Rhodes University Accommodation and Hostel

Approximately half of our students are accommodated within our 55 Residences and the other half of the students stay off-campus and are referred to as Oppidans.

Residences

The Rhodes residential system is a key factor contributing to this tradition of friendship and kinship.  Currently consisting of fourteen halls of residence, each housing between 50 to 120 students, grouped around a central dining hall.  Each residence has four houses that have individual constitutions, rules and traditions.  Some halls have both men’s and women’s houses, while others are for men or women only.

Although most student rooms are single, some first-year students may be allocated to the few double rooms in various residences:  an application may also be made for a double room.  The residences are run by hall wardens who are responsible for the general organisation and management of the hall, with the hall committee, acting as an advisory body.  Hall and house wardens are always available to help and advise students, but their function is not that of a surrogate parent or “watchdog”.  Rules are kept to a minimum but are there to maintain an orderly, peaceful environment conducive to studying and community living.

Life in residence: The rooms in residence are equipped with all the basic furniture and comforts needed, but students may decide to bring a few extras to make their rooms feel more like home. All rooms have a bed, wardrobe, mirror, worktable and chair, table lamp, bookcase, carpeting or a mat, and a heater. Many rooms have a small bedside locker and a washbasin (with hot and cold water in certain residences). Curtains and bedding are provided, but towels are not, so three or four towels should be brought by students, including swimming towels. Students are responsible for cleaning their own rooms, for which basic cleaning materials are provided. Students often wish to set an individual stamp on their rooms. This can be done in several ways, perhaps by substituting their own curtains, duvet cover, and carpet. A bean bag or cushions make the furnishings more interesting. Other useful items might include a tray, coffee mugs, kettle, jug, teaspoons and glasses, coat hangers, an alarm clock and a torch (as no candles are permitted).

The residences are graded according to their location and to the facilities available (e.g. availability of hot and cold water in each room). Each residence has at least one TV lounge with DSTV and DVD access. Over the years, students in certain residences have raised funds for the purchase of additional amenities such as pool tables. Each residence has its own ‘launderette’.

Some residence Halls have their own web pages which give a good idea of residence life at Rhodes University; links to these pages can be found at http://www.ru.ac.za/studentlife/residences

Some basic guidelines are common to all the residences:

1. Privacy: A student may not enter other students’ rooms without their permission.

2. Hours of quiet: Reasonable quiet is expected at all times and particularly before 12 noon, between 2.00 pm and 5.00 pm and from 8.00 pm onwards.

3. Alcohol: There are strict regulations governing alcohol on campus or in any residence. No spirits are permitted in residence.

4. Night leave: Students are requested, in their own interest, to let someone know where they are at night.

5. Catering: Balanced meals are planned on a two-week cycle, ensuring that the nutritional needs of students are met. As previously mentioned, various diets are available e.g. vegetarian, Muslim, Hindu, African. Student representatives meet regularly with catering staff to discuss problems and make suggestions.

6. Insurance: The University does not accept responsibility for students’ possessions if lost, stolen or damaged, so students are advised to lock their bedroom doors. It is also advisable to check that possession are covered by personal insurance, particularly in the case of foreign students.

7. Clothing: Grahamstown weather can do a whistle-stop tour of all four seasons in a day, so students will need some summer clothes in winter and vice versa. Casual clothes are worn to lectures, but some formal and semi-formal outfits should be included for balls, dinners, dances and parties.

Name tags should be sewn into clothing.

8. Pocket money: Rhodes life is inexpensive and large amounts of money are unnecessary. Depending on what needs to be provided, an amount of R350 to R500 per month should be adequate. A bank account that can be accessed through an ATM is a useful way of transferring money. There are ATMs on campus.

Oppidans

An oppidan is an inhabitant of a University town, a student living off-campus in accommodation rented independently of Rhodes, also known as Oppi in short.

There is an Oppidan Committee whose purpose is to engage with students and look after their interests through keeping open channels of communication.  They also assist oppidan students by providing a support base in the transition between schools and University.  They organize events in order to foster a sense of togetherness so that oppies do not feel excluded from University life because they do not live on-campus. Advice is given on signing lease agreements and being an employer.

Though the oppidan committee first-year students can request to be assigned a mentor who will assist them adjust and settle to the University life off-campus.

Oppidans have access to facilities such as the Stephen Bantu Biko building, where the Oppidan dining hall is located, as well as the Oppidan common room where students can relax and have tea and coffee, watch TV or play a game of pool in-between lectures.  Free bus service is available until 10 pm on weekdays to transport Oppidans.

For further information please visit:  http://www.ru.ac.za/oppidan

Student Support

University life is not always plain sailing.  While some settle down quickly and easily, others need a bit of help and support along the way.  Through the office of Student Affairs Rhodes is geared to providing assistance of all kinds:  free and confidential support from Counselling centre, professional and comprehensive primary healthcare from the Health Care Center and the caring and sensitive gardening staff who are ready to go the extra mile to ensure that students are happy and able to focus on their studies.

Some students know where they are headed, others want to find out; either way through the Career centre students get wide exposure to study and career opportunities with professional guidance to help match interests, abilities with career options.  The career centre offers year-round advice and workshops to help students plan properly for careers that lie ahead.  A well-subscribed Graduate Recruitment Programme runs during the third term where over sixty national and international employers visit to recruit students.

Student Sports

The University has many active sports clubs to choose from.  A wide range of activities is supported by excellent competitive and recreational facilities and equipment which all students are entitled to make use of, at whatever level, enabling both competitive and recreational sportspeople to fulfil sporting ambitions.  All the sports facilities, excluding those required for rowing, sailing and canoe, are located on-campus and within easy walking distance from the residences.  Involvement in sports at Rhodes holds the promise of opportunity, achievement, enjoyment, the establishment of lifelong friendships and, above all, a well-rounded university experience.  If you are serious about your sporting and recreational pursuits and want to experience the enjoyment and camaraderie that sport can provide, Rhodes is the place for you!