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Frequently Asked Questions – Applying to Residence

For COVID-19 related updates and information please refer to the Niagara College COVID-19 information page.

Application / Acceptance Process

Summer Semester: Open February 1st

Academic Year: Open February 1st

Winter Semester: Open September 15th

First Year Domestic Student: a student who resides within Canada and has not previously resided in the residence. 

First Year International Student: a student who resides outside of Canada and has not previously resided in the residence. 

Returning Student: ANY student, domestic or international who has previously resided in the residence. 

Summer Semester

Applications Open February 1 

You can apply for Residence by filling out the online application through the online Housing Portal.  Applications will be accepted at any time on a first-come, first-serve basis and is subject to availability.  

Please note: When you apply for Residence you are required to pay a non-refundable $100 application fee. 

Academic Year

Applications Open February 1 

First-Year Domestic Student applicants can apply for Residence by filling out the online application through My Housing Portal. Applications open February 1 and will be accepted until April 15 to be considered for the acceptance lottery based on distance from the residence. Any applications received after April 15 will be placed on a wait-list on a first-come, first-serve basis. 

 

First-Year International Student applicants can apply for Residence by filling out the online application through My Housing Portal. Applications open February 1st and will be placed on a first-come, first-serve basis waitlist until July 1. 

 

Returning Domestic and International Student applicants must create a new application on February 1 to be considered for re-acceptance into residence. Applications will be received on a first-come, first-served basis until March 31. Please note your account must be in good standing, with no amount owing and at least one (1) valid application fee. 

 

Please note: When you apply for Residence you are required to pay a non-refundable $100 application fee. 

Winter Semester

Applications Open September 15 

You can apply for Residence by filling out the online application through the online Housing Portal.  Applications will be accepted at any time on a first-come, first-serve basis and is subject to availability. 

Please note: When you apply for Residence you are required to pay a non-refundable $100 application fee. 

Summer Semester

Applications Open February 1 

All applications received from February 1 to March 31 will be waitlisted by the date the residence receives the application fee.  

In the case of returning applicants with accounts in good standing and at least one (1) valid application fee, the date used will be the date the residence received the application. 

Acceptances will begin to go out on or before March 31. 

Applicants who are not offered Residence acceptance will remain on the waitlist. Acceptance from the waitlist will be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis based on availability. 

Academic Year

First Year Domestic Student applicants living outside the Niagara Region, and within Canada, who apply between February 1 and April 15 will receive preferential acceptance into Residence. Where the number of applications exceeds the number of beds available, acceptance into Residence will be determined by a simple lottery. 

Applicants who are not offered Residence acceptance will be placed on a waitlist. After April 15 incoming applications will be waitlisted, first-come, first-served based on their application fee received date. 

Acceptance and notification into the Niagara College Residence for the Academic Year will take place on April 20th or the next business day. 

First Year International Student applicants who apply by July 1 must have their student visa and travel documents confirmed. The Residence confirms each International Student applicant’s status with Niagara College to ensure all paperwork is complete prior to completing the international acceptance. 

Where the number of applications exceeds the number of beds available, applications will be waitlisted, first-come, first-served based on their application fee received date. International students who do not meet the criteria will remain on the waitlist until all documents can be confirmed. 

Acceptance and notification into the Niagara College Residence for the Academic Year will take place on July 2 or the next business day. 

Returning Domestic and International Student applications received between February 1 to March 31 will be waitlisted by the date the residence receives the application. All applications will be reviewed to ensure the account is in good standing and that the application has a valid application fee. 

Acceptances will begin to go out on or before March 31 

Applicants who are not offered Residence acceptance will remain on the waitlist. 

Acceptance from the waitlist will be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis based on availability. 

Winter Semester

Applications Open September 15 

All applications received from September 15 to November 25 will be waitlisted by the date the residence receives the application fee.  

In the case of returning applicants with accounts in good standing and at least one (1) valid application fee, the date used will be the date the residence received the application. 

Acceptances will begin to go out on or before November 25 

Applicants who are not offered Residence acceptance will remain on the waitlist. Acceptance from the waitlist will be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis based on availability. 

*Please note that Winter availability is extremely limited as availability is based on withdrawals from existing residents in the Academic Year. 

In the acceptance email, you will receive instructions on how to complete the rest of your acceptance details online through your Housing Portal. The acceptance details will need to be completed online and ask you important information related to contact and health information, payment information, emergency contact information and personality profile questions which will help you to select a roommate. You will also be asked to review and accept the Student Residence Agreement which is a legal document that serves as the contract between you and the Residence. Please ensure that you read it carefully and keep a copy for your records.

Your acceptance paperwork is important review and complete your acceptance paperwork in a timely manner.  You will not receive a personalized invoice for your Residence Fees until your acceptance paperwork has been completed. Failure to make payment by applicable deadlines could delay future application processes like roommate matching and move in scheduling or could result in your acceptance being rescinded.

You can check your Application Status in your Housing Portal at anytime. If your application is marked as 002. Applicant Paid you have been placed on a waitlist.
It is important to note that the residences are unable to provide a specific position number. However if you have questions about the waitlist system, you may contact us at anytime. You may find all of the Residence Contact Information on our Contact Us page.
Acceptances from the waitlist are based on availability and it is not a guarantee you will be accepted from the waitlist by the beginning of any given term. It is recommended that while on the waitlist you explore alternative housing options, such as applying to the other residence or looking into off-campus housing. Please note that the Niagara Residences are not affiliated with any off-campus housing options.

If you are unable to meet the payment options as outlined, your spot will be offered to a waitlist candidate, and you will forfeit your deposit after Deadline 1 as determined under the Termination and Cancellation Policy.

Please note:

The Niagara College Residences do not accept promissory notes from students who are planning to use the proceeds of their OSAP loan to pay their Residence fees. You must make the necessary arrangements to submit your Residence fees prior to the due dates below.

It is strongly recommended that these contacts are the parents or legal guardians of the resident. As the Primary or Secondary Contact, you will serve as an emergency contact and you may also be contacted if any other significant concerns or problems arise with the resident. In the case where the Primary contact is unavailable, the Secondary contact will be contacted. Once the Residence is provided with this contact information, the Manager will notify the Primary and Secondary contacts, via the supplied email, that they have been identified as Primary/Secondary Contacts for the Resident. This email will outline the role and responsibility of the Primary/Secondary Contact and provide the Primary/Secondary Contacts with the opportunity to opt-out of this role.

Please provide your details on the Medical, Accessibility, and Special Consideration section when completing your acceptance information to provide us with more information about how we can support your success in Residence. Students requiring special accommodations on campus are encouraged to also contact the Accessibility Services Office on campus.

If you are not completing your acceptance information online, please contact the Residence directly for the “Request for Special Consideration Form” to provide us with more information about how we can support your success in Residence. Please note that the Requests for Special Considerations form is taken into consideration once the student has been accepted into Residence and will not assist the student in bypassing the waitlist.

Move-In / Move-Out

The official move-in date(s) for Residence are as follows. 

Summer Semester 2024 

Move-In Day: May 4, 2024 

Move-Out Day: August 17, 2024 

Academic Year 2024 – 2025 

Move-In Day: August 31, 2024* 

Move-Out Day: April 19, 2025 

*Note: Email communication will be provided to students in August regarding move-in procedure. All online Housing Portal acceptance steps must be completed, with an appropriate Profile Photo on file and account in good standing before a move-in spot can be confirmed 

Winter Semester 2025 

Move-In Day: January 4, 2025 

Move-Out Day: April 19, 2025 

If you need to move-in earlier or move-out later than the above-posted date(s), please contact the Residence directly.

Please see each residence for a suggested list of move in items:

While making your residence feel like home is of the utmost importance, it is also important to consider that your suite and/or bedroom will be a shared space. Please consider size and quantities of items for your space when preparing for your move-in. 

The following items are not recommended or permitted for move-in:

  • A moving truck, trailers, or additional large furniture. One small shelving unit (small bookcase or nightstand) is permitted.
  • Any television larger than 40″. Each bedroom comes with a small flat-screen television.
  • Anything which can alter the condition of your room (ex) wall decals, nails (etc). You may only use white stick-tac or branded 3M command strips to hang posters or décor
  • Bed risers (Residence beds are already raised as high as is safe for under bed storage)
  • Extension Cords and Multi-Plug outlet blocks
  • Fridges, freezers
  • Funnels, beer pong tables or any other high-risk drinking paraphernalia
  • Halogen Lamps, candles, or incense
  • Hot plates, deep fryer or any cooking appliance with an open heat element
  • Large volume alcohol containers such as mini-kegs, kegs, bubbas
  • Pets (excluding fish – please see the pet section for more)
  • Pipes, hookahs, bongs, rolling paper or other smoking paraphernalia
  • Plants or Real Christmas/Holiday Trees – Fake plants and small desk-sized fake Christmas/Holiday Trees are permitted.
  • Single-serve glass alcohol containers
  • String Lights (i.e. Fairy Lights, Christmas/Holiday Lights).
  • Subwoofers and Amps

 

Note: All included furniture and items provided in the Residence must remain in your suite and cannot be stored if you choose not to utilize them.

All students are expected to leave the residence 24 hours after their final exam/project OR by 11 am on the last Saturday of the semester, whichever comes first. Specific move out dates and instructions will be communicated to residents well in advance of the residents move out days.

Students that require accommodations past the last Saturday of the semester and would like to request an extended stay must complete a Move Out Late Form, available at the residence front desk. Please be advised that all requests are not guaranteed and must be approved by Management and are subject to an additional fee.

After Move Out, all suites will be inspected for damages and cleanliness before the security deposit in the student’s account is returned to them. Please see the Move-Out Checklist for details on how to ensure your full deposit is returned.

If a resident re-applies for residence before Move Out day, their security deposit will transfer to the following term and another deposit is not required. If the deposit needs to be replenished due to damage or cleanliness charges after leaving their old suite, the student will be notified.

If a resident is not planning to return to residence, their security deposit, less any charges for damages, will be returned to their home address in the form of a cheque address to the student within 6-8 weeks of their move out date.

Living in Residence

Everyone accepted into the residence must fill in the “Profile Questions” available when completing the acceptance process online. It is highly recommended that you be honest so the residence housing portal can provide/suggest more accurate matches!

 

A communication email will be sent out in advance informing residents that the roommate matching section has opened in the Residence Housing Portal. The communication will specify all instructions on when the process opens and closes, and how to complete your roommate matching based on the room style you selected and received acceptance into.

 

Once the roommate matching has been completed, you will receive additional communication approximately 5 – 7 days after the process ends with your roommate(s) name(s) and email(s) for further communication. You can access our Roommate Guide to aid you in the initial conversation with your new roommate(s) from the Niagara Residence website Resources tab.

 

In addition to the Double Private suite style at the Daniel J. Patterson campus residence, the addition of the Triple Private and Triple Shared room/occupancy style requires additional changes to the roommate selection process. Please see the below information for each roommate matching process by term and suite layout.

 

Daniel J. Patterson Residence – Academic Year Term

 

The housing portal roommate matching process compares profile averages and allows residents of specific room preferences to interact, message, and connect as possible roommates and will be open to residents for approximately 10 – 14 days. Residents accepted into the following style(s) will be matched accordingly:

 

Triple Shared: Residents will be matched in the housing portal process with other residents accepted into a Triple Shared suite. Following the closure of this process, staff will review the Triple Private roommate matches for a suitable third match (Triple Private) based on the profile response averages of available potential matches.

 

Triple Private: Due to the complexity of matching triple occupancy suites. Residents accepted into Triple Private will be reviewed and matched with one pair of matched triple-shared residents based on their student profile answers/averages. This process is completed after the housing portal roommate matching process has closed specified in the communication email.

 

Double Private: Residents will be matched in the housing portal process with other residents accepted into a Double Private suite.

 

Please Note: Residents who a) do not wish to participate, b) do not find a match, or c) have been accepted after this process has been completed, will be matched based on their student profile answers and/or room preference availability.

Daniel J. Patterson Residence – Summer and Winter Terms

 

Students will be placed together based on their room preference selected and answers to the “Profile Questions”. Please note that there are no mixed-gender suites available.

Everyone accepted into the residence must fill in the “Profile Questions” available when completing the acceptance process online. It is highly recommended that you be honest so the residence housing portal can provide/suggest more accurate matches!


A communication email will be sent out in advance informing residents that the roommate matching section has opened in the Residence Housing Portal. The communication will specify all instructions on when the process opens and closes, and how to complete your roommate matching based on the room style you selected and received acceptance into.


Once the roommate matching has been completed, you will receive additional communication approximately 5 – 7 days after the process ends with your roommate(s) name(s) and email(s) for further communication. You can access our Roommate Guide to aid you in the initial conversation with your new roommate(s) from the Niagara Residence website Resources tab.

 

Welland Residence – Academic Year Term

 

Academic Year Students are given the opportunity to browse roommates online, send messages to potential roommates, and accept roommates during a brief period in late summer. If a student does not want to select their roommate, the Residence will select a roommate for you based on your answers to the “Profile Questions”. You may request to live with your friends while in Residence, as long as you have both been accepted and you both request to live with each other. Please note that there are no mixed-gender suites available.

 

Residents who a) do not wish to participate, b) do not find a match, or c) have been accepted after this process has been completed, will be matched based on their student profile answers and/or room preference availability.

 

Welland Residence – Summer and Winter Terms

 

Students will be placed together based on their answers to the “Profile Questions”. Please note that there are no mixed-gender suites available.

You will find out who your roommate is; we do not give out your room number prior to your arrival. The reason for this is that changes to our room registry may occur before you arrive and we want to ensure we provide you the correct information about your room. This information will be given to you upon your arrival.

It is not mandatory to purchase a meal plan while living in Residence. Niagara College does offer meal plans through their food service provider Chartwells. If you are interested in purchasing a meal plan please visit: dineoncampus.ca/niagara

Students can expect weekly light housekeeping services. This means that every week a housekeeper will come to your suite and clean your bathroom and kitchen areas and mop the floors. Housekeeping staff are unable to touch your personal belongings; therefore, to allow for a full cleaning to occur you must make sure your counters, table tops, floors and shower areas are clear of any items. Please be aware that our housekeeping staff will not enter your bedrooms and therefore the bedrooms are the student’s responsibility to clean.

Students may refuse housekeeping services if they prefer to clean themselves, however housekeeping staff are required to enter the suite week to check that the smoke and heat detectors are working.

The Residence front desk is open 24 hours a day 7 days a week. We are available for questions, comments, and/or concerns at any time you have some. Please stop down and get to know our Residence Services Representative during your first few weeks here at Residence.

For general inquiries and non-emergencies, you can contact the Front Desk by phone or e-mail below:

Welland Campus

(Welland)

info.welland@niagararesidence.ca

905-735-9700 x 3800

Daniel J. Patterson Campus

(Niagara-on-the-Lake)

info.notl@niagararesidence.ca

905-735-9700 x 3900

The Residence does not offer any family or co-ed accommodations.

Parking is available to Residents who purchase a Parking Permit from the College. For detailed Parking Information, please refer to the Residence Handbook & RCLS and Parking Services information online at www.niagaracollege.ca/studentlife/parking .

The Residence offers great security from the moment you pass through the controlled access main entrance until you slide your electronic card into your suite door. Video cameras are located in all common areas, hallways, and entrances. The front desk is also staffed 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Additional On-Campus Safety and Security regularly check in with the Residence. More information can be found on their website by clicking here.

The Residence Departments will primarily communicate with you through your email address that you provide when completing your application. Communication such as newsletters, deadlines, and/or any building-wide event that affects students will be communicated through email and visual posters in high traffic areas.

Your Residence Advisors (RAs) are always organizing educational events as well as events that are strictly for fun. These events allow you to meet people in your new community. Check out bulletin boards located on each floor throughout the building, attend floor meetings, and let your RA know what type of activities you would like to see in Residence.

For even more, please follow us on our Facebook and Instagram:

Niagara Residence Facebook Page | Niagara Residence Instagram

If you are disturbed at anytime of the day or night, before contacting the front desk, please try to talk to the resident(s) who is/are causing the disturbance first. Get to know your neighbours and build a respectful community. If the disturbance continues notify the front desk and a manager or RA will help you reach an acceptable volume by speaking to the resident(s). At the same time, remember to be reasonable with the level of volume you produce as well.

Your mailing address for the Niagara Residences are:

Niagara College Residence – Welland Campus

Your Name, Your Suite Number
110 Niagara College Boulevard
Welland, ON
L3C 7L4

Niagara College Residence – Daniel J. Patterson Campus (NOTL)

Your Name, Your Suite Number
137 Taylor Road
SS#4 NOTL, ON
L0S 1J0

Mail is delivered on weekdays and can be picked up from your mailbox located on the first floor. If you receive a parcel or pick-up notice, it will be held at the front desk and an email will be sent to you notifying you to pick up your parcel or pick-up notice.

You will be sharing your mailbox with your roommate and each of you will have a copy of the key. If the Resident loses the mail Key, the Resident will pay $20.00 for replacing the Mail Key.

 

While living in Residence you may wish to have a guest visit you. You are permitted two (2) guests, for a maximum of two (2) overnights consecutively and no more than ten (10) nights in a month.

All guests are required to sign in with the front desk, and provide a valid photo ID for verification. For more details on having Guests and Visitors in the residence.

Please see your residence’s Residence Community Living Standards (RCLS) document under our ‘Resources’ Tab. 

Termination & Cancellation

Please refer to the cancellation policy located here: Termination and Cancellation Policy.

Cancellations

Cancellations occur prior to move-in. If you wish to cancel your residence application or the Student Residence Agreement, you must cancel through My Housing Portal prior to move-in. Cancellations will not be accepted over the phone.

Withdrawals

Withdrawals occur after move-in. If you wish to withdraw from residence, please contact the front desk for a Residence Withdrawal Form. You must return it to the front desk within 5 business days of the anticipated departure date. Withdrawals will not be accepted over the phone.

Please note that the Residence operates independently from the Institution and if you cancel your application or enrolment at the Institution, you will also need to cancel your Residence application. Refunds will be issued by the Manager as detailed in section 8.06 of the Student Residence Agreement.

Other

The Residence would be happy to have you stay with us! Stay overnight starting May through August and take advantage of our Special Promotional Code ‘VISIT’ for 10% off the nightly rate (plus taxes, based on double occupancy, based on availability). Plan your visit at our WELLAND or NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE Residences and start your Niagara College experience TODAY!

Residents can apply at the front desk to stay during the Winter Break. You must submit your application prior to December 1 if you plan on staying for either part of or the entire break. Additional fees apply, depending on suite-style. The Residence will re-open on January 4, 2025. 

Winter Break (Academic Year 2024 – 2025) 

Start: December 14, 2024 

End: January 4, 2025 

The Residence is a “designated Residence” for property tax and rent purposes, meaning that Residence fees cannot be claimed on income tax returns. The only claim that is allowed is $25.00 for the year (with no receipt necessary), as directed by the Ontario government: 5006-TG, T1 General 2012 – ON-BEN Application for the 2017 Ontario Trillium Benefit and the Ontario Senior Homeowners’ Property Tax Grant. For this reason, the Residence does not issue tax receipts for Residence fees.

You can print a copy of your account statement by logging into your My Housing Portal and clicking on the “Accounts” tab. Residence Front Desk staff can also print this statement for you.