Considering your first year at university can cost as much as a decent used car, you might feel like you’re paying to be stressed out. You’ll need to account for sprawling class sizes and massive lecture halls, hours of tutorials and seminars, five-dollar lattes and the mandatory purchases of expensive textbooks. Your first few weeks at Brock might leave you feeling drained — not just in your personal life, but your bank account too.
What often goes unspoken is that your tuition isn’t just buying you access to lectures and exams. It’s investing in a campus built with services designed to help you academically, mentally, physically and financially.
From personal counselling and on-campus health services to state-of-the-art athletic centres, public transit and discounts, there’s real value in what you’re already paying for. Unfortunately, many students don’t realize this until they’re halfway through their degree.
For many students, this is their first time living away from home. You’re responsible for your time, your learning and your well-being. It’s a big shift and if your mind and body aren’t properly supported, success feels harder to achieve.
Enter Brock’s Student Wellness and Accessibility Centre.
Funded directly by your tuition, this centre encompasses four main service offerings: personal counselling, student health, student accessibility and the wellness hub.
Personal counselling is available through drop-in, group sessions or scheduled appointments, all with trained professionals ready to work with you and support you through homesickness, academic misconduct, roommate drama, procrastination and anything else that might be on your mind.
Student health services is a one-of-a-kind clinic within the Niagara Region. Providing a range of medical care options for all students. They can help you with just about anything from birth control and vaccinations to psychiatric care, STI prevention and treatment, gender affirming care and concussion management.
Student health services is also your one-stop shop for prescription refills, doctors’ notes and referrals, with short wait times and staff who understand what students are going through.
Student accessibility services offer accessible solutions to students with disabilities, enhancing academic participation and ensuring equal access to opportunities. Registration can be completed online, and accommodations are tailored and individualized on a case-by-case basis.
For students seeking to improve habits and engage in open conversations about stress, sleep, nutrition and well-being, the Wellness Hub, located within Market Hall, offers peer-to-peer support on every aspect of student life.
Physical health and staying active are also great ways to pass the time in between classes or to get your mind off school. Brock’s sports facilities aren’t just decent; they are some of the best facilities in the province.
Walker Sports Complex provides access to intramural and drop-in sports. Basketball, swimming, pickleball and more are all available with provided equipment and schedules available online. Go alone and make some new friends, or bring your friends to add some fun rivalry.
If you’d rather lift weights like Arnold Schwarzenegger than shoot hoops like Michael Jordan, you’ll appreciate Brock’s gym, The Zone. The Zone is a state-of-the-art workout facility with everything from squat racks and cable machines to a yoga studio, spin classes, Stairmasters and a 200-meter track. Even during peak times, there’s always something to do. The Zone is staffed by student trainers, meaning there’s always someone ready to help whether you’re a gym regular or trying it out for the first time.
After your workout, you can relax in the hot tub found in the aquatic center, or the saunas found in either locker rooms. These amenities make the Walker Sports Complex feel more like a spa than a school.
For those of us who wish to venture off campus, the Niagara Region has so much to offer. With your universal bus pass, you can get almost anywhere, from Lake Ontario to Niagara Falls.
If you don’t know where to start, try the spots that offer student discounts, like K1 Speed, Aerosports Trampoline Park, the Performing Arts Centre’s Flim House or Niagara Parks. Being a Brock student comes with some wonderful perks no matter where you’re located in Niagara.
Your tuition goes beyond the confines of a lecture hall and can be seen throughout Brock’s campus. It buys access to a network of tools and resources that give back to the students, creating an environment for academic success and self-fulfillment. Everything you need to thrive at Brock is here waiting for you so you can make every second count from day one.