As first-year students arrive at residence on Western University campus, they are greeted with a fun and cheeky song by upper-year students. “First years out the car, first years out the car!” they chanted. Once they step out of the vehicle, they ask the student’s name and program. It’s a way to break the ice for those venturing into new territory and moving out for the first time. “I’m most excited about being able to leave my house because now I have so much more freedom,” said Gavin Chen, a medical science student from Scarborough, Ont. “I can stay out longer and stuff like that.” Thousands of students are moving to London this weekend at Western, Kings University, and Fanshawe College. “It’s an exciting day for Western and the local community, welcoming 6,800 students to campus and moving into residence through new homes, away from home,” said Chris Alleyne, Associate VP, Housing and Ancillary Services at Western. “It takes a village, certainly, to welcome the entirety of the student population back over the next couple of days.” With the largest first-year residence program in the province, more than 5,200 freshman students and nearly 2,000 others are moving into residence on campus this weekend. At the Richmond Street gates on University Drive, construction of a new 792-bed residence is coming along. It is scheduled to open in September 2027. “It’s a real important part of ensuring that we’re able to maintain our first-year residence guarantee that we’ve offered for three decades to students coming to Western,” said Alleyne. Across the city at Fanshawe College, more than 1,600 students are arriving to on-campus housing. “It’s always an exciting time of year for us,” said Erica Robertson, general manager of Fanshawe’s Residence and Conference Centre. “It’s exciting to see all the students and all the parents who also have a lot of nerves going on. Every year is a fresh, new round of students but we have some returnees as well.” One of those new students is 17-year-old Josh Neal of Guelph. He’s enrolled in the Golf and Club Management program. “I’m coming a few hours from here, so it’s a little different, but it’ll be fun when we’re all settled in,” said Neal, who was asking about local golf courses to play while in the city. “It is another step in the journey, but some people are here from my hometown, makes it a little nicer. It’s fun to meet some people and take a new step in life.”
