Move-In Resources

2025 Move-In Schedule

Move-In for buildings on campus are grouped into two days: Saturday, August 23 or Sunday, August 24. See below for which applies to you!

To ensure Move-In is a smooth experience, McMaster would ask you to follow our Move-In maps for arriving on campus. Below, each residence has a Route Map link, which will open a PDF. There is also a Google Maps link to a “Start Point”, which you can use for turn-by-turn navigation to reach the beginning of the Move-In route.

McMaster’s Housing & Conference Services team has put together a list of suggested items to pack for residence.

View the PDF here

McMaster University has a number of social media channels to help you get acquainted and informed with campus. This includes residence-specific channels on Instagram for real-time updates.

Make sure all of your belongings are clearly labelled; this will help move-in volunteers deliver your packages to their proper location.

Label your belongings with your name, residence and room number.

Have your barcode ready! One week prior to Move-In, you will receive an email from Residence Admissions with your unique check-in barcode on your Car Tag. Residence staff will scan this code and digitally check you into residence during move-in; please make sure to have government-issued ID on hand to confirm your identity.

The following dining locations are open during Move-In. Operating hours are for Saturday August 23 and Sunday August 24 unless otherwise noted.

Visit McMaster Hospitality

Submit Your Photo for Your MacCard

All incoming students for the 2025/2026 academic year will receive a printed MacCard student identification card.To receive your card, you are must first upload a passport-style photo and a piece of government-issued ID. If you have not submitted your photo yet, please complete this essential step as soon as possible. Instructions to upload your photo.

Card pick-up dates and locations:

• Move-In weekend: August 23 & 24, you can pick up your MacCard in MUSC.
• Welcome Week: August 25 – 29, you can pick up your MacCard at the Campus Connect booth in MUSC.
• First Week of School: From September 2 onward, you can pick up your MacCard at the MacCard and Parking Counter within the Campus Store.

Coming this Fall, MacCard will launch a pilot mobile student identification card for both iPhone and Android. Students will have the ability to use both the physical card and mobile card interchangeably.

If you have any additional questions, check out the FAQ on the MacCard website or email maccard@mcmaster.ca.

During move-in and throughout your time at McMaster, it’s important to recycle properly and reduce waste wherever we can.

Hamilton uses a two-stream recycling system, which means:

• Paper products (like cardboard boxes, newspapers, paper bags) go in one bin
• Containers (like plastic bottles, cans, glass jars, milk cartons) go in another

Mixing them together will result in contamination, and the materials could end up in landfill.

During move-in, additional bins will be in place to help us further reduce waste. Please use dedicated cardboard-only bins for boxes and in residence.

In your welcome packet, you have received a laundry card. You can either load money onto the laundry card via the kiosks on campus, or manage your balance through Coinamatic’s app.

See more details about laundry on our information page.

If you’ve forgotten anything for your new home, you can find local shops and what they provide below.

• Pharmasave (Pharmacy, general goods) – Located in the Student Centre (MUSC)
• Shoppers Drug Mart (Pharmacy, general goods) – 1341 Main St W, Hamilton
• Home Hardware (Hardware, home goods) – 101 Osler Drive unit #96A, Dundas
• Canadian Tire (Hardware, home goods) – 119 Osler Dr, Dundas, ON L9H 6X4
• Walmart (General shopping) – 675 Upper James Street, Hamilton
• Costco Wholesale (Bulk shopping) – 100 Legend Ct, Hamilton, ON

To get mail or parcels delivered to McMaster, you’ll need to follow the below template for your new address:

Your Name (First and Last)
Residence Building Name, Room Number
Your Quad’s Service Centre
1280 Main Street West
Hamilton, Ontario
L8S 4M6

McMaster will route your mail appropriately to the Service Centre, who will be in touch for you to pick up your mail. Below, you can find which Service Centre serves your residence.

Example:

Riley McMaster
Brandon Hall, 101A
North Quad Service Centre
1280 Main Street West
Hamilton, Ontario
L8S 4M6

Room Change Request Waiting List

The Room Change Request Waiting List is now open for students who wish to be considered for a different room type other than their current assignment. Room change requests are on a first-come, first-serve basis. A room change request is not guaranteed and a room change will only be granted if/when a space becomes available through a cancellation. No room changes will commence before Move-In weekend.

To view the terms and begin this request:

• Please log in to your Housing Portal using your MacID and password
• Click Undergraduate Residence on the top menu
• Select your Residence Term
• Proceed into the application and to the Room Change Request Step

When you’re new to campus life, you may have questions that require a bit more help to answer. Below are a list of resources that can help you:

Service Centres: Service Centre desks can help you with a number of questions, including how to receive mail, report any issues with your residence room, and navigating around campus. They can be found in the Commons Building (for North Quad residences) and the Mary E. Keyes Residence lobby (for West Quad residences).

Community Advisors: Community Advisors (CAs) are here to support your journey to residence. They live on your floor, and are trained to help you mediate disputes, get used to campus life, and introduce you to your new social circle. Lean on them!

The Student Success Centre: McMaster’s Student Success Centre is specifically geared to make sure you have a great experience during First Year. They’ve developed resources, webinars and blog posts to help, and are available for support.

Housing Live Chat: For many other issues, you can ask our Housing live chat for help. Every page on this web site has a “word balloon” bubble in the bottom-right corner. Clicking on that will initiate a live chat session with our staff.