<p>What is this FTCAP? I know its a placement test, but to you need to travel to State College to take it? If so, when? Also, what is there for freshman orientations (not the summer session)?</p>
<p>Thanks for your help...We are...</p>
<p>FTCAP is much more than a placement test. You do the placement test online PRIOR to going to the FTCAP One-Day Session. At FTCAP, you receive your test results, get some basic coaching on requirements and sign up for fall classes. They also give you a basic orientation to PSU. You sign up for email and bank accounts. It's a very important session and they do a nice job with so many kids.
Orientation continues in the fall. Freshman come a few days early and there are many events. Some are offered by your school - others by PSU in general.
I would also recommend ORION (offered in the summer) if you like the outdoors. It a 5-day backpacking trip for new students in the nearby mountains - lots of fun and cheap too. Great way to meet a few kids before you get on campus in the fall.
Good luck!!</p>
<p>Hopefully this will answer your questions about FTCAP:</p>
<p> <a href="http://www.psu.edu/dus/ftcap/">http://www.psu.edu/dus/ftcap/</a> </p>
<p>If you have been admitted to UP, then you will take it at UP. I've heard it's a whole day, so plan accordingly.</p>
<p>I also found these pages about first year orientation, which occurs after your move date in August:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.psu.edu/ouic/orientation100/%5B/url%5D">http://www.psu.edu/ouic/orientation100/</a>
<p>This one's about what happened in Fall 2006 during orientation week:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.psu.edu/ouic/fa06.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.psu.edu/ouic/fa06.htm</a></p>
<p>And this is about the orion wilderness experience:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.psu.edu/summersession/orion.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.psu.edu/summersession/orion.htm</a></p>
<p>I hope this helps.</p>
<p>Also the sooner you take your tests online the sooner your FTCAP day is scheduled. Which means that most classes will be still open.</p>
<p>When we did FTCAP we came the night before and stayed at the Nittany Lion Inn. The next morning we went to information sessions in a building on the east side of campus (sorry I cannot remember the name). Son was with other students, parents (and siblng) was with other parents. It was several hours in a lecture hall so this can get rather boring for siblings.
Then we were directed to the HUB where son got his ID, and we got lunch and checked out the bookstore.
Then we went to Hammond (this was for the Engineering kids). First we sat together in classroom and listened to advisors discuss scheduling and how important it was to get to know advisor and many questions about engineering.
Then they went upstairs to several rooms with computers and logged in and chose their classes. This was the funny part as parents were supposed to stay in one room and let the kids get the hang of choosing classes online. There were several upperclass students helping. But before long the parents were sneaking into the room and crowding around the monitors with the kids and monopolizing the helpers so it got a little zooey.
Around 4:00 (or whenever you finished picking your classes) you were done.
BTW, my son had to reschedule his original FTCAP day as it conflicted with testing in NY so he did not go until July. A little harder to get some classes he wanted but it all worked out.</p>
<p>rlm- I chuckled at the part about the parents crowding in. We did not have that at our session. Parents stood around outside and chatted with each other and then greeted their kids after they came out of the registration room. This was at Smeal. Our FTCAP was in May and there were still many classes closed. But enough were open to get a decent schedule together.</p>
<p>If planning on going the night before...besides the Nittany Lion Inn, there is the Days Inn and the Atherton Hotel. Both are right off campus and a relatively short walk...maybe about 15 minutes to the Thomas building where the FTCAP meetings start off. They are also less expensive than the Nittany Lion Inn.</p>
<p>When we went to the "Spend a Summer Day at Penn State" program last summer, we stayed at the Penn Stater Hotel, which was fine, although somewhat more removed from the campus, itself.(Although they did have a shuttle running to and from campus). During our first visit, last April, we stayed at the Hampton Inn, which had very reasonable rates, a convenient location, plus complementary breakfast. The Nittany Lion Inn sounds nice, as well.</p>
<p>When do students normally access the placement tests online?</p>
<p>from the FTCAP website:</p>
<p>
[quote]
After you accept your offer of admission, you will be scheduled to take FTCAP testing on the Web. The tests take about three hours or less. You will be given a deadline by which you MUST take these tests online in order to have the results scored, printed, and ready for you when you attend your FTCAP advising day. Details about the testing will be sent to you along with the notification of your deadline after March 15.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Was told by some who attended last week's accepted students day that the Penn Stater "has seen better days" and was advised to avoid it.</p>
<p>We stayed at the Nittany Lion Inn. The location alone was worth the extra $10-$20 a night over the Penn Stater. However, there were a convention of noisy plant biologists there when we were. I was woken up several times each night. (I guess those plant biologists really know how to party.)</p>
<p>I've heard Days Inn is always full of noisy students on the weekend; quieter during the week.</p>
<p>I also investigated both Days Inn and the Atherton Hotel, but the Nittany Lion Inn was actually cheaper for the dates we planned to attend.</p>
<p>We have returned to Nittany Lion Inn several times over the years - for Parents Weekend it was great as it was the closest in terms of walking distance to East Halls (where son was a freshman). Parking was included, in the garage next door which simplified things.
I tried to get a room at NLI for graduation but missed the reservations line by 4 hours! Got on the waiting list and managed to snag a room at the Penn Stater. Hahaha. $300 per night.</p>
<p>You might want to check out some of the local B&Bs. Rates on "event weekends" tend to be in the neighborhood of $150 a night, with breakfast included.</p>
<p>Everything in the area has been booked, for months now. My h is not thrilled but it is one night (originally had two :)) and it is graduation, so we are splurging and going for it. I am just bummed cause I really wanted the Inn, would have been walking distance and parking would have been a non-issue.</p>
<p>$300/night is pretty steep..but considering that it's for graduation, you know, and the size of the graduating class, I'm sure you've done well to just be able get a place to stay that weekend. Actually, the Penn Stater wasn't that bad, it's just that the location wasn't the most convenient. We stayed there, in fact, because the N.L. Inn was already booked up for the date that we were going. If I recall, I don't think that we paid more than $120/night for the room. Unfortunately, it looks like we'll only be able to stay for the day at the admitted students day, but assuming that we do make another overnight trip to UP, I will try again to get us into the NL Inn.</p>
<p>SpringfieldMom, thanks for the FTCAP/placement exam info.</p>
<p>Don't get me wrong, I think $300 is outrageous - but the waiting list thing kind of got me too - they mail you a form to fill out to get on the waiting list - and then whenever a room opens up - in my case several months later, they call you. Well they called me at work, with several choices and you have to decide right then. They had a regular room or a suite available, for up to two nights. Payable immediately on credit card. "Can I go home and check the dates/family members coming and call you right back?" I was not even sure when my s was graduating. (They are at different days/times over one weekend.) No, after they hang up they call the next person on the list. So, I took the suite for two nights and later that afternoon called back to reduce it to one night and by then the regular room was long gone.
(I am not criticizing the reservations folks, they are doing the best they can with the huge numbers of people who want to stay there.)
Moral of the story - call early - and as I said I was only 4 hours late!</p>
<p>We have stayed at the Days Inn and the Atherton Hotel several times. We never paid more than $100 per night. Our last stay at the Atherton was $81. However, these were not nights of special events, ie, football games, graduation, etc. The only noise we ever encountered was a stay over the holidays....adults, not students. Maybe we have just have had good luck. We have also stayed at the Hampton Inn. However, we prefer being walking distance to campus, town, and son's dorm. </p>
<p>Thanks for the info on the Nittany Lion Inn. The couple of times I checked it out, it was considerably more expensive. I guess it just depends when you want to stay. Also, I did not know about the Penn Stater....Thanks</p>
<p>Yes the price is a lot more for special events, especially for the campus hotels. I actually think the Penn Stater is generally cheaper as it is a bit away from campus.
When we stayed for FTCAP at NLI the price was $118 per night.
Then we tried to book a room for a football game and it was over $200 and we said no way. That was too much for me. But graduation is a one time thing...
You might want to search for the dates for Parents Weekend and book a room now before the rates go up.</p>
<p>You can be sure that the hotels know the dates for all the event weekends and the rates have already been set.</p>
<p>How long does it usually take, on average, to register for Summer and Fall classes?</p>
<p>Can we go to FTCAP alone?</p>
<p>How many students, on average, attend FTCAP on the same day?</p>
<p>1/2 hour to register at ftcap? I think it depends on if you know what you are looking for, if the classes you want are full and you have to look for other ones, if you need a lot of help, etc.
You can go alone although they encourage families to participate.
Don't know how many students on average go, we went to a late day (in the summer) which might not be normal. However the auditorium for the parent session was full and then there were maybe 15 kids in each of several rooms to meet engineering advisors.</p>