<p>All major providers seem to work well in South Bend and on campus in general. However, my dorm (Morrissey) destroys cell phone reception. I have AT&T, and it simply did not work in my room (except up in my lofted bed for some reason), or my common room, or the hallway, but did work in the basement just fine. People with Verizon seemed to fare a little better. Allegedly, there’s an AT&T tower on campus, but I don’t believe it. In my experience, I’d recommend Verizon, but there might be something weird with your dorm.</p>
<p>On football Saturdays, everyone is equally dead.</p>
<p>My Mom is already planning to send me to ND with two big suitcases and to ship me four good sized boxes of additional stuff. How much stuff did you take to start your freshman year, and more importantly how much do you actually need?</p>
<p>You need less than you think. Bring warm weather clothes plus one jacket (like North Face) when you come in August. You can take some of these clothes home at fall break and bring back warmer clothes if the weather has cooled down. You will need a dress up outfit like a suit/fancy dress (gender-dependent!) for dances, but not right away. Don’t forget a swimsuit for the swim test which happens like first week of the semester. You can buy anything you need at Target, Walmart, or Bed, Bath, and Beyond when you get here. Also, check with your roommate since you only need one coffeemaker, fan, fridge, rug, etc.<br>
Two suitcases and four boxes doesn’t sound like a lot, depending on what’s in them. I knew a few people who brought SUV’s full of stuff and spent the entire year taking stuff home!
Let me know if you have questions about specific items.</p>
<p>shipping packages: just note that there is no secure place for packages if you ship PRIOR to your arrival…unless Mom sends to UPS–and then you have to retrieve from UPS, which I believe is out by the airport. And the mail center that distributes mail to dorms is VERY busy the first few weeks of school…</p>
<p>When we brought our daughter to ND we shipped all packages to the hotel that we stayed in(Jameson Inn South Bend) Of course I called and asked for their permission first. When we got to the hotel they brought us to a storage area and our boxes were there. It surprised me that no one else had done that.Enjoy ND! You are blessed to be there!</p>
<p>^ Yes, we did that too… Marriott expects lots of shipments during move in week. They did appreciate the heads up…and we had a note at check in that packages were waiting…and they kindly held them until we were ready to move them to the dorm.</p>
<p>With approximately 2,000 Freshman starting in August, how many will be coming solo, i.e. without an accompanying parent? My folks have seen the campus previously, I tend to think I can handle this myself. What would they be missing? Thoughts?</p>
<p>I went with my son for Freshman move-in this past August and I would say most of the students had at least one parent with them. I personally did not need to see the campus again as I had visited several times previously, but it was good I was there to make the many runs to Bed, Bath and Beyond and all the other stores for the little things you don’t think of or don’t realize you need until you move in. </p>
<p>It was nice to be able to be there for this rite of passage.</p>
<p>Our son also appreciated the opportunity to crash in my hotel room for a nice air-conditioned nap after being kept up into the wee morning hours with silly Frosh-O activities.</p>
<p>Flex points are part of one of the meal plans and can be used only on campus primarily for food. They can be used in the dining halls, and most restaurants on campus including the fast food places in LaFun. They can also be used in the Huddle for non-food items, as well. Unused points will roll over from fall to spring semester, but all expire at the end of spring semester. Last year, $355 per semester were included in the 14-meal plan. The 21-meal plan does not include flex points, but few people choose that one.
Domer dollars are purchased in any amount and can be used in the same places that flex points can be used plus at the bookstore and for doing laundry. A few places off campus will start taking them this fall, hopefully more in the future. When you leave campus for the last time, remaining domer dollars will be refunded to you. You/your parents can add money to the plans through the internet and this limits the amount of cash you need to carry since the funds are on your ID card and you can just swipe for anything you need. Use your flex points first since they expire. Your points will get you through the semester without a problem if you are careful (for example, coffee at the Huddle is about a buck vs $3.50 or more at Starbucks!)
As far as going solo at orientation: my roommate came without parents last year. My parents took us both shopping and to dinner over the weekend, so there are plenty of people to help if you need it. Parents seem to adopt any extra freshmen, and it’s a good way to start making friends.</p>
<p>Thanks to everyone for the great tips. This board has so many helpful folks.</p>
<p>Three more quick ones:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>ND authorized some company to send me an order form for outfitting a dorm room–hundreds for special sheets, etc. Worth it? Necessary?</p></li>
<li><p>Same questions regarding $25 for some Freshman directory recent which recently arrived. Does everyone use this?</p></li>
<li><p>ND just sent mean Sallie Mae brochure which says you can sign up for a monthly pay plan for $40. Any body have experience using this plan? Seems like it may make sense.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks again to everyone who’s trying to help a clueless freshman.</p>
<p>Daughter chose to get the freshman register. Otherwise known as the old “dog” book for those of you who attended ND long ago. self sell 2000 of them and she knew of several kids getting it. if its a waste oh we’ll.</p>
<p>We use the Sallie Mae plan and have for 2 years. I think that we actually save money using it instead of writing the “Big Check” all at once draining our assets. This way our money works for us and we can make payments. The $40.00 is a bargain and the process is easy.
My daughters roommate got the sheets through the schools brochure. They did it because it was easier for them. I thought they seemed rough but her roommate never complained about them! I guess it depends how picky you are about your sheets. Keep in mind there are plenty of stores near ND that you can buy sheets.
Bed Bath and Beyond allows you to pick out your items at your local store and pick your goods up at the store near ND. Just tell them when you will pick them up and they will be waiting for you.Don’t forget to stock up on BBB coupons…expired coupons are accepted!</p>
<p>Please pardon another Dumb Q, but I see IrishMary reporting that room assignments are up. So far I’ve been unable to see that, even when I log-on to “InsideND”. What am I doing wrong? Where do you go to find your room assignment?</p>
<p>After you log-on to “InsideND”, click on the Student Life Tab ( with FYS and Academic tabs), then click on “Housing”. This should direct you to your housing info. You could also log into “InsideND” and go to your gmail account; there should be a letter from the housing office with housing info. Good luck!</p>