Mobile Phone Guide

College Mobile Device Policy

All college-owned mobile devices (phones, tablets, internet hubs/sticks) are subject to corporate policy.

Lost or Stolen College Mobile Devices

  1. Contact Bell Mobility immediately (1-800-667-0123) to disable service. Any charges incurred while the phone is active and out of your possession will not be refunded
  2. Report loss to the IT Service Desk

College Mobile Phone Purchasing

How do I request purchase of a College mobile device?

Managers can request a mobile phone purchase on behalf of an employee.

See Mobile Device Purchase or Upgrade in the IT services catalogue for complete instructions.

Are discount mobile plans available for personal phones?

Bell Mobility does not offer discounted plans for personal or non-corporate mobile devices.

OPSEU members: See member discount programs for personal Bell Mobility plans through the union.

Domestic and International Service Plans

What are the domestic voice and data plan features?

Domestic voice and data plan features apply to usage in Canada only.

See current Canadian mobile services (PDF), in effect as of 2019 April 1.

Can I use my College mobile phone outside of Canada?

Use of College mobile devices outside of Canada is not encouraged and can incur high usage costs. Users may travel with their phone if

  • They have received approval from their manager, and
  • An appropriate roaming package is requested and applied a minimum of 4 business days before departure


To request a mobile roaming package, see Mobile Device Travel and Roaming in the IT services catalogue.

College Mobile Service Management

How do I temporarily suspend service for a mobile number?

Temporary service suspension allows you to pause service and reduce the monthly service price of a device that isn't currently being used.

Temporary suspension

  • Can be applied for up to 6 months. After 6 months, service is reactivated automatically.
  • Can be removed at any time if the device is placed back into service or reassigned to a new owner.
  • Extends the 2-year contract term by the number of days that the device is suspended. Contract extension does not apply to numbers that have already completed their 2-year service contract.


To request a temporary service suspension, request Bell Account Change or Inquiry through the IT Self-Service Portal and include the mobile number of the device.

How do I terminate service for a mobile number?

Service can be terminated for any device that is no longer in use.

  • Terminating a number that has not completed its 2-year service contract will be subject to early termination fees. The fees will vary based on the amount of time left on the 2-year contract.
  • Terminated numbers cannot be reassigned.
  • The earliest end date for terminating service is 30 days.
  • The terminated device must have all data an user accounts removed, and be returned to the IT Service Desk for inventory.


To request service termination or to check early termination fees, request Bell Account Change or Inquiry through the IT Self-Service Portal and include the mobile number of the device.

How do I reset my mobile phone voicemail PIN?

Request Bell Account Change or Inquiry through the IT Self-Service Portal and include your mobile phone number to request a voicemail PIN reset.

Data Roaming Tips

Normal data usage within Canada may result in alarmingly high data costs outside of Canada, even with a roaming package applied.

  • Make sure you're fully aware of what your roaming package includes before departing. They do not include usage aboard planes, boats, or cruise ships.
  • Travelling close to the US border may cause your phone to automatically connect to a US provider if their signal is stronger.
  • When connected to a foreign network, you will receive a warning text from Bell Mobility. Turn on airplane mode if you do not intend to use that network.

Always go for WiFi

Use Wi-Fi where you can. Doing so might also have the added benefit of increasing your battery life, since fewer apps are pulling on resources.

Monitor your data usage

Review what is using cellular data and make any necessary changes or adjustments in your usage.

  • In iOS, look under Settings > Cellular or Mobile data
  • In Android, look under Settings > Wireless & Networks > Data usage
  • On Samsung devices under Settings > Connections > Data usage

Turn off Push or Auto-Sync

A good way to shield your data from being consumed without you being aware is to restrict apps from automatically synchronizing with a remote server.

E-mail apps allow you to set the sync interval to specific time periods, such as every hour, or to manually update only when the app is opened by the user. This can be found in the app’s settings and will vary slightly between apps.

Photo apps with auto-backup features will allow you to choose to sync only when wi-fi is available.

Disable background data for high-usage apps

Android and iPhone devices allow you to block specific applications from using mobile data when they are not open in the foreground and in use by the user. Background data is commonly use by social media apps, news readers, photo, video, games, and music apps.

To block background data in Android

  1. Long-press the app’s icon > tap Info
  2. Tap Data Usage
  3. Turn off Background Data
  4. Ensure that Unrestricted Data Usage is turned OFF


To block background data on iPhone

  1. Tap Settings > Cellular - or - Settings > Mobile Data
  2. Scroll down to see the list of apps using mobile data.
  3. Tap the toggle switch to turn mobile data off.

Set a data limit

Android allows users to set a mobile data limit. Once that limit has been reached, your phone will prevent any app from using data will only allow them to use Wi-Fi connections. See data limit instructions from Google⤻

On iPhone, you can disable data usage for individual apps. See instructions from Apple support⤻

Avoid music or video streaming on your data connection

iTunes and Google Music will allow you to download music to your phone to avoid the use of mobile data for streaming songs.

In Google Music

  1. Tap My Library
  2. Locate album you wish to download
  3. Tap … > Download


In iTunes on your mobile phone

  1. Locate the album you wish to download.
  2. Tap the cloud download icon.
  3. The cloud download icon will change to a checkmark when the album is downloaded.

Disable WiFI assist (iPhone)

Apple devices can use mobile data when your WiFi connection is slow. This can be disabled in settings.

On iPhones

  1. Tap Settings > Cellular - or - Settings > Mobile Data
  2. Scroll down and disable Wifi Assist

Take your maps offline

Navigation uses large amounts of data. You can download a specific map region for navigation use when travelling outside of Canada.

In Google Maps

  1. Search for the region or city you would like to download
  2. Tap Menu > Offline Maps
  3. Tap Select Your Own Map
  4. Select the area you wish to download.
  5. Tap Download