Queen’s is housing 4,840 first-year students in residence this fall as more than 5,500 first-year students began the 2026-27 academic year.
In a statement to The Journal, Student Affairs said all 5,050 residence beds are at capacity, with 4,840 occupied by first-year students and the remaining 210 occupied by staff and upper-year students. The number of available residence beds hasn’t changed since last year.
A Sept. 11 Gazette article said more than 5,500 first-year students began at Queen’s this year.
The statement said the total includes students living off-campus in the surrounding area. Based on the University’s figures, approximately 660 first-year students, or 12 per cent, aren’t living in residence.
Despite residences operating at capacity, the statement said all students who remained on the waitlist over the summer ultimately received an offer for a space.
Earlier in the summer, Queen’s warned students on the residence waitlist that it anticipated making a limited number of offers due to high application volume, with the most offers expected after Aug. 1. The University encouraged waitlisted students to explore off-campus housing while waiting for a potential space.
The University had previously estimated approximately 4,800 residence spaces would be available for incoming first-year students in fall 2026. The University now says 4,840 first-year students are living in residence.
Queen’s guaranteed a residence space to students who received an offer of admission by April 15, and to international and Indigenous students who received an offer by May 31.
More than 90 per cent of offers of admission carry the residence guarantee, according to the statement. However, to hold a guaranteed residence space, students must have accepted their offer of admission and submitted a residence application and deposit by June 1.
Although Queen’s warned waitlisted students of limited residence capacity, many first-year students were able to secure guaranteed residence with their admission offers.
Leya Tzurkov, ArtSci ’30, currently lives in Leggett Hall and received guaranteed residence with her offer of admission. In an interview with The Journal, Tzurkov said she received her first offer of admission in December, followed by additional offers in March and early April. All University offers included guaranteed residence.
Before choosing her room, Tzurkov said she had hoped for a single or single-plus room. Ultimately, however, she said her priority was simply securing a spot in residence.
When asked about the fact that not every first-year student can secure a residence space, Tzurkov acknowledged that some students may prefer to live off campus. However, she said not having guaranteed residence could create additional stress on top of the other adjustments that come with starting university.
Tzurkov said that if she had not received a residence space, she most likely would have attended a different university.
Yet, for some students, living outside residence is a choice.
When Coni Grajales, ArtSci ’27, arrived at Queen’s, she chose to live off campus with her best friend who was already in her second year. Grajales said she never planned to live in residence and found renting a room in a house significantly cheaper at the time.
Despite choosing to live off campus, Grajales said she felt she missed parts of the first-year experience. While she made friends through her classes, she saw other first-year students forming friendships with their floormates.
“I definitely missed out on that,” she said.
Grajales also chose not to participate in Orientation, saying she viewed the experience as partly connected to residence and was more interested in individual events, including the Sidewalk Sale and Tricolour Open House, which she could attend without registering for Orientation.
“I think I regretted it when I was in first year, and then with each year that passed, I regretted it less,” she said.
Tags
First-years, Queen's residence, Queen’s Off-Campus Living Advisors’ Office
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