<p>Since high school's basically over, looks like I better start figuring a few things out:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Does flying in and out of Chicago work best and cheapest, along with ND shuttle buses?</p></li>
<li><p>Is planning to stay until Christmas fine (or is campus totally dead at fall break and Thanksgiving)?</p></li>
<li><p>Without wheels, what are my options when I need anything off campus?</p></li>
<li><p>Which meal plan is best?</p></li>
<li><p>Is laundry plan worth the $$'s?</p></li>
<li><p>Will I be fine with only my credit union ATM debit card (links to Cirrus, Star, NYCE, co op)?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Looking forward to August and the start of my ND career, but I obviously have lots to learn. Any and all advice much appreciated. Thanks!</p>
If your local airport has flights to South Bend, that’s really convenient. If not, Coach USA runs buses all day every day from both Chicago airports. It should only take a few minutes on a travel website to figure out what’s cheapest for you. I’ve personally done both and have been fine every time.</p>
<p>
I left for Fall break, but a few friends stayed and basically just drank heavily all week, so some people do it. I was one of like 4/250 people in my dorm that stayed for Thanksgiving, the dining halls closed (except one meal on Thanksgiving Day), and I resorted to beef jerky and Dr Pepper to survive.</p>
<p>
You probably won’t need to go off campus often, but you can either get a taxi or borrow a car from an upperclassman in your dorm (freshmen can’t have cars first semester). Should be simple to figure out.</p>
<p>
Almost everyone is on the main one (14 meals, $355 flex points a semester), and barely anyone ever runs out of meals in a week, so I strongly recommend that one.</p>
<p>
Depends on you. If you don’t know how to do laundry or don’t want to (and have the money), go for it. Plenty of my friends do it, they just leave their bags in the basement every week. However, every dorm has a laundry room and doing your own is very simple and widespread.</p>
<p>
If you get a ND Credit Union account, you can use the ATM free of charge; if it’s another type of card, you have to pay $1 or $2 per withdrawal. I can’t guarantee specifics about a card I know nothing about, but if it works in most places, I’m sure it’ll work at ND’s ATM and Subway/BK/etc.</p>
<p>That all seems pretty accurate, but I would add that if you need to get off campus, South Bend buses are free with an ND student ID. There is one that will take you to the mall. However, if you need to do a Target run, the best way is to get a cab or borrow a car. You CAN walk from where the bus stops near the mall to the shopping area with Target, etc, but having done that freshman year in an ill-advised attempt to save cab fare, I wouldn’t really recommend it… But you don’t need to get off campus much freshman year anyway. Almost everything you need is available on campus and what isn’t can be ordered online. </p>
<p>Also, the ATM on campus doesn’t charge a fee for students to use it (however, your own bank may charge a fee for using an ATM outside their system). I got through 4 years with Wells Fargo just fine.</p>
<p>I would also like to point out that, if you want to stay for fall break and Thanksgiving, that the dining halls are closed for fall break which makes things difficult but North is, in fact, open for Thanksgiving, albeit with limited hours. It is much easier to stay for Thanksgiving than it is for either fall or spring break. I have stayed twice and gone home twice for Thanksgiving. Both has its benefits. I stayed for fall break three years ago and I would NOT recommend it.</p>
I think the policy changed. I have Wells Fargo and get charged, and the ATM has a little sign on it that says “$1 fee for non-ND Credit Union cards.” A friend with another bank also gets charged, I think it’s pretty uniform.</p>
<p>
The student center has a barber and a hair salon.</p>
<p>
The Eddy Street Commons is just barely off campus and one of the few places safe to walk through in South Bend at night. It’s got Chipotle, Five Guys, Kilwins, and several other restaurants and bars and stores. Next year, you’ll be able to use Domer Dollars (but not Flex Points) at most places there.</p>
<p>Everyone (or at least 98% of campus) gets the shirt. If you don’t order it now, it can be picked up at the bookstore. The price is up this year, to $18. I’d wait, since a lot of ND clubs give the shirt away at their send-offs right before students leave for Fall semester.</p>
<p>I’m coming from West Coast, flying into Indianpolis Thursday night August 17th. How important is it to report to ND at 9:00 AM Fri morning? Would I miss much (including euphoria of meeting new friends and roommate) if I didn’t make it until Fri Noon?</p>
<p>I strongly recommend you arrive at 9am or thereabouts. Frosh-O staff will be waiting outside your dorm to unload your car, carry everything into the dorm and upstairs, and loft your bed. They like getting everyone done quickly and one after the other, so it’s probably best for you to arrive promptly so they can get everyone done. </p>
<p>I don’t know what would happen if you arrived three hours late, but it’s quite possible your dorm’s Frosh-O staff won’t be there. I don’t remember exactly when I was moved in, but I remember it was maybe half an hour after we got in line at the university, and after they got us all moved in, Frosh-O staff had other things to do. I’m on Morrissey’s Frosh-O staff this year, and my schedule for Friday says “9:00 AM - … Freshman Move-In begins,” so I’m sorry I can’t give you an exact answer.</p>
<p>If there’s a complication, I would call the university the day before to explain; if it’s just a matter of sleeping in, then sorry, but I suggest you get there on time. I hadn’t slept in over twenty hours, having driven through the night from Florida, but all of my fatigue was forgotten with the rush of move-in and the first day of Frosh-O.</p>
<p>All freshmen will get move-in instructions from the university. If this year is like prior years, you will have a window of about 1 1/2 hours to unload at the dorm. During that time, your pass will allow you do drive on campus to your dorm. If you miss your time period, you will be put in line behind others who are moving in during their assigned period. There are usually only two periods, and you may not be assigned to the one that starts at 9:00 (they were 9-10:30 and 10:30-12 last year.) Organized activities start in the afternoon and go very late into the night. Some are for students and parents, others for just students or just parents. ND does a very good job with the move-in process, and the upperclassmen/women are wonderful. You will be able to make better decisions once you get your dorm packet later in the summer. There is a great video on youtube about move-in at ND. I’ll post the link if I can find it.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the info. For a clueless Freshman, it really helps.</p>
<p>One more question. My financial aid package came listing Federal Work Study. I checked yes, without any real understanding of what it is and how it works.</p>
<p>a) Am I committed to any lame job they tell me I have to do?</p>
<p>b) Do I go around applying for campus jobs?</p>
<p>c) What if I change my mind and don’t want to work? Would it only affect my pocketbook, or would I be looking at other ramifications?</p>
<p>You aren’t tied to one particular job, no. You do have to “apply” for jobs, but if you want to work in one of the dining halls (the most common work study job, at least for freshmen), you’ll get the job. There will be tables set up in the dining halls during Frosh-O talking about information sessions. There’s somewhere online you can check for other jobs once you get your InsideND username/password, and you’ll probably hear of a few other jobs around campus or your dorm in the first few weeks.</p>
<p>It’s given to you to help pay for college. If you don’t decide to do it, then you just won’t get the money. If you report an outside scholarship, it might replace some of your work study. If you decide you don’t want to do work/study, and you hadn’t received the maximum federal loan ($5500 for freshman year), you could contact the financial aid office to eliminate the work/study and increase your loan.</p>
<p>I’ve already got family and friends asking me to obtain various items of ND memorabilia–caps, shirts, keychains, etc. What’s my best bet:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Order from home on the Notre Dame website.</p></li>
<li><p>Wait until I get to campus and shop the Notre Dame bookstore.</p></li>
<li><p>Wait until I arrive in South Bend and see what’s carried in WalMart, K-Mart, drugstores (would this even be the same stuff, or just some cheap knockoff items which would be embarrassing?).</p></li>
<li><p>None of the above. Please weigh in with any better options I haven’t included.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>My advice would be to tell your family and friends to wait until you get to campus, no point spending shipping etc from the ND bookstore over the summer. Maybe give in to your parents if they are begging for a shirt to wear this summer!.</p>
<p>Walmarts etc do carry knock-offs, generally cheaper quality material etc. The bookstore items are good quality, though more expensive. </p>
<p>I’d definitely recommend sticking with the bookstore during the semester, unless you want an ND shirt this summer, as Midwestmomofboys suggests.</p>
<p>If your parents want to buy stuff during Frosh-O weekend, that’s good for them, but if you want to buy something, definitely wait until a time when there are no parents/alumni hanging around… that’s when things start to go on sale. Hats are usually upward of $20, but a friend of mine got one on sale for around $6 during a random time of the year.</p>
<p>If you’re just looking for random stuff that says “Notre Dame,” go to the nearby Walgreens. Basically half the store is ND apparel.</p>
<p>My family’s cell phone plan just went “off contract”. I’m able to select a new provider. Do all carriers work equally well on campus, or is carrier coverage at ND and in South Bend a factor I should consider? I’m assuming there’s no advantage to waiting until Freshman move-in, but perhaps I’m wrong. Any thoughts are most appreciated.</p>