<p>On a few of the facebook pages, a bunch of us are trying to figure out what is going on with the two Freshman Days in April. There is one one the 8th and one on the 15th but we don’t have any more info than that. We have tried calling the offices and they haven’t given us any information. What is it, when should we be there, do we have to register and is it something we should really try to attend (since many of us are around 5 to 8 hours away)? These questions keep coming up and no one has been able to provide any answers. Any info will help!!!</p>
<p>I just received my acceptance and haven’t visited American since Preview Day at the end of July/beginning of August. I called American to ask about the Admitted Student Days in April and the person I spoke with said the schedule is not finalized for this year. However, based on last year, the day involves simulated courses, tours of residence halls and campus tours, and various information sessions that cover the University College, dining options, financial aid, study abroad, etc. This definitely was helpful information since I live about 6 hours away! =)</p>
<p>My son received an invitation to Freshman Day April 8th or April 15th (8am-4:15 pm) with his acceptance letter. It was a small card in the packet asking him to RSVP by April 4th by phone 202-885-6000 or by email <a href=“mailto:freshmanday@american.edu”>freshmanday@american.edu</a>. There is no other info with the invitation and I couldn’t find any on the AU website.</p>
<p>We will be attending on the 15th since we have not had the chance to visit American yet and we only live about 2 hrs from there. ¶ </p>
<p>If I find out any other info I"ll post it here. Good luck.</p>
<p>I would only consider Freshman days vital if you haven’t visited AU yet – like 4kiwi – so if there are any of you struggling with the decision about whether or not to come out to DC in April, it is not imperative that you do so.</p>
<p>Freshman days include:
- learning more about available programs and life at AU
- meeting faculty within their respective schools, which provides the ability to ask questions about topics they’re interested in
- in the afternoon, the parents and students split up for a question and answer session: the students go meet with other students within their school, and the parents go often go with an associate dean</p>
<p>It is often a really busy day. </p>
<p>Bottom line: I think Freshman Days are fantastic if you have the type of student who’s really excited to go to AU – and I think it can be helped by thinking about questions in advance that you/your student would like to ask. I have also seen students just sit there and then complain to their parents that it was a waste of time, which if you aren’t going to participate, I guess it is. This is the beginning of what I believe to be the greatest thing about AU, they’ll provide you everything you need to have a superior college experience if you only take the initiative to do so.</p>
<p>Do you feel like it’s likely to be helpful to someone trying to decide between a few options, AU included? </p>
<p>Does it give a feel for the campus, and general student life?</p>
<p>My D is a freshman and we attended last year. I remember the postcard with both the email and phone number. I ended up calling because I had some question (I forget what about now) and the woman who answered the phone gave me a web address on the american.edu site that had all the details including what topics would be covered in talks, tours etc. It helped us think about what we wanted to hear (and split up if necessary) and what could be skipped to just wander campus and absorb. I remember I bookmarked that page because it wasn’t easy to find by clicking through on the admission dept page.<br>
In retrospect, it’s a bit hard to say whether it would help someone on the fence. My daughter had already decided, so for her it was more information gathering, dorms, programs etc. If my kid were on the fence, I could only assume more information would help. I met two families at lunch who were both deciding and everyone was talking about what was important to them, what they had found out etc. Different majors than my D, but it was interesting.</p>
<p>Son interested in Poli-sci and Int relations, has always wanted to study in DC. Accepted to American honors and Tulane honors. Recently visited Tulane and starting to wonder if he would be happier in the south. Any thoughts on strength of American vs Tulane in poli-sci.</p>
<p>I got an email with the schedule. Too hard to post it all here, but breakfast and registration run from 8:15 to 9 in the Bender Arena. Then you breakout by last name to either a college specific discussion or various sessions on life at American, financial aid, study abroad, etc. Then lunch, then a reverse of the above, the college dean receptions. All ends at 4:15pm. You can park in the garages or the Nebraska Ave. lot for free all day.</p>
<p>The schedule for Freshman days April 8th and 15th is posted on AUs website now. I already printed the schedule out. It was easy to find.</p>
<p>4kiwi4 makes me feel stupid. I had a devil of a time finding it!</p>
<p>In case others are having the same trouble, here’s a link:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.american.edu/admissions/events/upload/2011-Freshman-Day.pdf[/url]”>http://www.american.edu/admissions/events/upload/2011-Freshman-Day.pdf</a></p>
<p>Sikorsky-don’t feel stupid. As I noted above, I had difficulty tracking it down last year and then bookmarked it so I would be able to find it easier the next time!</p>
<p>yeah, I wanted to visit the 15th but I have to go on a 16th. instead, because I am visiting College Park on the 15th. I know I will miss something good, will anyone comment in this site how was it? Thanks</p>
<p>colormaker,
I just returned from Freshman Day that took place on April 8th at AU. I had already enrolled, but was just returning to get questions answered, see the dorms and campus a second time, etc. </p>
<p>I really enjoyed it, but I don’t think you necessarily miss anything if you don’t have a lot of questions. It was just sitting through different sessions that you could choose from, including the school that you were accepted into, Honors, University College, Study Abroad, and Internships. There was also a “Life As an Eagle” session where prospective students could ask actual students any questions, campus tours were available, tours of dorms were available, and at the end, there was an informal reception with your school. </p>
<p>I got a lot out of it, but once again, don’t think you’re missing any pertinent information since AU is sending out a lot of mail starting in May until school starts and information is available on the AU Portal for what you have to complete before school starts.</p>
<p>Hope this helps!</p>
<p>Thank you Ebrinka!!! I am looking forward to visit next week!</p>
<p>For those of you who’ve already attended a Freshman Day at AU: how was traffic around the University?</p>
<p>I went with my daughter to Admitted Students Day at Brandeis last Monday: one day for 1400 admitted students, their parents, and in some cases their siblings who got shlepped along. Parking was ample, but the traffic was like move-in day!</p>
<p>Should I expect it to be a mess around Ward Circle? I mean, worse than a normal work day in the District?</p>
<p>Sikorsky-we used Metro so no traffic or parking problems for us. The shuttle from Tenley town was easy to find, easy to use and prompt.</p>
<p>They’d have to extend the Red Line way past Silver Spring for that to be possible for us.</p>
<p>Freshman Days are over for 2011, I think, but in case somebody stumbles across this thread in the future, I’ll say that parking was ample beneath the Katzen Arts Center, and although Military Road was a parking lot, I had no real problem with traffic at AU.</p>