Hall Access & Keys
All residence halls are secured via a card access system. Upon check-in, a resident's Boston College Eagle-One Card is activated to provide 24/7 access to their residence hall.
In addition to one's own residence hall, each resident has 7am–12am access to the other halls in their class area (see chart below), along with 11am–6pm access to the hall where their Mail and Package Center is located.
Residential Area | Hall Access by Residential Communities |
|---|---|
| First-Year Area Students | All halls on Upper and Newton Campus |
| Sophomore Area Students | Roncalli, 66 Comm Ave., Vandy/90, Walsh, Welch, Williams |
| Upperclass Area Students | Voute, Gabelli, Ignacio, Rubenstein, Modulars, Stayer, Greycliff, Thomas More Apts., Reservoir Apts. |
| Off-Campus Students | Students living off-campus do not have access to residence halls |
Boston College departments and vendors that require access to the residence halls should email reslife@bc.edu with the details of their request, including the Eagle numbers of all staff for whom access is being requested.
All residence hall main doors and entry points are equipped with proximity card readers. To unlock these doors, residents can simply hold their card near the reader to unlock the door. Specific doors in each building are marked for emergency exit only. Only use these doors in the even of an emergency, as utilizing them will cause an alarm to sound. Students found using emergency exits in non-emergency situations will be documented through the student conduct system.
Bedroom and common bathroom doors have been upgraded to a proximity reading lock that requires a valid student ID and a four digit PIN code. PINs are unique to the student, not to the lock, much like a PIN for a debit card. PINs only work when they are used in conjunction with the card assigned to a student. Students are responsible for keeping their PIN private. To use a lock that requires a PIN, students should hold their card up to the lock until the light turns yellow. The yellow light while stay on until the student has finished entering in their PIN and then will flash and the door will unlock. Residents are responsible for keeping the keypad combination assigned to them private. Do not share the combination with anyone.
All combination change requests must be made from 9:00AM–5:00PM in the Office of Residential Life, located in Maloney Hall 413. All changes cost $50.00, and the charge is added to the student account of the resident who makes the request. Combination changes must be requested by one of the residents of the room. Students requesting a PIN change will also be assessed a $50.00 fee.
Upon a change request, a new combination will be issued immediately; however, the physical change may take up to 48 hours. Special consideration is given to high-priority needs. The person who makes the request is responsible for contacting all of the members of the suite to inform them of the new combination. The Lock Shop staff will leave a notice on the door when the change is complete.
You are responsible for each key issued to you. Residents are required to replace lost keys from 9:00AM–5:00PM in the Office of Residential Life, located in Maloney Hall 413. Replacement keys are issued for all interior bedroom keys; however, all primary entrances use card swipe access based off the Eagle-One card. All fees are added to the student account. Students who do not return their keys according to the posted check-out instructions will receive the following charges on their student account. Key return receipts are issued upon academic year check-out and should be retained in the case of an incorrect charge.
Replacement keys for bedroom doors within suites and apartments have a $35 charge associated with them.
When the lock is being changed, the new keys will be available in the main office to pick up the morning the lock is changed. All residents must get their own replacement key. A BC ID and the old key are required.
First, check to see if your roommate is around! If the roommate is not available, then between the hours of 8PM and 7AM, students who are locked out should contact the RAs on duty for the night. During the daytime, 7AM until 8PM, students should still seek out an RA, but since they might be in class, students should also seek out their Resident Director. If a locked out student cannot find their RA or RD, they should call the BCPD Non-Emergency line, 617-552-4440, and allow thirty minutes for someone to respond.
Students living in suites or apartments that use keys can obtain a lockout key from the Residential Life main office in Maloney Hall during business hours. The key must be returned within 24 hours or the student will be charged for a Lost Key, and the lock will be changed if necessary. Outside of business hours, students should follow the same procedure in the precedeing paragraph.