If you plan on living in residence, you should have accepted your residence offer by now; many 1st year U of T Engineering students stay at Chestnut Residence, although you might have chosen to stay at CampusOne, Parkside, a U of T college residence, or an external apartment. Regardless, moving in will be one of the very first things you’ll do as a university student! Even though the experience can be stressful, it is also very exciting.
*Note: this page will frequently refer to Chestnut Residence, however, the information in this page is equally applicable to residences at CampusOne, Parkside, and U of T colleges, as well as external apartments.
Finding Roommates
If you haven’t already, now is the time to find roommates (that is, if you plan on staying with one). Choosing roommates is important; you will be living with them for the next eight months, and a good roommate can help enhance your experience as a student. This can be a challenging task, especially if you don’t know anyone from your high school attending U of T.
If you will be entering a U of T student residence, you will likely gain access to the StarRez portal. On the portal, you can fill out a short personal profile, and then browse through the profiles of tons of other students whose profiles may be compatible with your own. Then, you can message them and strike up a conversation.
We recommend you speak with multiple candidate roommates, and select one based on sleeping habits, study preferences, shared interests, and how well you “click” together. It’s also very important to be honest in your personal profile about your habits – if you prefer studying late into the night, for example, and sleeping in, you probably won’t enjoy living with a roommate who is an early riser.
Once you move in, it’s important to establish some personal agreements and guidelines (such as noise limits, and when the lights in the room will be turned off); your Residence Don will help you through this process.
Overall, staying with roommates can be a great experience. Make sure to be outgoing and communicative to make the process better for all of you!
Room Tours
Some residences offer room tours throughout the summer. If you are renting, you should also check out your unit in-person or ask a roommate to do it for you.
Chestnut Residence holds afternoon in-person room tours until mid-August. Attending one is a great way to check out what your room will look like and determine some of the items you’ll need to bring. During these tours, you’ll also see the building’s amenities and get a better understanding of what it has to offer, so you can make the most out of your residence life experience. There are also virtual residence tours that can be found on their YouTube page.
Logistics of Moving In
In August, you will be notified to schedule a date and time for moving into your residence. During this scheduled time, you will receive your room key, and be permitted to bring guests such as family to help you get set up.
Living in residence has its pros and cons. While you will find hundreds of stores, restaurants, and entertainments within walking distance, if you don’t have a car, travelling and moving large items may be difficult. There are several chain stores nearby, such as Canadian Tire and IKEA. However, our advice is to bring as many necessary items from home as possible to minimize the time spent shopping at the beginning of the term. You might still need to buy some necessary items after you move in. Make sure to do so before the semester starts, otherwise, it will be even more inconvenient!
Packing List
If you are moving into an unfurnished apartment, you will need to purchase all your furniture and other items from scratch. Usually, furnished apartments will have necessities such as a bed, desk, and other large furniture. Residences will be equipped with beds, desks, wardrobes, and pillows for you and your roommates. Check with your residence for the list of what is included in your room.
You should communicate with your roommate(s) to determine if you will be bringing any common items, such as a minifridge or laundry detergent. In this case, you should decide who will purchase what, and how to reimburse each other.
Extremely recommended items:
- Mattress cover — goes over residence mattress (check your residence’s website for bed size information)
- Bedsheets
- Duvet or comforter and cover — main blanket
- Pillow(s) if not provided by residence
- Pillowcase(s)
- Towels — body towels, hand towels, face towels
- Toiletries — soap, shampoo, dental hygiene items, and any other products you may need
- Laundry hamper/bag
- Laundry detergent (liquid or pods)
- Flip flops for shower if your residence has communal showers. Please DON’T wear flip flops in your room’s personal shower without first consulting your roommate, and please DO wear flip flops in communal showers!
- School supplies
- Extension cord/power bar — some rooms may only have one (reachable) power socket
- Cleaning supplies — Chestnut Residence provides weekly room cleaning
- Furniture — for unfurnished apartments
- Clothing! — we recommend you do not bring all of your clothes from home; try to select some clothes that work for multiple situations! Consider weather, comfort, style, and utility (e.g. you might want some athletic clothes, or formal wear)
- For students who may not be familiar with the climate in Toronto, check out the pre-arrival page by the Centre for International Experience (CIE) to prepare for all four of Toronto’s (sometimes harsh) seasons.
Optional items:
- Desktop computer/PC – One of your blog admins, Eshan (who is from Alberta) was lucky that his parents happened to be planning a road trip to the East Coast during the summer before he started university. He decided to (very carefully) pack his PC into the trunk of their car, so that when his parents passed by Toronto, they could leave his PC at a friend’s house to be picked up in September. If you have any questions related to transporting your computer, feel free to ask Eshan!
- Computer monitor – for students who are bringing just one device such as a laptop, it can be extremely convenient to have a separate monitor at your desk. Eshan also happened to be in the market for a new monitor, so he just purchased one in Toronto.
- Desk lamp – if your roommate goes to sleep earlier than you, then you should use a lamp as opposed to keeping the main lights turned on
- Noise-cancelling headphones and/or earplugs – residence can be noisy, and you’ll want to focus while studying, so you might want to invest in these.
- Food and snacks and storage containers – if you’re staying in residence, the dining halls will only be open at certain times during the day, so having some snacks in your room can be extremely convenient and affordable. Be sure to keep them in proper containers to avoid attracting pests.
- Minifridge – for storing your food and snacks. Although Chestnut Residence has common refrigerators for each floor, you might choose to keep your items separately.
- Desk chair – if you’re not a fan of the provided chairs
- Books, hobby items, decorations – you might want to keep some fun items to use in your spare time and remind yourself of home!
What NOT to Bring:
Student residences (and some external apartments) will have a list of banned items.
If you are staying at Chestnut, you cannot bring:
- Candles, incense, etc.
- Cooking appliances (i.e., hot plates, rice cookers, toasters, kettles, coffee makers, etc.)
- Extra furniture
- Large stereos or DJ equipment
Be sure to check with your residence for a more comprehensive list. A packing and moving-in guideline for students staying at Chestnut Residence can found on their Fall Move-In page.
Tips for Move-In Day
Move-in day is everyone’s first day, so everybody is as excited to meet new friends as you are! Introduce yourself to your neighbors; they are convenient people to be friends with due to their proximity.
Understand that people will be nervous and out of their comfort zones when they first get to university. You will also be meeting tons of new students from around the world and from all walks of life, so have a positive mindset and be accommodating. Take the first steps to build a great, inclusive community!
For now, focus on getting all of your stuff in the room. Later on, you can rearrange your furniture to make your room feel like your own.
Many students move in with their families, and many students from out of Toronto move in on their own or with friends. Both are valid methods, and there will be help available if you need extra assistance.
Tips for Life In Residence
Your residence room will be your home for the next eight months, so have some fun decorating it.
Given the choice between taking your meal up to your room in a box and eating downstairs, we recommend the latter. Eating in the dining hall is an incredible way to get a change of scenery and meet new people, and you get to knock out two birds with one stone by simultaneously eating and hanging out with friends!
Residence buildings offer a variety of services from gyms to music rooms. If you’ve never been to the gym before, want to try foosball, or have a downtown view while studying, the facilities and spaces in your residence can fulfill these desires.
Your floor don will probably organize a monthly floor-wide social, during which you can engage in activities and meet other people from your floor; attend these!
If you’re not from the GTA, take advantage of your prime location in downtown Toronto and explore! There are tons of (free or cheap) things to check out in Toronto, such as art exhibitions, basketball games, and great restaurants. For more information, check the page about Having Fun in Toronto.
Make sure to very frequently talk to your friends and family. Even if you’re busy and all you have to say is that you’re studying for an exam, give your parents a call, or fire a quick message to your friends. Facetime is an incredible invention! Seriously, don’t skip out on this step!