The University of Western Ontario

Location

Located in London, the majority of the Western University campus is surrounded by residential neighbourhoods with Thames River crossing the eastern side of the campus. The western side of the campus is the transportation hub of the university. London as a city has a great nightlife and many extracurricular things to do like volunteering and leisure activities. One can spend time at the Budweiser Gardens, Medway Valley Heritage Gardens, the Covent Market and countless other places in London. And remember, Toronto is just 167 km away!

Campus

Western University campus is spread across a lavish 1120 acres with most of the academic facilities are in the main 414 acres. With 8 departments, more than 7000 students and 239 faculty members, the Faculty of Social Science is the largest faculty at Western University. Established in 1942, the beautiful Western University's ‘McIntosh Gallery' has a collection of over 3500 art objects that are not just Canadian but also British, American, Italian and French. The ‘Biotron Experimental Climate Change Research Centre’ is a unique building that houses specialised environmental chambers, labs and equipment dedicated to environmental research, biotechnologies and biomaterials.
The University College (Tower) & Beryl Ivey Garden are the common attractions for visitors and students. There is an Observatory on campus which often holds astronomy nights for viewing the skies through a telescope.

Residing Options

If you like traditional settings, go for Medway-Sydenham Hall, Saugeen-Maitland Hall and Delaware Hall. Alumni House, Elgin Hall, Essex Hall and London Hall are the suite style residences. Perth Hall and Ontario Hall are the hybrid style residences. Students hate the elevators and wifi at the residences; for being too slow. Western University’s website mentions the housing facility for about $1750 a month. If you want a house for cheap, try off campus living. The house rent can cost from CAD 300 to 350 per person. If you want an apartment then it can go to CAD 750. The monthly food bill could be around CAD 400 to 500. Living off-campus may save you about CAD 1000. Students point out that the bus transit system is a little unreliable.

Faculty

The total number of faculty is 1414 with the faculty to student ratio being 1:24. The professors at Western University are always there to help and students point out that they are even tolerant of questions in the lectures, no matter how absurd those questions are. Its ‘Faculty of Social Science' is internationally reputed and the course on ‘library sciences' makes a mark as one of the only 8 accredited Canadian courses under the American Library Association. The Business School of Western University has made a mark over the years for being rigorous and transformational.