<p>Although I am a male, I have little interest in the outdoor/no showering/toilsome aspects of outdoor action. Community action doesn't interest me either. If I start school without having attended one of these preorientation programs, would I have missed out on a special opportunity? Would I feel excluded from my peers who participated?</p>
<p>I don’t intend to participate either. I don’t have time… However, I do remember reading that about half of incoming freshmen participate. I’m gonna go ahead and assume that the other half isn’t completely alienated come September. We’ll be fine, I think.</p>
<p>just go on it… PEER PRESSURE! DO IT! lol pm me if you need someone to change your mind.</p>
<p>belle_10, what you actually read is that more than half of incoming freshmen participate in OA. Most of the rest participate in CA. But if for whatever reason you guys can’t make OA/CA, it’s not a big deal. Most people end up finding friends outside their orientation groups anyway. Some OA groups stay close after OA, but most don’t. As long as you make the effort to socialize, you’ll feel the same as everyone else after a few weeks.</p>
<p>I didn’t do either, and I never regretting it. It was nice to start school smelling good and without all of the laundry to do! But I did know a decent number of people who were going to princeton, which helped the first week. After that most oa/ca groups really don’t hang out all that much</p>
<p>It might be a little hard at first if you don’t already know people at princeton or have roommates to hang out with, but long term it won’t matter. Although you might be kinda confused when someone yells “Hey (person’s name)” “Hey what?” “want to jump shake your bootie?” “no way” “want to jump jump shake your bootie?” “okay. jump shake your bootie. jump jump shake your bootie. jump shake your bootie. jump jump shake your bootie.”</p>
<p>If the lack of showering and clean clothes is your biggest concern, you’re definitely thinking about it the wrong way.</p>
<p>The purpose of these trips is to give you approximately 10 friends right off the bat. That is a huge opportunity, and OA is a very worthwhile experience. I’ve never met anyone who did not have a great time.</p>
<p>And you are going to feel implicitly excluded for not having participated, at least initially. Most of the new freshman chatter involves (aside from “Where are you from?”, “Where are you living on campus?” and “What are you majoring in?”) - you guessed it - Outdoor Action. It’s a very convenient way to meet new people and make friends you may otherwise not meet. Obviously you’ll make friends as time progresses, but you will be far behind those who went on these trips.</p>
<p>If you have no compelling reason to not do OA, you should go.</p>
<p>Doesn’t sound fun; I don’t plan on going. If you’re afraid of having no one to eat lunch with on the first day, I’ll go with you.</p>