New Students' Frequently Asked Questions

This page is updated regularly with the most commonly asked questions.

What do I do if I need to ship things to campus?
You can send everything to yourself using your UB box address. The Student Post Office will be open for early arrivals. Normal office hours begin the following Monday (8:00am to 4:30pm). The Student Post Office will be open for New Student Arrival day on Saturday.

How big is my room?
You can view all room dimensions by clicking here.

Where can I store my bike?
There are bike racks located outside most of the residence halls. Bikes can be parked or stored only in the owner’s room. Bicycles are not permitted to be stored in common public areas (hallways, stairwells, etc).

What comes in each room?
All rooms have a closet (or wardrobe), a bed, a desk, a chair, and a bookshelf for each resident. Rooms also have blinds, cable, and internet.

What about phone service?
Phone service to rooms is by opt-in only. Students may elect to have phone service (campus and local) to their room for a $100 charge per room. If both students in a double opt-in, each student will be charged $50. Students may elect for a phone line by logging in to e-services. A phone (campus or local are free) for use by residents is located in the common area of each floor.

How big are the beds? What size sheets do I need to bring?
The beds in residence hall rooms are 80 inches long and require extra long sheets.  The beds are of standard height. Twin XL sheets will work well on these beds.

What size are the windows? Can I bring curtains?
The windows in most of the residence hall rooms are approximately 2' x 3'. You can bring curtains if you wish, but you will need a tension rod to hang the curtains as we do not allow students to put holes in the wall to hang curtain rods.

Can you loft? How?
In most of our buildings, yes, you can loft. The furniture in Hogate, Longden, and Bishop Roberts is loftable - meaning you can stack your bed on top of your desk, dresser, shelves, etc, in any combination (there are many different ways to set up the furniture).

The beds in College Street, Humbert, and the Lucy and Mason double rooms are also loftable. You'll need to request a loft kit to loft your bed if you live in one of these halls. Requests for loft kits must be received in our office by August 1, 2008. Requests after that time cannot be guaranteed for your arrival. If you would like a ladder for your loft or bunked beds, you can also request one. The request form can be found on our website.

What should I do if my roommate and I don't get along?
Residence Life and Housing values the learning that happens when you live with another person who may be different than yourself. Our Resident Assistants will work with every roommate pair or group at the beginning of the year to set standards and expectations that will help roommates succeed in sharing a space. If you are having difficulty communicating with your roommate about your concerns, your Resident Assistant and Residence Life Coordinator are trained to help you negotiate the issues. If the situation is irresolvable, a room change may be considered.

What is substance free? Aren't all first-year dorms substance free if they are all under 21?
Substance free living is a unique environment in which all residents, upperclass and first-year alike, agree to lead a substance-free lifestyle in their hall, suite or apartment. Students in these communities agree to the same lifestyle. This means that residents refrain from using tobacco, alcohol, or drugs in their living unit. However, “substance free living” means different things to different people. For some residents, this entails completely abstaining from the use of these substances, and for others, it means not using them in the living unit. Therefore, it is the responsibility of each resident to determine what exactly this means to them (with the minimum expectation that they will be substance free in their hall, suite or apartment), and to communicate their beliefs and standards to other residents while respecting the choices that other residents may make about the use of such substances outside of the living unit. Resident Assistants will work with students in substance-free communities to define community expectations at the beginning of the year. This year, we are very excited because a record number of students elected to live in substance free housing for 2009-2010.

Should I bring a fridge?
That is entirely up to your preference. Most students do have a small refrigerator and microwave in their room. If you are interested in renting a microfridge unit instead of bringing your own, click here for more information.