the rules and how they're enforced is your ticket to not having the wrath of an angry RM come down upon you.

If you want to do some reading, the condensed version of the Residence Code of Conduct that lists the more important things can be found here: http://studentaffairs.mcmast er.ca/...s/RCC-2007.pdf, and the full version (for all you policy wonks out there) can be found here: http://www.mcmaster.ca/univsec/policy/ResidenceCode.pdf

haha when you guys were saying "3 majors gets you kicked out" I thought that you meant like having three academic majors! I was like what? that doesnt even make sense!

Well then, I feel sorry for all those who I talked to who plan to sneak alcohol in anyway. ;P
That's kind of the reason I'm not on residence. I talked to someone who works at McMaster, and they knew someone who was kind of in charge of a res, and they said it was a total party house and it was all about drinking and stuff. As nice as that sounds, I like going to parties maybe once every two weeks and that'll probably change as the work piles on.

so its a major offence to drink underage but as long as your not really causing a problem they'll probably let it slide? or does it just depend on your RM? I know all the universities have been cracking down on underage drinking so i was just wondering if its as big of a deal as everyone thinks it is?

Originally Posted by katie_batt

haha when you guys were saying "3 majors gets you kicked out" I thought that you meant like having three academic majors! I was like what? that doesnt even make sense!

lol I thought someone would get confused about that. But ya, by 'major' she meant a 'major' offense. As mentioned above, there are 'major' and 'minor' offenses. And thanks for the clarification Cippi. It's true that it's up to discression, and its also true that just about every first year coming in Sept will be under age.. so no drinkies for you!

Originally Posted by katie_batt

haha when you guys were saying "3 majors gets you kicked out" I thought that you meant like having three academic majors! I was like what? that doesnt even make sense!

That's what I was thinking too!

Originally Posted by feonateresa

I talked to someone who works at McMaster, and they knew someone who was kind of in charge of a res, and they said it was a total party house and it was all about drinking and stuff.

Haha, that doesn't sound like hearsay or anything :p

For the vast majority of people, I'd say that's not what residence is about. Does it happen on occasion? Yes. Do some buildings have more of a reputation for being a "party rez" than others? Yes. But the reality is, everyone's there to learn, too. Once the novelty of living away from home wears off a bit after September, most people are going to be swamped with work far more often than they have time off to party. Obviously, it's important to balance work and play, so a lot of fun is often had on weekends, but all I'm saying is that it's not like living there is a constant 8-month-long drunken party. It can't be - if it were, most of you would fail your first year :p

Originally Posted by mayberetro

so its a major offence to drink underage but as long as your not really causing a problem they'll probably let it slide? or does it just depend on your RM? I know all the universities have been cracking down on underage drinking so i was just wondering if its as big of a deal as everyone thinks it is?

It is a big deal, and it is cracked down on. Don't misunderstand what I said - if you're caught drinking underage at all, you're going to get a major and a fine. This is not going to vary by RM - they're all on the same page when it comes to enforcing the rules as they are written. If you come stumbling out into the hall with a drink in your hand, chances are it's not going to vary by CA, either.

It would seem that subtlety is generally NOT a skill most 18-year-olds possess.

i lived in residence last year...
and i'm still 18 now
and if i did, ahem... party...
we kept it confined to our rooms.
the CA's can't come barging in,
they knock,
and if theyre at your door, its most likely because of a noise complaint...
not because they know you're drinking.
it you don't make a big deal about it, they won't make a big deal about it.

the bad part about 18 year olds partying are the people who drink too much.
if you're obviously intoxicated in the halls, you could land yourself in some trouble
and if you're found puking in the bathroom, EFRT will be called, giving you fines and and major.

if you're considerate of you room and floormates, everything will go great...
the worst is being woken up by your drunken neighbours at 5 in the morning with them ripping everything off your door and the hallways.

i had an awesome time in res...
but there was one fellow who did get kicked out of residence last year, because he acquired 12 majors (i'm not kidding) and about $2000 dollars in fines.
the funny thing was, he made it to the beginning of april, but hes now not allowed into any mcmaster residence building.
i dont recommend pushing your luck that far.

Don't be loud, and don't draw too much attention to yourself.

But yeah, I saw people getting kicked out of res for smoking weed in their room a few times, in Brandon. People on the floor complained I think.

And wow Sara, 12 Majors?! LOL. I'm amazed he lasted that long.

Originally Posted by samantha__

Don't be loud

That's a big one.

Originally Posted by samantha__

don't draw too much attention to yourself

Hint from personal experience: riding a shopping cart through the halls does not qualify as "not drawing attention to yourself" :p

Originally Posted by samantha__

dont throw up everywhere lol

Again, you'd be surprised how hard this is for some people :p (Oh, if only I could unsmell some of the things that I smelled...)

Originally Posted by samantha__

I guess it depends on the staff and the time it day, but people brought alcohol into res pretty easily. It was actually sad how easy it was to get it in, to be honest.

Well, it's not as if you have to pass your bags through an x-ray machine and walk through a metal detector to get into the building. Doors are only staffed on busy nights.

Originally Posted by samantha__

But yeah, I saw people getting kicked out of res for smoking weed in their room a few times, in Brandon. People on the floor complained I think.

That's not the only place it's happened - the brilliance of some people never ceases to amaze me. Oh, and I doubt anyone would have had to complain - no matter how creative people think they're being, it stinks the hell out of a floor, so it would probably be noticed by staff pretty easily.