Addy / Ban Righ Hall is a fairy tale all-girls residence located right in the heart of campus.

You Asked: “How do they determine which residence room I get? How is my rez room assigned? How does Queen’s decide which dorm room I get? etc, etc!”

We Answered: The short and sweet answer is: by lottery. However, it does get slightly more complicated than this. For all of you control freaks, read on – we’ve got the inside scoop to help seal your dream residence fate!

Note: The majority of the below advice we stole from the oh-so-helpful Queen’s University Residence website. If you haven’t already prowled around this site for hours on end, get thee over there! They’ve got answers – and official ones.

Other ideas:


To save you some time, and to weigh in with our personal touch, below is a rundown of how the heck Queen’s decides which room you get:

What we know for sure:

  • First year students are assigned rooms on both main and west campus by a random computer lottery process
  • Your order in this lottery determines your chances of getting the preferences noted on your application (single vs double / theme floors / co-ed vs single sex / shared washroom etc.)
  • The system runs through all students’ 1st preference, if the first preference listed on the application form is available then the student is assigned.  Then the system will move on to the second preference and so forth until all students have been assigned. This continues until the student is assigned to one of their preferences. (Remember, all 1st years are guaranteed a spot in rez)
  • During this process, the computer also checks to see if the student has applied for a theme floor and/or whether a request for a roommate was made. Some of these options (such as an all-female ) will take precedence over a listed preference if the two are not compatible.

What we gather based on anecdotal evidence:

  • Scholarship winners are more likely to get their room of choice.
  • Major entrance award winners are guaranteed a single room (although the choice of a theme floor can disrupt the lottery system, so be sure to choose single rooms first if you so choose).
  • Not ALL applications go through the lottery process.
  • You can influence the potential type of room or building you will get by changing your rankings (eg: far less people are likely to choose a single sex single than a co-ed single. If it’s a single you want most, be strategic)

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Boo Hoo The Bear

Boo Hoo the Bear is the Queen’s Mascot. He is a part of the Queen’s Bands and is seen often around the Queen’s campus, at football games, at frosh week and at homecoming.
Boo Hoo wears a vest and tam in the Royal Stewart tartan pattern. He does not wear a Queen’s Tam.

Other ideas:

Apparently, Boo Hoo was a originally a real bear [...]

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What Is A Queen’s Tam?

Ever wonder what a “Queen’s Tam” is? If you haven’t, you should, as you’ll be faced with fugly sightings of these things day in and day out from the moment you arrive on the Queen’s campus.
A tam, officially known as a Tam o’ Shanter by no one other than wikipedia, is a Scottish style hat. Simply put, it’s a beret [...]

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What should I pack for first year at Queen’s?

You Asked: “What should I pack for the next 8 months in residence at Queen’s? What do I need to bring for first year? What can I leave behind at home?”
We Answered: If you haven’t thought about these questions ad nauseum, you are a rare breed of chill.
Thankfully, with a strong pre college packing list [...]

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Queen’s University Residences: As Hotels?

When friends and family would come visit me in the summer during my time at Queen’s, this meant one of two things:
1) Having them camp out uncomfortably on couches, futons, housemates beds … or spoon with me.
2) Having them cough up big bucks for a hotel or B&B in Kingston, which is a pricey place [...]

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Guest Post: Chown Hall, The Poshest Place On Campus

Recently one of our readers, Sarah, shared this amazing post about Chown Hall. Read on, for the inside scoop on the poshest residence on campus:
If you’re living in Chown, you’re in for a treat. Sure there are going to be guys that you meet in frosh week who give you the dumb-founded “you live with [...]

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What do you wear to homecoming?

A question we’ve seen posed more than a number of times in our comments is “What do I wear to homecoming parties at Queen’s?” A simple question, one clearly causing undue amounts of anxiety in our beloved Frosh, now goes unanswered no longer.

Other ideas:

Jessica, a 2nd year Econ major shares her tips for dressing [...]

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Is it Safe to Walk Around Campus at Night?

You Asked: Is it safe to walk around the Queen’s campus late at night?
We Answered: During my time at Queen’s I never felt unsafe or uneasy walking around late at night on campus. That said, on the Queen’s campus, like anywhere, you should be careful when walking alone at night. Queen’s offers lots of great [...]

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Top 6 Spots to Study While at Queen’s

Like it or not, you’ll be spending a fair bit of your time at Queen’s studying, and sometimes your rez room with eight million distractions just doesn’t cut it. We’ve compiled a list of the top ten greatest spots on and off to campus to study.
1. Fireside Reading Room (in Stauffer Library)
Located on the second [...]

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What Kind of Computer Should I Bring to Queen’s?

Note: Each week in our Asked & Answered series we’ll be choosing one of your questions and answering them. Pop your questions in the comment section below.
You Asked: “What is the best kind of computer to bring to Queen’s?”
We Answered: These days, almost every student on campus has a computer. While there are ample public [...]

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