Ask Questions about Vassar Here!

<p>i think the average is 4 and you need a special permission to take more than 5.</p>

<p>What is the best way to experience The Mug and Founder’s Day on an informal visit?</p>

<p>^ I would not suggest informally visiting on Founder’s Day… hahaha. It’s super fun, but honestly, it’s a student thing. It’s a day for hanging out with your friends. Plus you won’t get much of a sense of the school academically on Founder’s Day… </p>

<p>As for the Mug, to get in as a non-student, you have to have a visitor’s pass, and you have to be 18.</p>

<p>Thanks for the information dc89. Experiencing the school academically is an awesome idea. It is unfortunate that The College does not put much academic content online, I guess MIT with the OpenCourseWare thing has raised the bar pretty high. </p>

<p>Where do you get a visitors pass? Can you obtain it at the front gate or from Admisisons? Do you just show an ID to get a pass?</p>

<p>Any women’s crew team members out there? My D (rising senior) loves rowing, but isn’t really at the level to be a “recruited athlete”. Should she contact the coach prior to coming for interviews?</p>

<p>My daughter is a proud incoming member of the Vassar Class of '13 and we have a question. We’re trying to figure out what she should be taking with her. She, in her spare time, enjoys a bit of Rock Band and is wondering if a)this is a silly, childish thing which she should leave behind her, or b) should she bring her gear along just in case there are others there with the same proclivities?</p>

<p>Any advice would be welcome. If it’s just not done, or every third person already has his/her’s there already, we won’t bother. Less to move is a good thing.</p>

<p>Not childish at all. The big screens in the lounges are great for gaming when one can get to them. My D relaxes with a bit of xBox every so often. More guys into games as is usual.</p>

<p>Check out: [No</a> Such Organization](<a href=“http://vsa.vassar.edu/~nso/index.html]No”>http://vsa.vassar.edu/~nso/index.html)</p>

<p>Less is more and I do suspect that there will be others there. The NSO has some hardware students can use. You can always ship it to her if she doesn’t find enough/any there.</p>

<p>It is definitely a way to meet new people</p>

<p>Meeting new people would be good. Thanks, wolfwarrior and ctParent. </p>

<p>I’ve got a few more questions if anyone would like to field them.</p>

<p>Firstly: the D wants to have her car with her. Would she need to re-register her car in NY? If so, what costs are involved? Does she really need her car with her anyway? </p>

<p>Secondly: will we know anything about the roommate situation before she actually gets there? It would be so helpful to have contact info beforehand - maybe get to know one another on facebook, etc.</p>

<p>Thanks again for any help.</p>

<p>I understand we get notified about roomates mid-August so that we can contact each other, get to know each other and figure out who’s bringing what. </p>

<p>I have no idea about the car thing, sorry.</p>

<p>Thanks, simply lily. I’m happy with any and all information.</p>

<p>By re-register, do you mean license in the state of NY? For students, as long as they maintain their residency in their home state that generally suffices. Is the car in your name or hers? If parents are on the title you definitely don’t have to re-tag it. I’m pretty sure that even if it is in her name as long as her permanent residency is still with you, she can leave it licensed there.</p>

<p>@musicmaker… I have several friends who have cars on-campus and, while having a car is by no means necessary, it is a nice option. There’s a shuttle service run by the school, but personally, I’ve found its nicer to be dependent on friends to go off campus than on a bus schedule. I’d say my friends and I probably go off campus for either an errand or some other reason (mall, movie, dinner out, museum visit, etc.) every other weekend. I don’t remember either friend having to reregister their cars in New York. In terms of costs… it’s $50 a semester to have your car on-campus.</p>

<p>I believe I actually got my roommate assignment (two years ago now, so I’m a little dated) in early/mid-July. I think we were told not to expect anything until August, but actually heard back early.</p>

<p>NEValu: thanks for the info. The car is registered to me, so I’m guessing we’re covered there.</p>

<p>littleathiest: She’s used to her independence, and would rather have people bother her for rides to places than have to ask for favors. $50/semester is really reasonable. I also think the car would serve rather like a security blanket - something familiar from home. I just hope it makes the 1500 mile drive in one piece. </p>

<p>simply lily was saying the roommate assignments wouldn’t be known until the middle of August - that seems so late, as the dorms open August 26th. Well, I guess it will all work out somehow. I’m new at this send-the-kid-to-college thing - it all seems strange and almost insurmountable at the moment. </p>

<p>Thank you all for your help. I’m sure I’ll have more questions before all is done.</p>

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<p>I thought so too, actually. It makes sense, though, that they would tell us earlier but officialy make the deadline mid-August just in case, like they did with admissions…</p>

<p>How would you go about getting a driver’s license? Where I live you have to go through at least 28 driving lessons but I hear it’s different in the US?</p>

<p>simply lily: I don’t really know anything about the driver’s license issue, but I did a quick google search, which you probably have done as well, and saw an article on a travel site on ynet, [Israeli</a> driver’s license to become valid in US - Israel Travel, Ynetnews](<a href=“Israeli driver's license to become valid in US”>Israeli driver's license to become valid in US), which says that Israel was issuing driver’s licenses that were usable in the US. The date of the article was Sept., 2006. Is that something that is available now?</p>

<p>Lily,
getting your first driver’s license in the US is considerably easier in the US than in most other countries, especially as someone over 18 years of age. There are no minimum # of lessons or even practice hours for adults. Probably the most difficult thing in NY will be standing in line at the Dept. of Motor Vehicles offices. A written test based on a booklet that you can either pick up or probably access on line (not sure if NY has their’s online or not?) and a road test will be required; as well as having adequate identification and the ability to pass a very basic eye test. When you get settled in you can either look in the yellow pages for a driving instructor or even see if any of your classmates are game for showing you the ropes!</p>

<p>NEValu -
Thank you so much for the info! It does sound much easier to learn how to drive in the US, though most of my friends actually had to take much more than the minimum 28 lessons that are required and practically no one passes the test the first time. Hopefully I’m a quicker study than they are, I don’t know, and hopefully I’ll find someone who’ll be willing to teach me!</p>

<p>musicmaker -
Thanks to you too, obviously. Unfortunately, I never got around to getting a license in Israel and now I probably won’t make it until August…</p>

<p>I’m shopping for a mattress pad for my D’s dorm bed. Anybody know the type of mattresses used? How plush does this pad need to be? And, are the rooms cold in the winter or overheated? I’m assuming that the floors are bare, but if they are not, please tell me. </p>

<p>Thanks for the help. I hate being 1500 miles away from the source.</p>

<p>musicmaker -
The beds are regular twin size. I’m not sure if you’re talking about a mattress pad as in the thing tht goes under your sheets or a foam mattress pad, but I’d definitely suggest a foam one - I have one that’s probably an inch and a half thick and it makes my bed so much more comfortable.
The heating really depends on what room you’re in and what dorm you’re in, for instance, in Noyes there’s central heating so it’s all the same, but in Strong there are “zones” and “sensor rooms” and the heat goes on when all the sensor rooms in a zone get, on average, below a certain temperature - so it can get pretty cold(or warm) at times depending where you are.
The floors are bare - I’d definitely suggest a rug, but that’s something I would buy once your daughter is moved in and knows what kind of floor space she has.</p>