Finding a place to live on campus can be intimidating. What are the options? Do I HAVE to live in residence? How does any of this work??
These are all really good questions! Here is a collection of resources to help you choose your living arrangements at Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC).
Knowing More
Throughout the summer NSCC hosts a series of webinars about the things you need to do before your arrival to Nova Scotia along with any COVID-19 restrictions and information you need to know to protect yourself from rental scams. They also have 4 webinars published on youtube for students to watch if they’re considering renting in Nova Scotia. These videos are “Renting in Nova Scotia what do you need to know”, “Renting During Covid-19”, “Your New Community”, “Do not overlook the importance of landlord-tenant rights and responsibilities”. These videos are almost an hour-long (you can watch them at 1.5x speed) and cover a lot of things you need to know. Pay special attention to the video on landlord-tenant rights and responsibilities.
LIVING ON RESIDENCE
Living in a campus residence building has both its positives and negatives. It is a great place to meet students from your college campus. There is also the factor of convenience. Living in a residence building means you’re never too far away from campus, don’t have to look out for creepy landlords and a meal plan is required so your meals are covered. If you plan on living in one of the residence buildings, there are three options. These are the Centre of Geographic Science (Annapolis Valley Campus), Strait Area Campus/Nautical Institute, Truro Campus. All residence buildings have mandatory meal plans and have washers and dryers available on all floors.
The main thing to consider when living at one of the residences at NSCC, is are any of these 3 buildings located at my campus? Since each NSCC campus has its own set of courses they offer, your course may not be available at a campus which has your program.
LIVING OFF-RESIDENCE
Living outside of campus comes with other complications. You have to seek out your own apartment buildings or homes and find roommates. There’s also extra needed when seeking out rental spaces since you can come across disingenuous renters. However, renting off-campus may be your best and only option in some scenarios.
How to begin?
To see what spaces are available for rent near your NSCC campus use place4students.com. They are an accredited business that is able to connect students and landlords making the process easier for everyone involved.
Homestay
If you’re really looking for a home away from home then the Canada Homestay Network has you covered. They provide both domestic and international students with the opportunity to live with local families in Halifax and Dartmouth. All host families are screened by Homestay.
