UofT res for 1st year... what do you say?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Toronto
1

<p>I am a high school student who is most likely heading to UofT St.George this year, for the Arts (International Studies). Now I just cannot decide whether to do residence for 1st year or not!</p>

<p>I live a half-hour (car)/ 1.5 hours (bus) away from the university. </p>

<p>:) - I don't want to sacrifice having a great university experience by commuting back and forth after/before class, all for the sake of money. That's why I was considering doing rez just for first year, to get a real feel of the school and university life. </p>

<p>:( - However, I am considering law school for graduate studies ($$$) and so am weary of spending unnecessarily in my first year if I live only half an hour away. Also, I am a VERY social person and fear getting unecessarily distracted if I do rez first year, at the expense of my GPA. </p>

<p>My questions are: </p>

<ul>
<li>Will it make that much of a difference if I do rez @ UofT for first year?</li>
<li>Is it worth the money? I'm guessing it will be at least $7000 extra for that 1 year.</li>
<li>Will my marks necessarily drop if I choose rez? I mean, will it be harder to focus?</li>
</ul>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>raha, as a parent, I would highly recommend that you live in res for first year. My Ds were in a similar situation in that we live in Toronto and they probably could have commuted. We made the decision for them to live in res and have never regretted it. If there is any way you can swing it financially, I would make that choice. Your experience will be very different if you are living at home and commuting.</p>

3

<p>… I second that. There are real advantages to living on campus at least the first year. You have more immediate access to study groups, your college’s library, ‘fine dining’ through your dining hall (required for all res students), academic offices when issues need attention, and more natural access to student scheduled and spontaneous extracurricular activities. In addition to wired-up res halls, most of the colleges have landscaped outdoor areas, too, that allow for wireless UofT access in nicer weather.</p>

<p>The new friends you make first year are priceless, and it’s easier to make them when you’re living on campus. Think about it — it’s like having extra brothers and sisters. Who are in many ways like you, and in nice interesting ways, not.</p>

<p>ROSI, the online Repository of Student Information, is used for course scheduling. You get the courses that are left at the times that are left, after all the upperclassmen have registered. You may have choices but you might not like them. That means you’ll probably have a split week and even split days — many trips from home during the week. That’s a transportation, parking, and time cost. Vs. near zero living on campus, though the tradeoff is walking a tremendous amount. Sometimes running! ;-)</p>

<p>Yes, there are countless social distractions living on campus (and in the city at large) but everyone there has serious work to do, and if they’re not able to tune it out or moderate themselves, then they don’t make it. My D was overwhelmed at first by the frequency, magnitude, and compelling nature of the distractions (political parades, concerts, arts festivals, all just outside her Queens Park window, different groups of friends getting together at this sushi house or that club or event). Many 1st yrs are a little undisciplined at first, but the maturation over that year is tremendous — eventually limits are recognized and priorities are reset. Too, there’s a degree of self-policing that develops among people (esp. dons) who share rooms, floors, houses. Everyone grows at a different rate, and as long as you’re not a raging standout behaviorally, the friends you make are by your side for subtle checks and balance. You’re there for them, too.</p>

<p>Assuming the average 1st yr maturity, living away from home and on campus yields opportunities to stretch and explore on many fronts. It’s greater independence in a relatively safe environment. It’s empowering. On the other hand, there’s a lot more self-responsibility, aka, consequences (e.g.s, nothing to wear this week because laundry hasn’t been done in 3, or that iPod got stolen because it was left on the house porch rail, or that paper is now officially late because your dorm had a power outage, you didn’t have an alarm clock battery backup, Mom wasn’t there, and you slept late).</p>

<p>Grade-wise, prepare for your grades to drop whether or not you live on campus. This assumes you’re working harder. UofT grading is like a low-mean Poisson distribution. Not really, but not far off.</p>

<p>IMO, the cost of R&B is worth it. In fact, it’s pretty cheap given the return.</p>