Class of 2028!
Are you ready to apply to live on-campus?
The Priority Deadline for Incoming First-Year students to apply for housing has been extended to May 29!
By: Samantha Thompson, Summer 2022 Marketing Intern
The events hosted for students in the first couple of weeks of school are a great way to become acclimated with campus and meet tons of new people. Here is a list of some important Welcome Back traditions and a few tips for when you arrive on campus.
UNC Weeks of Welcome, more commonly referred to as WOW, is an annual two-week-long event with daily programs, activities, and experiences meant to help new and returning Tar Heels feel welcomed into the Carolina community. Featured events invite students to talk with professors, learn more about campus & Chapel Hill, as well as meet other students.
New Student Convocation commemorates the beginning of your journey at UNC, hosted annually in Kenan Stadium. Speakers, including the student body president and Chancellor Guskiewicz, fill students with inspiring words and well wishes for their school.
After convocation, head over to Fall Fest! It gives the students the chance to learn more about the organizations and academic departments on campus. With fun games, performances, free swag, and even free food, Fall Fest is the perfect event to start off the school year. Fall Fest is another great opportunity for you to find other students who have similar interests.
If you see a long line in front of The Old Well on your first day of class, you should join it---well, if you have time, wait! Drinking from The Old Well is known to bring students luck throughout the semester.
There are many helpful apps you should download before you get to campus. CarolinaGO gives you access to tons of useful resources, Coursicle helps you keep track of your classes, GET Mobile gives you digital access to your OneCard, and Transloc and NextBus track the bus routes so you’re always on time.
Walk your classes before the first day! Finding buildings and the best ways to get to them can take some time. I recommend using Google Maps to find buildings because it's more walker friendly. And if you don’t have time to walk your classes and you’re having difficulty finding where you need to be on the first day, don’t be afraid to ask someone. Everyone is very understanding and willing to help!
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Now that you know all the big back-to-school traditions at UNC and a couple of helpful tips, you can rest assured that you won’t miss out on anything once you arrive on campus. I hope you have fun in your first couple of weeks on campus!
By: Gabriela Duncan, Summer 2022 Marketing Intern
Although first-years are not allowed to have cars on campus, there is no shortage of accessible locations on campus to explore by walking or taking the Point 2 Point (P2P) bus from your residence hall.
Located right next to Top Of The Hill on South Columbia Street, the Ackland Art Museum is completely FREE and has a new exhibit every few months!
The Varsity Theater is a Chapel Hill classic located on East Franklin Street in-between Lightyears and the Blue Horn Lounge. It is a wonderful place to go if you want to watch movies for a much lower price than at other theaters! One of my favorite events at the Varsity Theater is the Rocky Horror Picture Show every Halloweekend. If that interests you, get your tickets in the Pit right away when it's time to because it sells out fast!
This one is not as well-known as the others, surprisingly! The Carolina Basketball Museum is located on Skipper Bowles Drive next to the Dean Smith Center and the Koury Natatorium. It is within walking distance from many of the first-year residence halls. This museum has everything you could dream of regarding Carolina Basketball, including Coach K’s famous letter to Michael Jordan.
This place is SO COOL! Even if you are not super into space, you will be after a visit here. As a UNC student, you are offered admission for a discounted price when you bring your One Card. A fun fact that many might not know about the Morehead Planetarium is that between 1959 and 1975, nearly every astronaut who participated in the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, and Apollo-Soyuz programs trained here!
This location is right on campus by Spencer Residence Hall! It is a beautiful place to walk around, take pretty pictures, and take in the beauty of the beautiful flowers around you. Better yet, it is free!
By Tamara Royster, Summer 2022 Marketing Intern
You may have noticed the Chapel Hill Transit buses around town. I know there are some students who don’t know anything about riding and might be intimidated to ask. As a seasoned patron of Chapel Hill Transit, I thought it would be a good idea to share my knowledge with all of you as well as some tricks!
Chapel Hill Transit buses are free to ride! You just hop on and that’s it! Masks are required but there are usually free ones available at the front and back entrances. The yellow cord next to the windows can be pulled to signal the driver that you want to get off at the next stop. If you don’t hear a voice that says “stop requested” after pulling the yellow cord, you might need to go up to the driver to let them know. I always like to say “thank you” to the drivers when I get off of a bus. Driving a huge bus full of people safely and for long periods of time can be difficult, so I always like to let them know they’re appreciated.
One of the most popular bus routes is the U. It goes in a circle and has stops at South Campus, the Student Union, Carolina Coffee Shop, and the Morehead Planetarium! The popularity of the U route does lead to it being full at peak times. There may be times when the bus reaches full capacity, and you cannot get a seat unless you show up to the bus stop early. Make sure you leave plenty of time for traveling to class in case the bus is full.
Another popular route is the RU. It basically goes the opposite of the U route although there are some differences. The RU does not have any stops on Franklin Street, instead it has stops on East Cameron Avenue. The RU can also get pretty busy at peak times, so make sure you have plenty of time to get to class before riding. The RU runs Monday-Friday so I would recommend taking the U route on weekends.
The NU goes off campus and one of its major destinations is the RR lot. Many students park at this lot and take the NU to get to campus. There are also stops at some off-campus apartments along Hillsborough Street. The NU is a quicker way to get to the Public Safety bus stop from the Student Union than the U. The U stops in front of Hinton James and the Dean Dome before going to Public Safety, while the NU heads straight to the UNC Hospitals after leaving the Union. I also use it to get to Fetzer Gym, Student Stores, or Lenoir from Public Safety.
The U and RU can get full quickly, but there are other buses that some students may not know. One of my favorite tricks is to take the FCX from Public Safety to Fetzer Gym. It’s a quick way for me to get to the Union in a pinch!
Bus schedules change for big events such football and basketball games, and other events around Chapel Hill. Make sure to plan ahead if there is anything important going on around town. The buses can also get caught in traffic too so watch out if you need to get somewhere around 9am or 5pm on weekdays.
As of this writing, real time bus tracking is not available. You can download pdf’s of every bus route at the Town of Chapel Hill website. There are also printed versions of every route in the Student Union next to the Information Desk and on the Chapel Hill Transit Buses as well.
Those are the bus routes that most students use, but there are so many more that take you all over Chapel Hill and Carrboro. You can also ride the green GoTriangle buses, which take you to Durham, Cary, and Raleigh. GoTriangle buses are fare free until June 2023. I highly encourage you to explore these options for yourselves!
Happy Riding!
By Tamara Royster, Summer 2022 Marketing Intern
Although many students return home over the Summer, Chapel Hill continues to improve. I had the chance to live on campus during the Summer and have seen these changes firsthand. It can seem like a whole new world once you return, but I’m here to go over some of the biggest changes that took place while most students were at home.
The CVS Pharmacy at 137 E Franklin St closed on Thursday, June 16 but you don’t have to go too far for your CVS needs. The closest CVS can be found inside the Target at 143 W Franklin St. There is also the Student Stores Pharmacy and Campus Health Pharmacy available for anyone needing to pick up their prescriptions.
No this is not a drill. A Cook Out will be opening at the space formerly occupied by the Burger King at 450 S Elliot Rd. It’s not too long of a drive from campus, so get ready for a shorter drive to get some delicious Cook Out trays.
All of the laundry rooms on campus now have new washers and dryers! They take less time to wash and dry your clothes and are more reliable than the previous machines. I have tried out the ones in Rams Village 1 and am absolutely in love with the new machines! I was so happy thinking about how I no longer have to worry about half-dried laundry! Don't forget to download the Laundry App - Washlava powered by 4thID so you know when your clothes have finished washing and drying! Laundry will be free for Fall 2022. Don't forget to download the Laundry App so you know when your clothes have finished washing and drying! That means you can save money to be used at other places such as…
Prepare those Plus Swipes. The Wendy’s in the Student Union will open in the Fall as a Bojangles. Although I will personally miss having easy access to Frosty’s, I am very excited to grab a Chicken Biscuit and Cajun Fries for dinner!
I told you there were a lot of big changes. The closing of the CVS is definitely sad, but there was a lot of good news to balance it out. What are you most excited about? Personally, it’s been months since I’ve had a Cook Out tray so you will probably see me there the first week it opens!
There are a lot of exciting things for both new and returning students to look forward to. It’s always interesting to see how Chapel Hill changes at the start of each semester. The one thing that never changes is the excitement as students return. As much as things may change the people who live and learn in Chapel Hill are what makes this town wonderful.
By Samantha Thompson, Summer 2022 Marketing Intern
Curtains or no curtains? Broom or vacuum? Shopping for your room can be full of stressful decisions, and while the Carolina Housing website is an excellent resource for both the essential and approved items, you may still have some lingering questions. I know I did! That’s why I’ve put together this guide of my favorite and most useful purchases to make sure you pack efficiently as you prepare for the fFall.
Cleaning supplies are essential. But, it wasn’t until certain messes happened that I realized I didn’t have the right equipment to clean my room. I recommend purchasing larger cleaning supplies like handheld vacuums (great for small clean-ups or hard-to-reach places) before moving in, then visiting local stores to buy smaller items like disinfectant wipes and sprays once you arrive on campus. I invested in a VacMop – it made cleaning the floor faster and easier.
Additional Suggestions
With big items like bedding and refrigerators, you may forget the smaller items needed to set up your room. During move-in, I got all set up before noticing my desk lamp needed batteries to turn on. And once I got the batteries, I had to figure out where to store them. Your room will have plenty of storage space, but things like ottomans, plastic storage drawers, or tiered carts ensure that everything has a place to go.
Additional Suggestions:
Your room will be your home away from home, so you want to fill it with the things that will make you feel comfortable. These items are much more personal and vary from person to person. I brought my scrapbook and my favorite books to feel at home.
Customizing my room with a cozy rug really helped transform my space and make it more personalized. The Residence Hall Association (RHA) provides carpet rentals in different sizes and colors for students to choose from. Touches like these not only made me feel comfortable but made my room really feel like my own.
Additional Suggestions:
Bring the things that will make you comfortable and make your residence hall feel like your sanctuary—because it should be! If you realize there’s something you still need once you arrive in the fall, you can order items to your campus address or even visit some local stores around campus.
Remember, UNC is a welcoming community! If you need something, don’t be afraid to ask your roommates or neighbors and enhancements are always available at your residence hall’s front desk. This is another great resource that saves you from purchasing things like vacuums, pots & pans, and games. Happy packing, and we’ll see you in the fall!
By: Samantha Thompson, Marketing Intern Summer 2022
Figuring out which residence hall to choose for your first year at Carolina can be difficult. Each building and community hosts its own culture and offers different perks to suit every type of Carolina student. But which one will suit you?
Cobb, Everett, Graham, McClinton, Lewis, & Stacy
The North campus residence halls offer corridor-style living, meaning community bathrooms. The detached bathrooms may not be suitable for everyone, but these rooms have more space than suite-style residence halls. Housekeeping staff cleans the bathrooms Monday through Friday, so you can leave the plunger home. However, you are still responsible for bringing and taking your belongings. Shower caddies are a college essential, but in a North campus residence hall, they are the perfect tool to keep up with your belongings in the communal bathrooms.
A major bonus for the North campus residence halls is their proximity to the heart of campus. The Pit, Lenoir Dining Hall, the Quad, and many of your classes will be short walks for you. It is important to note, however, that Lenoir Dining Hall closes at 6 PM, so North campus residents may have to become more accustomed to an earlier supper or walk to South campus to enjoy dinner at Chase Dining Hall, which remains open until midnight.
While Cobb was renovated in 2005, the other buildings are older than South campus residence halls. Stacy, Lewis, and Everett do not have elevators (each only has three floors), and some buildings share amenities with others (for example, McClinton shares laundry with Stacy). But this makes the Olde Lower Quad Community its own unique Carolina family, and each year, they celebrate this at The Olde Dirty Bash!
Single, double, and triple options are available in the North campus residence halls, which means you'll only have one to two other roommates. But making friends may be easier in corridor-style living spaces because of the communal environment. However, these residence halls are known for being a bit more quiet than South campus residence halls. This may mean adjusting to less lively environments.
For students who prefer a shorter commute to classes and believe the communal environment will be best for their sociable personalities, or even those that may want to come out of their shells, North campus is recommended. These residence halls are quieter and smaller, which should be considered while determining which building suits you best. They are all indoor buildings, so you won't have balconies like the high-rise South campus dorms, but there are plenty of outdoor seating areas to enjoy the sun!
Craige, Eringhaus, Hinton-James, Koury, Horton, Craige North
The South campus residence halls offer suite-style living spaces. While the South campus residence halls are all suite-style, the slight variations in their orientation create completely distinct living experiences.
Craige, E-Haus, and HoJo are the high-rise residence halls. From 630 students in Craige to over 900 in HoJo, the high-rise halls have a much larger capacity than other first-year residence halls. Because of their size, these buildings are known to be a bit more lively. Up to 8 students will share a suite, and bathrooms in these buildings are cleaned each week-day by housekeeping services.
Craige may host watch parties for basketball games, HoJo is known for a food truck night, and E-Haus has a beach-themed party in the spring. Spending time with friends after class over a volleyball game is a tradition in the high-rises. But, if sports aren't your thing, sitting outside on the balcony while the sun sets is another perfect way to end a long day of classes.
Horton and Koury are smaller than the other South campus residence halls, hosting less than 300 students each. These halls have single and double room options, similar to the high-rises; however, unlike the other South campus residence halls, the low-rises have a maximum of four students per suite. These are large two bedroom suites with a Jack-and-Jill style bathroom, Horton and Koury offer one of the most private first-year living styles. Because bathrooms can only be accessed directly through the room, students are responsible for maintaining them, and housekeeping services will not be available.
Horton and Koury are the most similar to North campus. They’re indoor, quiet, and experience significantly less traffic than the high-rise residence halls. They have the appeal of Cobb and the Old Lower Quad Community Residence Halls in terms of culture but, offer the suite-style living experience, which is more comfortable for some students.
South campus is your go for students who don't mind a longer walk or even a bus commute to class! In these residence halls, you'll find the more private suite-style arrangements do not hinder finding new friends! These dorms are known to be a little more lively with all the traffic that comes with up to 900 students per hall. However, each hall has ample study space and peaceful outdoor seating areas to spare you a fifteen-minute walk to the library when it's time to study. The walk to Kenan Stadium is shorter, and during basketball season, South campus students will be the first to their seats at Dean Dome. All of these things and more make South campus the perfect place for students who may enjoy a more active environment, more private living styles, and do not mind a longer commute class.
No matter where you'll be living on campus, you'll have friendly communities to thrive in, amenities to suit your every need, and unique and fun experiences to share with your newfound friends! So don't be nervous! Whether you’re soaking up some sun in the McClinton Breezeway or on a hammock outside of Ehaus, each residence hall will provide everything you need to make your adjustment smooth and make your year special!
As the semester comes to an end, there is a lot of stress to do well on your final exams and finish the semester out strong. However, you also have to start preparing to move out of your residence halls. This can be a very stressful and time consuming process that you may put off until after your exams. Fortunately, I have moved out of residence hall’s multiple times and I have some helpful tips for moving out.
One great way to make move-out easier is to take some items home on weekends if you can. If you haven’t taken winter clothes, now would be a great time to do that because the weather is getting warmer. Additionally, if you just have boxes of miscellaneous items, such as clothes, bedding, books, etc., you can take those home too before move out. Taking this stuff home will mean it's easier to pack when it is time to move out, along with helping to fit everything in one car, and make it easier for cleaning your room to move out.
When moving out, you will have to return your keys and there is the possibility you may want someone to check behind you and make sure your room looks good. Luckily, Carolina Housing has two different options for you to choose from when moving out. The first option is In-Person Checkout which will mean a staff member will come check your room and take your key. This may be useful if you are scared you will forget to do something and can relieve some anxiety around moving out. In-Person checkout is offered Thursday, April 28 – Friday, May 6 from 9am to 8pm and Saturday, May 7 from 9am to 12pm. The second option is Express Checkout. If it comes time to move out and you have done everything and want to move out fast, this option is for you. All you need to do is grab your keys and put them in an envelope which will be provided at your community office. Then you just have to sign the envelope and put it in the correct box. Both of these are great options and you just have to choose which one works better for you.
One big factor in moving out is cleaning everything. Your room must be cleaned before you leave. However, some people forget to clean out some things. Make sure you remember to clean out all desks, dressers, closets, and other cabinets. Some other common things people may forget to clean out can be things like a mini-fridge ( if they are rentals), bathrooms, overhead storage cabinets, or a common area in your suite. It is crucial that you clean everything out of you could get a $75 improper check out fee.
The stress of finals can be overwhelming to some people and that may make them push off packing and preparing for move out. Pushing that off could provide much more stress when you finally do get past your finals. One great way to avoid all that stress is to pack up what you don't need before finals start. This would mean that you have less to pack after finals and you can recover from them without losing your mind trying to move out.
Finally, use the sheet your RA will provide you to help yourself when moving out. No one wants to get the $75 Improper check out fee and Carolina Housing provides this list to make sure you don't. My best advice is to split this up between you and your roommate. Splitting it up will make the sheet feel shorter and allow some stress to be off your back!
Once you move off campus, any mail you send to your old address cannot be processed. It is important to change your mailing address on all your accounts so you can receive the items you have shipped to you. This includes shopping sites, bank statements, and tell any family members about your address change. Visit our Mail Forwarding website for more details!
By Ann Cui – Carolina Housing Marketing Intern 2021-2022
As a freshman, I applied for the BLUE Residential Learning Program (RLP), which provides space and opportunity for innovation, creation, and collaboration within a living community through a partnership between BeAM, Carolina Housing, and the Entrepreneurship Center for the Kenan-Flagler School of Business. While living in Carmichael, I made a lot of friends, and appreciated the help of my RA. Now, allow me to share the top three things I love about living on campus with you!
Carolina Housing will hold events throughout the year, encouraging residents to join and have fun. During my freshman year, two events I enjoyed the most were the Pumpkin Painting at Halloween and the Tie Dye event. My friends and I had a good time!
At Carmichael, there are plenty of activity rooms that residents can reserve and use for their own purpose. For example, sometimes I reserve a room to hold an event for my organization, and sometimes my friends and I prepare for our final exams in it. There are other resources at Carmichael, too. It is the only residence hall that has a Makerspace in it. As a member of BLUE RLP, we had a lot of workshops related to business innovation at the Makerspace. All the equipment there, such as the 3D printers, are also free for all the students to use, even if you don’t live in Carmichael
I am majoring in Media and Journalism (MEJO) and Information and Library Science (INLS), so most of my classes are on north campus. The location of Carmichael is at the center of the campus, and I can walk everywhere. It takes me 10 minutes to walk to the undergraduate library and around 15 minutes to my classrooms.
My first-year on campus connected me with an amazing community!
By: Anna Gedevani, 2021-2022 Marketing Intern
Looking back on my time at UNC, I get nostalgic reminiscing over memories from my first year living on-campus.
In the Fall of 2019, I moved into Ehringhaus Residence Hall (most commonly referred to as Ehaus) , a First-Year Experience residence hall for freshman students. I quickly met my suitemates and created some lifelong friendships with the people I was living with. We met the rest of the people on our floor and attended Week of Welcome activities together. As I adjusted to an entirely new college experience, I was able to appreciate the convenience of living on-campus and loved being able to get anywhere I needed quickly.
I fondly remember going to RHA’s Silent Disco with some of my friends, and I even got a free t-shirt (one that I still wear to this day)! I met even more people from our building through going to Ehaus specific events, like an Ice-Cream Sundae Social spread out throughout the building, with different toppings on each floor.
For a chill night in, my suitemates and I would often grab cookie dough from Rams Head Market, a quick 5 min walk from Ehaus. We would check out a baking sheet from the front desk and watch a show while we made cookies on our floor’s kitchen.
Some of my fondest memories from living on-campus include the simple things, like gathering the group to grab dinner at Chase Dining Hall together, scoping out the menu in advance and trying to figure out what we were most excited for, and those amazing cookies at Chase we grabbed without fail on our way out. Another favorite memory was catching the P2P on weekends at the stop in front of Ehaus and going out to the field hockey field to have fun in the unexpected February snow.
Living on-campus provided me with a great sense of community and helped me to find my place at Carolina. With a wide variety of locations and residence styles, there is sure to be a perfect fit for anyone who wants to live on-campus.
By Anyi Li, 2021-2022 Marketing Intern
My first year living on campus was Fall 2020 to Summer 2021. During that time, I lived in three residence halls, each unique in its style: Craige (four rooms per suite-style), Koury (two rooms per suite-style), and Lewis (corridor-style).
As an out-of-state student, I was among the unfortunate few freshmen unable to visit the campus before starting college. I randomly selected Craige Residence Hall and didn’t expect much when I applied for housing, but the subsequent experience completely surprised me. The housing application asked me many questions, ranging from work and sleep schedules, living habits, extracurricular interests, and attitude towards COVID-19 preventions. Then, it paired me up with my roommate and three other suitemates. With our similar interests and habits, the five of us became friends two short weeks before my suitemates left for home due to COVID-19. We had smoothie nights and girls’ talks, and with similar caution toward COVID-19, we also bonded through our weekly hygiene day.
After the school shut down Craige due to the Pandemic, my roommate Joy and I moved to Koury Residence Hall. Koury’s environment is absolutely fabulous, with white marble floors, spacious rooms, and clear lights. Joy (second right of the girls in both photos above and the first photo below) and I each occupied a room, and the private bathroom between our two rooms afforded us great privacy. Our time together has made us best friends. During the year, I also met two other friends because we are all freshmen who live on campus, Yanchen (second left in the first photo below) and Wenfei (the girl in the red gown in the first photo below). And, our friendships grew consistently strong ever beyond our first year. For example, Yanchen and I surprised Wenfei with a birthday party for her 19th birthday, and Yanchen, Joy, and Wenfei dressed up for my 20th birthday.
When summer started, I moved to Lewis Residence Hall. Though Joy returned home and I no longer have a private bathroom, Lewis’ location in the North campus makes it very convenient for me to shop and dine on Franklin Street. Walking to the newly- opened Moge Tee has become my daily activity to get a watermelon fruit tea.
To the incoming class of 2026, I hope your first-year experience is even more delightful than mine!