<p>Last spring, my oldest daughter and I did the Express BamaBound…we found it pretty unorganized and frustrating for the most part (mainly because they kept the students and parents segregated but that’s a rant I’m sure no one wants to hear). Last week we did the regular 2-day session with my younger daughter and found it less aggravating on the one hand (partially because I knew more what to expect and that it seemed to be staffed better) and we both agreed that the agenda was pretty heavily padded to stretch it over two days. I’d be interested in other opinions on the thing overall…was it two days well spent? Could it have easily been done in one day? Am I just being overly cynical (maybe expecting too much for my time and money?)? Wouldn’t be the first time…:)</p>
<p>I think there’s definitely some “fluff” in the schedule. But remember it is an orientation. That means giving the kids a chance to get familiar with the campus and even a little of the surrounding areas. </p>
<p>Sometimes we forget that Bama Bound is some kids first or second time ever on campus. I think spreading it out over 2 days gives those kids a chance to get a feel of the campus and orientate themselves to where things are so they aren’t lost when they report in August.</p>
<p>I don’t like the one day schedule…but the 2 day has it’s imperfections. </p>
<p>The 2 day is better, but get rid of the redundancy.</p>
<p>That said, the 2 day has gotten better. When I went to it 4 years ago, lots of redundancy. they had surveys everywhere, and parents gave lots of feedback.</p>
<p>When I went again, it was better.</p>
<p>The express was not so good in my opinion, but it could be revised to fit. Pre-Health, Pre-Law, and Greek Life meetings were during math and foreign language placement exams. This was also the time that clubs had tables set up in the Ferg. By the time I finished spanish and french exams, everyone was packed up. Then we sat in meetings detailing info which could mostly be searched and instantly found on UA’s website. That being said, I could have tolerated more fluff for the sake of meeting more people and attending meetings about topics i’m actually interested in.</p>
<p>i thought bama bound was kind of a waste of time. i would like it if they had something more like fish camp where kids go and mostly make friends and have fun. butt it up against a one day bama bound with only the necessities (math placement, advising, and class signups).</p>
<p>I guess, being cynical, when I’m required to participate in something like that and I’m forced to shell out yet another fee to attend (not to mention hotel and such) I’d like to see something a little better for my money. Bottom line was that we were there to register for classes; in the one day session, this was almost an after thought and very rushed…my daughter got almost no time with a counselor and was basically on her own just trying to find available classes to make a complete schedule (I had to help her as best I could via text messaging since parents were banned from accompanying the students to registration). With the two day session, it went a bit better. I especially appreciated the counseling session at the end of Day 1 where the head counselor for your particular college went over the freshman requirements and other tips…and the cool part was that they actually encouraged/allowed parents to participate with the students which I really appreciated. If I were King, i would do the counseling session the morning of Day 1, break for a long lunch so everyone can go online and look at available classes and come up with a game plan, and then have everyone register for classes right after lunch. Then spend the rest of the afternoon on the things that may or may not appeal to the parents and students. Then fill Day 2 with things like freshman housing, the Bama Cash hard sell and campus tours and such. But then if everyone got registered on Day 1, most people wouldn’t bother with Day 2…so there is probably method to their madness. But I do give credit…most of the things that were a disaster on the one day session (staffing, parking, everything running behind schedule) were operating much better on the two day session.</p>
<p>yeah - when we first signed up i thought DD and I would go, but then dad ended up coming too. (this, of course, after i had already paid for a dorm room for myself) so we paid for two parents to attend. not sure why the parents even need to pay. we got a tote bag with junk in it, but nothing very necessary. i guess we each got a bama cash card to use for lunch, oh, and a breakfast, too, i think.</p>
<p>some of the sessions were ok and some were a complete waste of time.</p>
<p>i don’t remember the cost per parent (50? 100?) plus the cost of a hotel for two nights (80ish) added up to a good bit for not that much benefit. the biggest benefit we had was that dad (who had not been that involved with the college choosing) got to see why we made the decision that we did.</p>
<p>I enjoyed the 2 day Bama Bound because both of my parents were able to attend (it was my dad’s first visit to UA) and I met some cool people.</p>
<p>I’ve found that while I enjoy leading orientation sessions, I tend to avoid them otherwise. Apart from meeting fellow freshmen and getting a feel for campus, all of Bama Bound can be accomplished by attending a webinar (like AlcoholEdu already is) or reading CC. My academic situation caused a lot of confusion at the group advising session and required a phone call to my advisor (who doesn’t attend the Bama Bound sessions) to fix, so the advising and registration sessions of Bama Bound were more of a chore in my case than a useful activity. </p>
<p>I’d like to see the Freshman Week of Welcome (WOW) expanded and the information session part of Bama Bound incorporated into that. Registration can be done online in late May, especially if flowcharts are created for each major. Any issues can be solved via email and often don’t need to involve advisors (I could likely do 90% of CBA advising with a book of degree checklists and an academic catalog next to my computer and would probably do it for free if asked).</p>