Campus tours

Join us for a tour and see what our campus has to offer. Learn about co-op, housing, faculties, University Colleges, and more!

We offer several tour types so you can customize your visit based on your interests. Campus tours are highly recommended as they give an overview of what it’s like to be a Waterloo student and show some key campus locations and services.

Tours of our faculties, University Colleges, and specific residences are also available on select days and are great additions to the general campus tour. 

Tour types

Note: All tours start and end in the Visitors Centre in South Campus Hall (SCH).

Campus tour

Offered: Monday – Saturday at 11 a.m., 12 p.m., and 2:30 p.m.
Length: 90 minutes

Campus tours are led by current students who will share what it’s like to be a Waterloo Warrior. On this 3-kilometre walking tour, you’ll see our co-op and career centre, places to eat and study, a classroom, University Colleges, recreation facilities, and one of our largest residences.

Are you interested in an in-depth look at your faculty of interest? Check out our faculty tours.

During our exam periods in December, April, and August, campus tour offerings are subject to scheduling changes based on staff availability. There may be limited tour offerings based on the University exam schedules and interim closures during these times.

During our exam periods, campus tours are also unable to go onto residence floors and see student rooms due to the exam quiet hours policy in place for our students. Visitors booked for campus tours during the exam period will still get to see a residence common area (lounge).

Please note that during September and October 2023 tours are unable to go onto residence floors and see student rooms. Visitors booked for campus tours during this time will still see a residence common area to see the space.

Faculty tours

Our faculty tours take you into academic, social, and study spaces commonly used by students in a particular faculty. Not sure which faculty offers your program(s) of interest? Check out our list of programs by faculty.

Faculty of Arts tour

Offered: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10:30 a.m.
Length: 45 minutes

Visit the classrooms, study spaces, and hangouts to get to know the Faculty of Arts. Use the special instructions section when booking your tour to indicate if you require information about Fine Arts, Music, or Theatre and Performance.

Faculty of Engineering tour

Offered: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Length: 1.5 hours

Explore the state-of-the-art facilities within the Faculty of Engineering and hear about academic, co-op, and student life experiences from a current Engineering student. This tour is for prospective undergraduate students.

Faculty of Environment tour

Offered: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10:30 a.m.
Length: 45 minutes

Visit the facilities that Environment students call home, from classrooms and student spaces to our Ecology Lab and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Environment 3 building.

Faculty of Health tour

Offered: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 1 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

Visit the classrooms, labs, study areas, and social spaces that our Health Sciences, Kinesiology, Public Health, and Recreation students call home.

Faculty of Mathematics tour

Offered: Monday – Friday at 1 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

Learn about programs and student life in the Faculty of Mathematics and David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science.

Faculty of Science tour

Offered: Monday – Friday at 2 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

Learn about programs and student life in the Faculty of Science while seeing student spaces, classrooms, and labs.

School of Accounting and Finance tour

Offered: Monday and Wednesday at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Length: 45 minutes

Tour the School of Accounting and Finance while learning more about programs, student resources, and campus life.

University College tours

A University College is a smaller community on Waterloo’s main campus that offers residence and academic programs within the larger University of Waterloo. Students from all six faculties at Waterloo choose to live in a University College. Learn more about University Colleges.

St. Jerome’s University tour

Offered: Monday – Friday at 11:30 a.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

St. Jerome's University tours include common spaces like our library, classrooms, chapel, cafeteria, and residence buildings. Find out why students from all six faculties at Waterloo call St. Jerome's their 'home away from home' each year.

Renison University College tour

Offered: Monday – Friday at 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

Learn about the supportive, close-knit community at Renison. Hear about our programs including Social Development Studies and Social Work, residence life, and 150+ paid student leadership opportunities.

Conrad Grebel University College tour

Offered: Monday – Friday at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., and Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

While touring Waterloo's smallest residence you'll connect with current students to learn about what makes the Grebel community so special. Conrad Grebel houses the Peace and Conflict Studies and Music departments and has students from all six faculties living in residence.

United College tour

Offered: Monday – Friday at 11:30 a.m., Saturdays at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

United College (formerly St. Paul’s University College) is the campus lead for Indigenous Studies, Canadian Studies, and Human Rights. There are single and unique double residence rooms with private washrooms. It has a French Residence floor and Living Learning Communities for Environment, Women in Engineering, and Financial Analysis and Risk Management. Greenhouse, our social entrepreneurship incubator, is also located here.

Campus Housing tours

While our campus tour includes a stop in one of our largest residences, if you’d like to explore more of our residence communities, register for one of our residence-focused tours. Our University Colleges offer additional residence options on campus.

Residence tour – Villages

Offered: Wednesday and Friday at 9:30 a.m.
Length: 1 hour

Learn about some of the popular residence options on the north end of campus which include a suite-style residence where you can cook your own meals as well as traditional-style residences with their own cafeterias. Stop by a student's room to get a better understanding of what it’s like to live on campus.

Residence tour – UW Place

Offered: Monday – Friday at 3 p.m.
Length: 1 hour

Learn about our residence options on the south end of campus which include a suite-style residence where you can cook your own meals as well as a traditional-style residence with a cafeteria. Stop by a student's room to get a better understanding of what it’s like to live on campus.

Booking details

Once you click the link to the tour registration page, you can click on the calendar to see which tours are available each day. Learn about each type of tour to see which tours you'd like to participate in and which days they are offered. We ask that you limit your group to a maximum of three people so we can safely accommodate as many visitors as possible.

Directions and instructions for your visit

When you register for a tour, you'll receive an automated email confirmation. You'll also receive an email 48 hours before your tour with directions and tips for your visit. You may also receive texts about your tour booking. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Interested in seeing multiple residences?

If you're interested in seeing multiple residence options or touring faculties on a weekend, please consider registering for an upcoming open house, typically held on a Saturday in late October/early November and in mid-March.

Upcoming open houses will be listed on our tours and events page.

Not able to book a certain date?

If a tour doesn’t appear when you click on a day, the tour is fully booked or is not offered that day. Please check back to see if spaces become available due to cancellations.

The University of Waterloo is closed on holidays and we do not offer tours between semesters when our student ambassadors are unavailable (late December through early January, late April through early May, and late August through early September).

Masking recommendation

Wearing a mask is strongly encouraged in all indoor spaces. When you are in close contact with others, please consider wearing a tight-fitting, multi-layer mask. A medical-style mask is best. We all have a role to play to protect the most vulnerable in our society.

Masks are available at the Visitors Centre when you arrive on campus if you'd like one. We are confident that everyone in the Waterloo community will continue to do what is necessary to stay safe and to protect each other.