Inside RC4: A Year 1’s Guide to the Spaces You’ll Actually Use
Inside RC4: A Y1’s Guide to the Spaces You'll Actually Use
Written by Sarah Tan
If you've been trying to picture what RC4 actually looks like to live in, and you missed out on the room tours during Open House, this is for you. From what you may have seen on our Instagram (OrcaSnaps), RCs has a reputation for resembling a Changi chalet, a resort, or a condo. Having lived here, I'd say that's not far off from the truth. The campus is lush with palm trees, the lounges are warm and wood-toned, and every room comes with an air-conditioner, a detail that feels small until you remember not every RC can say the same. Here's a look at the spaces that make up daily life here.
Your Room
Move-in day involves more luggage than you'd expect: pillows, bolsters, bedsheets, and whatever decorations you want to make the space feel like yours. Every room comes with a super single bed, a large cabinet with two drawers, a study table, a side table, and a standing cubbyhole. Suite residents get a shared living area and split two toilets and two showers among six suitemates; corridor rooms use a common washroom instead, and come at a slightly lower price point.
A look into our Residents’ cosy rooms (Photo Credits: Anh, Zedd, Louis)
Floor Lounges
One of RC4's best features is having a lounge on every single floor. Residents are divided into houses, with Aquila spanning levels 3 to 5, Noctua on 6 to 8, and so on up to Draco at the 17th floor. No two lounges look or function the same. Some are kitted out for gaming, with a Nintendo Switch or PS4. Others are set up for focused work, with multiple monitors and large tables suited to meetings or group discussions. Others still lean into leisure, with bean bags, ball pits, and soft toys. These roles aren't fixed either, and residents have real creative say over how these spaces are decorated and used.
Eating, studying and playing in the RC4 Lounges (Photo Credits: Sarah, Jeshua, Xavier)
Common Lounge (COLO)
The common lounge on the first floor pulls a lot of weight. It is perfect for leisure, housing a karaoke set, a pool table, and an emergency snack corner. Yet, it is also a popular study spot, with plenty of couches and study tables and the three printers that see heavy use closer to exam season. Karaoke nights are a highlight of college life here, with the lights dimmed and the room full of residents singing their hearts out. COLO has also played host to house events like chocolate fondue nights and Christmas gift exchanges, and it's the go-to spot to grab a late-night snack when UTown feels too far away at 3am.
Sem 1 Exchanger Farewell held in COLO (Photo Credits: CSC Pubs)
Themed Rooms
RC4's themed rooms are where many of its interest groups are rooted, and where a lot of firsts happen. The cooking space in Themed Room 4 (TR4) has seen residents attempt latte art, make bubble tea and Dubai cookies from scratch, and cook full meals from steak frites to aglio olio. The music room is stocked with drums, guitars, and keyboards, giving residents a space to jam and practise ahead of performances at Arts Night, Slumber Party, and Formal Dinner. The games room offers a pool table, a foosball table, and a range of board games for casual and competitive play alike. RC4 has its own gym too, open round the clock, whether you prefer an early 6am session or a midnight push.
Orcabakes baking tiramisu in TR4 (Photo Credits: Shiwen)
RC4’s gym room and music room
Oasis and Study Spaces
The Oasis is RC4's dedicated decompression room, and uniquely, the only space in college where studying is banned. It is stocked with bean bags, a massage chair, and colouring books, designed purely for rest and unwinding. For those who do want to study, options are plentiful beyond the floor lounges: levels 6 and 12 have dedicated study rooms with large whiteboards, and during exam season, the seminar rooms are opened up for resident use as well. These same seminar rooms are where UTCP lessons are held, which means class is quite literally just a lift ride away!.
Residents destressing in Oasis.
Multi-Purpose Sports Hall
The Multi-Purpose Sports Hall is fully air-conditioned and spans just over two badminton courts. It serves as the home base for many of RC4's sports interest groups, and the convenience is hard to overstate: RC4-exclusive booking means no stress over booking slots, no travelling across campus for training, and sessions can run as late as 1am for those who enjoy the late night workout.
Orientation games in the MPSH (Photo Credits: CSC Pubs)
RC4’s Badminton ICG team winning gold in the MPSH (Photo Credits: Sarah)
Dining Hall
The dining hall, shared between RC4 and CAPT, offers a spread across multiple cuisines for breakfast and lunch, closer in feel to a hotel buffet than a typical school canteen. All residents purchase a meal plan each semester, which includes special meal enhancements throughout the term: think smoked salmon bagels and live egg stations for breakfast, donburi bowls and lamb chops for dinner, and desserts ranging from Udders Ice Cream to daifuku and cake. Eating here is never boring, and some residents even pack their breakfast to reheat later as lunch. The dining hall also takes on a different character on special occasions, from Open Mic nights to Christmas, where staff have been known to don Santa hats and go caroling with residents.
RC4 Informal Dinner in the Dining Hall (Photo Credits: CSC Pubs)
Your Move
RC4 can feel like a lot to take in, even before you have moved in, but remember this: it is a place designed to be lived in fully. The facilities are not just amenities listed on a brochure; they are where friendships form, where new interests take root, and where the quieter, unhurried parts of college life happen.
If you have any questions, you can find us on Instagram and TikTok. RC applications are now open until Monday, 20 April 2026, and we hope to see you soon as part of the #RC4You!
