My daughter has committed to OU for Fall 2015. She will be moving halfway across the country to attend, so I’m starting to look at the best way to move her out there. I see that the Sooner Orientation Weekend is tentatively scheduled for August 13-16, 2015. Also, she plans to participate in Fall Recruitment. Does anybody know when rush week is; does it coincide with orientation? We are also trying to decide on whether or not she will bring her vehicle or if we will fly her out there. If we decide to fly, does anybody know if the resident halls will receive boxes/packages prior to their assigned move in date? Has anybody moved a college student across the country, because I would love to hear recommendations!
I don’t think the calendar has been posted yet, although you can contact [OU’s Greek Life](http://www.ou.edu/content/studentlife/get_involved/fssl.html) to find out if/ when they’ll post the schedule. I’m almost positive that recruitment is the week before orientation though.
You may want to contact OU’s Housing Office about this, although I suspect there will be information posted on Ozone in a few months regarding this question.
I’m from California and attend OU. Prior to that, I attended a school in Georgia. When I attended the Georgia college, my parents shipped my most important belongings across the country, and my mom flew out with me so that I could buy the necessary dorm supplies. When I transferred to OU, I loaded my car with all of my important possessions and drove from GA to OK.
Personally I prefer having a car on campus since it’s both financially doable and practical in that I’m not just limited to a bike whenever I need to get groceries, hang out with friends, or buy needed supplies. I’m also not the type to dread a multiday drive by myself, although I know most of my peers would prefer flying.
Whenhen, thank you so much for the information. It’s great to hear from somebody with experience. I’m definitely gravitating toward allowing her to bring her vehicle; I can’t imagine being without mine! She isn’t one for driving long distances by herself, so I’m not sure she will like coming back and forth to Orlando, FL over the summers. I might have to leave that up to her.
I will definitely contact housing and get their guidelines.
Soonermom, my D is a freshman at OU living in the dorms and she is managing fine without a car. Shopping and restaurants are in easy walking distance from campus, there are buses (which I doubt she has ever taken), and many of her friends have cars and they tend to go places in groups. In my view, a car at OU is a luxury and not a necessity. Our plan for fall 2015 is that D will share a student apartment with a friend. We plan for her to have a car then but I still don’t see it as an absolute necessity.
@Soonermom, I’ll ditto what @ohmmom said - my freshman D does not have a car in Norman either, and has not found it to be a problem at all. We even offered recently to let her take the car she has shared with siblings, for next semester, and she said she’d rather wait until next year when she is in an apartment. Surprised me, for sure!
Regarding moving a college student across-country, our older D attends a school far from us. We used the Bed Bath and Beyond service that allows you to purchase items at your local store which you then pick up at a store close to the university. We did that for everything from bedding and towels to hangers, bathroom caddy, etc. Then, she and I flew there for move-in, so with checked luggage for two people (I traveled lightly with one carryon, checking 2 of her bags as mine), and a shipped box or two later on (winter clothes etc.), she was good to go.
ohmmom ~ Thanks so much for your response. I can understand why she wants her car; I get it. But I agree, it’s certainly not a necessity. She will probably go out there without it, at least her first year. We can decide what to do the subsequent years when the time comes.
tikimom ~ I had no idea BBB had that service. That will definitely be convenient and we will look into it. We have toyed with the idea of flying and packing her items in all of the checked luggage, while I utilize carry-on only. It seems to make the most sense.
Since my daughter plans on rushing, she has indicated that she wants me to be there on bid day. I wish I had more info on when that takes place. She has committed to the rowing team and will be staying in Headington Hall. I’ve heard that she might be able to make arrangements for early move in since she will be a student athlete. I’m hoping that’s the case if she needs to be out there a full week before orientation.
@ohmmom A car is a luxury but it’s a very nice luxury after freshman year, when most students move off campus. I was writing that from the perspective of an upperclassman, not a freshman.
@Soonermom2015 your daughter may want to wait until second semester to rush since she’s a student athlete. Juggling the demands of off campus practice, sorority events, and academics can be exhausting even for the best student.
@ohmmom, for what it’s worth, the 2014 fall schedule was:
Wed 8/6 - panhellenic move in day, 1:00 optional parent orientation, 3:00 mandatory meeting for students (parents welcome to attend and generally did, but left after that), student meetings with RhoGammas (recruitment guides) that evening
Thurs 8/7 - Mon 8/11 - 4 rounds of parties (1st round spans 2 days)
Tues 8/12 - bid day
Thurs 8/14 - general freshman move-in (somewhat flexible if prior arrangements are made - my D’s roommate moved in on the 13th for example)
Thurs 8/14 - Sat 8/15 Sooner Orientation Weekend
@tikimon ~ Thanks for the information on last year’s formal recruitment dates. That information helps tremendously!
You’re most welcome @Soonermom2015 - I meant to tag you in that post but tagged ohmmom instead by mistake!
I looked on the academic calendar on the OU website and it said the first day of class is Aug 24 2015. I’m not sure that’s correct, maybe a call to the school would confirm it. I figured that would make rush start on Aug 12, then orientation is right afterwards.
We drove my oldest daughter to Texas from CA. We spent 3 days in the SUV with 5 people and stuff piled to the ceiling. It was a wonderful trip and very scenic. But, she didn’t have to rush until spring. I’m not sure I would want the commotion of that drive with the tension of rush the next day. If D2 does go to OK, still waiting for that acceptance, I think she and I will fly. I would pack in a couple suitcases what she needs for rush, and send the rest Fed ex to arrive at the dorms after she gets there.
We also used the BBB service. It works like a bridal registry. Below is a link we found a few months ago with details of previous rush.
Just a note on ‘next year’. S1 is moving off campus with a bunch of other guys from Walker 10. The apartment complex has shuttle service as well, so we are not going to be providing or recommending a car on campus.
Need to find the article, but I read that for items you ship, you might consider buying space bags- those vacuum bags. It allows you to get more items in a box. Just don’t get it so heavy you can’t haul it up the stairs.