The Hall's motto is "Felix Qui Potuit Rerum Cognoscere Causas" which means "Happy is he who is able to discover the reason for things".

In April 2017, following an extended battle against alumni and heritage groups, the ANU obtained final approval for demolition of Bruce Hall's historic buildings.

It currently consists of a seven-storey building containing the Dining Hall, and a separate four-storey Packard Wing housing postgraduates and older undergraduates.

Meals, as well as major functions, are held in the Bill Packard Dining Hall, which is also notable for being home to Leonard French's Seven Days of Creation series.

The Packard wing provides studios, both single and double occupancy, with individual kitchens and bathrooms for postgraduate and later-year undergraduate students.

[13] A shortcut between Clunies Ross Drive and Daley Road just south of Bruce Hall was closed by students digging a ditch.

Bruce Hall was audited by the Federated Liquor and Allied Trades Union, as it was accused of breaking the minimum time rule for casual workers.

The ANU had claimed it was not subject to rulings of the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission as it was created by its own act of parliament, but later changed its position on the matter.

A 2012 site inventory of the ANU Acton Campus in 2012 had noted that the original Bruce Hall met the criteria for Commonwealth Heritage.

Journalist Karen Hardy, a former resident, wrote of the ANU's proposals in the Fairfax Press: "It's not about being an '800-bed facility', Bruce Hall isn't a hospital, or a prison, or a hotel.

"[22] Historian Bill Gammage, a former resident, told the ABC that if demolition was even being considered that would be "alarming" because the hall "self evidently has so many advantages in terms of tradition and student comfort and so on".

[11] In June 2016, Andrew Hargrave, a former president of the college, also made the case for preservation in the Fairfax press:[23] "Bruce Hall is a campus landmark, designed to create a 'monumental effect' at the top of University Avenue.

It was the ANU's first undergraduate hall of residence, and the first in Australia to admit both men and women – a liberal concept that soon spread nationally.

The Canberra Times reported on 4 April 2017: "The head of the Bruce Hall Alumni Association says some devastated former residents will never return to the Australian National University after the Federal Court gave the green light for demolition to begin on the residential college.

A heritage assessment stated, “Bruce Hall is representative of the late-twentieth century stripped classical style of architecture, as implemented by Bunning and Madden.

Under directive from the Australian National University legal office in anticipation of Voluntary Student Unionism legislation, at its annual general meeting held on 11 October 2006 the committee removed the word association from its title to avoid any perceived confusion with student unions and renamed itself to the "Bruce Hall Common Room Committee."

The Common Room Committee (CRC) consists of multiple portfolios which run events at the college, including O-week and Bush Week.

All roles on the CRC report to the President, who is responsible for coordinating the team, representing Bruce on a university level and liasing with administration staff.

[34] Jodi McAlister, the author of the Bruce Hall plays in 2004, 2005 and 2006, has since written a trilogy of young adult fiction novels, the Valentine series, published by Penguin Australia.

A number of residents, both current and former, have proceeded into a higher level of sporting achievement, notably Frank Farina, former national football coach.