Hello everyone! I just accepted an offer to study my MSc in Statistics at UBC, starting this fall. I'm beyond excited about coming to Vancouver and meeting other grad students.
I'm also unsure about housing, so I'll check options both on and off-campus. My Department's admissions coordinator told me that this year UBC is offering a limited number of guaranteed housing spots to new graduate students. I'll copy-paste what she sent me in case it's of interest to any of you:
"For the September 2019 intake a number of rooms in winter session student housing (Vancouver) will be set aside for newly admitted graduate students. Priority for these rooms will be given to newly admitted graduate students who have accepted their admission offer, have no prior experience at UBC, and reside outside of the Greater Vancouver area. In order to have the best chance of securing on-campus housing, newly admitted students who meet those criteria should:
Submit BOTH a Winter Session and Year-Round Housing application. You will only pay one application fee ($50) if you submit both within a 14 day period.
Apply as soon as possible.
Currently, the majority of graduate students residing on-campus live in the two Colleges (Green College, St. John's College) and Acadia Park (student family housing), which are year-round residences. However, for students who are new to Vancouver and UBC, getting into single studio and shared living arrangements in winter session housing (8 months contract from September 2019 to end of April 2020) will allow you to get to know the city, and look for long-term housing options while at the same time staying on the waitlist for year-round housing for May 2020.
Demand will exceed the availability of these rooms, and no guarantees for on-campus housing can be given. Timing is still a big factor in the success of housing applications.
You should not select a room type/residence area on your 19W Session Residence Application that you are not willing to accept.
Common questions:
When will offers be made? Year Round Housing offers start as early as mid-March and Winter Session Housing offers will start going out in June.
If students apply for both options (Winter Session and Year Round) with preference on year round should they wait for an offer for their preferred choice? That usually depends on a number of factors, in particular, time of application and current waitlist number. If a student accepts a winter session offer, and had a Year Round Housing (YRH) application on file, Housing will encourage the student to change the start date on their YRH application to May 1 of the following year, e.g. to May 1, 2020. The student's waitlist number for YRH remains the same (as it is based on the date of original application) and it might put the student in a better position to receive a YRH offer for a start in May.
Can I arrive early? Graduate students who have applied for 2019 Winter Session housing and receive an offer with a move in date of September 1, 2019 may be able to request an early arrival accommodation from UBC Housing. The application for early arrival will become available at the beginning of July at the latest and students are encouraged to apply early if they wish to arrive early. Please note that you are only eligible for early arrival in particular circumstances, such as the intention to attend Graduate Student Orientation on August 30 or your academic program starting early with specific academic sessions. You may have to provide proof of the reason to UBC Housing"
I will still look for off-campus housing, but if any other newly admitted grad student is looking for on-campus spots then this might be of interest
Cheers!
