Residence

Community starts here. Going away to university may be the first time you’ll live away from home. This new freedom is exciting, but it’s also an adjustment.

On our Waterloo and Brantford campuses, residence is a key way first-year Golden Hawks connect, grow and settle into university life. Immerse yourself in a community of support from your first day at Laurier, where staff and upper-year students are committed to your personal growth, development and safety. 

If you're planning to attend Laurier Milton (where there is currently no residence), make sure you get connected through our Laurier Off-Campus University Students (LOCUS) program.

Why Live in Residence?

Our residence buildings are more than just a place to sleep and study. Living in residence gives you lots of opportunities to get involved, both across campus and within your building, which can support a quicker, easier transition to university.

A Hawk’s Eye View of Residence

Take a 2-minute virtual tour through each of our residences with current Golden Hawks.

Get their first-hand perspective on how to make Laurier your home away from home, what to bring (and what’s already here!) and why residence is so much more than just the room you stay in.

Make Yourself at Home

We've created nine two-minute videos covering everything you need to know about Laurier before deciding on where you should apply.

In this video, Lauryn Kwong, our Residence Life Area Coordinator, shows you what lifestyle and community you can expect, whether you live in residence or off-campus. Welcome home!

Are you an international student? We've got a video series just for you.

We Saved a Spot for You

We guarantee residence* on our Waterloo and Brantford campuses to all undergraduate students attending a postsecondary institution for the first time. To be eligible for the residence guarantee, your application needed to be received, including your non-refundable $600 deposit, by June 3, 2024 at 11:59 p.m.

Rooms are assigned based on preference and availability. You can request to live with a friend; otherwise, we’ll do our best to pair you with a roommate who has habits similar to yours.

*While Laurier endeavours to honour its residence guarantee, the University will not be liable for any failure or delay in providing residential accommodation when such failure arises out of any cause or causes beyond its reasonable control. Learn more about our Residence Guarantee.

Missed the Deadline?

If you are interested in living in residence this year and missed the June 3 application deadline, you can still apply using the Waiting List Residence Application. The Department of Residence will reach out to those on the waiting list to fill vacancies if and when they become available. Learn more about each campus's waitlist.

Four students walking in front of residence building
Three female students and one male student studying outside

Build Your Community

Residence Learning Communities and Learning Clusters in both Waterloo and Brantford give you a chance to meet new friends who share the same interests as you or want to help each other succeed in first year courses.

These themed environments bring like-minded students together for fun events, study sessions, or hanging out with professors in your own living space.

Check out how you can get involved in your first year through Laurier's Residence Learning Communities and Clusters and our First-Year Leadership Program.

Explore Our Residences

All of our residence buildings are on or very near campus, which makes getting to class on time really easy – even when you sleep in. It also means you'll have convenient access to coffee, food and the library for those late-night study sessions.

Get a sneak peek! See our residence buildings on our interatactive campus maps and view videos of all our residence room interiors.

 

What's Residence Like?

There are two main styles of buildings: dormitory-style residences and apartment-style residences. Between these styles, you'll find your fit.

Dormitory-Style Residences

Available on the Waterloo campus.

  • single or double (shared) bedrooms
  • one to two students per room
  • furnished bedroom
  • common floor washrooms or shared washroom with roommate
  • Residence Learning Communities
  • common community spaces
  • mixed-gender communities
  • laundry facilities
  • secure, controlled access
noBottomPadding

Sample Single Dormitory-Style Semi-Private Layout

Floor plan of single dormitory-style room

Sample Double Domitory-Style Layout

Floor plan of double domitory-style room

Apartment-Style Residences

Available on the Waterloo and Brantford campuses.

  • single or double (shared) bedrooms
  • two to eight students per apartment
  • furnished bedroom, living room and kitchen
  • shared washroom(s) in apartment
  • Residence Learning Communities and Clusters
  • common community spaces
  • mixed-gender housing available
  • laundry facilities
  • secure, controlled access
noTopPadding

Sample Apartment-Style Layout

Appartment-style floor plan

Residence Fees

Below are rough estimates of residence costs. The fees displayed are for 2024/25. Visit our Residence Fees page for a full breakdown of costs by each of our residence buildings.

Estimated Cost of Residence

Residence Style

Waterloo Campus

Brantford Campus

Dorm (Single and Double)

$7,332.08 to $9,192.20

N/A

Apartment: Single

$7,907.04 to $10,329.06

$8,513.08

Apartment: Double

$7,942.20

Female and male student studying outside.

Medical and Disability-Related Accommodations

Students who require accommodations in residence based on a documented medical condition or disability must submit a completed Residence Disability and Medical Verification form as part of their application.

Forms will be reviewed by the Department of Residence to determine what accommodations need to be provided when finalizing room placements.

Striking Out on Your Own?

Laurier has partnered with Places4Students.com, an off-campus housing website that specializes in providing students, schools and landlords with a quality rental property listing service. To view available rental property listings, roommate and sublet listings, visit:

Students studying on the Waterloo campus may wish to visit Ezra-Bricker Student Apartments to assist in their search for off-campus rental accommodations. Ezra-Bricker Student Apartments have a number of properties are that close to the campus and are owned by Laurier, but are managed by Campus Living Centres.

Off Campus but Still Connected

Just because you’re living off campus or staying at home, that doesn’t mean you should be cut off from the action. You can still enjoy all the benefits that a residence community offers by joining LOCUS (Laurier Off-Campus University Students), which provides off-campus students with academic, social and personal support to ensure that you won’t miss out on Laurier’s on-campus experience.

Group of students posing with tiger mascot

Dining at Laurier

All students living in residence on either the Waterloo or Brantford campus are required to purchase a meal plan.

With the freedom to grab a bite to eat on the way to class or sit down with friends to enjoy a meal, Laurier’s meal plans are convenient, flexible and loaded with options.

For those busy days where you're on the go or for the days you need to relax, the convenience of a campus meal plan is there to help you live your best life.

On-Campus Dining Options

Waterloo Dining

On the Waterloo campus, there are a variety of fresh and convenient options in our food court, coffee shops and the Fresh Food Company, which is our “all you care to enjoy” dining hall for students in residence and the campus community.

Our Food Services team is dedicated to offering healthy options and educating you on nutritional information – so you can spend less time wondering what to eat and more time studying for your next midterm.

Brantford Campus Dining

Our Brantford campus’ downtown location makes it an ideal place to explore the restaurants and grocery stores just minutes away – your OneCard is accepted at a number of off-campus locations, such as Golden Grounds Coffee, Boston Pizza and FreshCo, a local grocery store.

Meal Plans and Convenience Dollars

Waterloo Campus Meal Plans

All of our meal plans include a combination of "all you care to enjoy" meals at the Fresh Food Company and “flex” dollars you can use at any food outlet on campus, including our extremely popular Wilf’s Pub, Terrace Food Court and your favourite coffee shop.

Meal Plan Options1

Meal Plan Breakdown

5-Day All-Access Meal Plan

7-Day All-Access Meal Plan

Apartment Meal Plan2

Unlimited access to the Fresh Food Company

Monday to Friday

7 days a week

Not included

Flex dollars to use at on-campus food service locations

$870 ($435 per term)

$680 ($340 per term)

$2,429.50 ($1,214.49 per term)

Fresh Food Company guest passes

5

7

Not included

Tax savings

Yes

Yes

Yes

Cost of Meal Plan

$6,299.96

$6,795.84

$2,570.98

Notes:

Prices include a $50 levy for the "All Access" plans and a $20 levy for the "Apartment" plan.

2 Students in apartment-style residences can choose to upgrade to an "All Access" plan.

Brantford Campus Convenience Plan

First-year students living in residence must purchase a Convenience Plan. All residences on the Brantford campus are apartment-style, which means you’ll have a kitchen in your apartment to cook in. You can use your Convenience Plan to buy groceries at a local grocery store, grab a coffee on campus or eat out at various food establishments in the downtown core.

  • Welcome: $910 ($455 per term)
  • Study: $1,070 ($535 per term)
  • Comfort: $1,290 ($645 per term)