<p>Attending the orientation means I can register for classes 3 days earlier than not attending. That sounds like a decade because at my community colleges, even a minute can make a difference when it comes to registering for classes. How hard is it to get into classes at UCSC? $110 (orientation fee) is a lot for a college student who needs to pay for her own tuition..
I will have to register for organic chemistry, calculus, and hopefully some upper division courses.</p>
<p>i can’t afford orientation either. i contacted my major’s department and was promised add codes for certain classes, and e-mailed teachers to find out their policies regarding late adds. enrolling this way is probably harder than just attending orientation but hey i don’t have financial aid to waive that $110 :(</p>
<p>I keep telling people this, but check with the department(s) you are interested in. From what I have seen, many of UCSC’s classes are full. However, I was told by at least one department some spots are being held specifically for Winter 2010 Transfers. You might also luck out and get a promise for add codes.</p>
<p>If your department is not going to be in attendance at Orientation, the only real benefit I’ve seen is the earlier registration, student ID being done, getting better acquainted with the campus, having questions answered by the different departments on campus (financial aid, admissions, etc), and workshops among many other things.</p>
<p>$110 is a lot, but for me personally, orientation is worth going. By waiting those few extra days, even if there are spots open for transfers you might lose out on them if they’re being reserved for those at Orientation.</p>
<p>Since the deadline to register for Orientation is tomorrow, I would call (rather than email as I did) the department(s) you are interested in as early as possible tomorrow to find out what you can about their attendance and what you should do if the courses you need/want for your intended major are unavailable (I would HIGHLY recommend looking up exactly which classes you want to take so you can see what their current enrollment numbers are).</p>