<p>I had a question for the current Innovation Academy students who are on here sometimes (For some reason, I can't find any of their posts to private message them). What percentage of Innovation Academy students live in Gainesville the semester prior to enrolling, either to take classes at Santa Fe or taking online classes and just living there? We attended the session on Friday and they seemed to recommend doing this in order to get involved in college as if attending in the fall. Both the student, David, whom I am sure is on this board and the administrator there recommended this as a way to get socially acclimated to Gainesville (The latter leaving me wondering, if they're so concerned about everyone getting there in fall, then why not just admit them for fall?).</p>
<p>My daughter is definitely not moving to Gainesville prior to enrollment. We don't know anyone in Gainesville, she does not have any friends who plan to live off-campus, and she doesn't know anyone who is going to be in IA, so she'd have no one to live with. Additionally, I just don't plan to pay for her to live in an apartment to take community college classes when she can do that right here. I planned on her moving to the dorm when she starts college.</p>
<p>So my question is, by not moving to Gainesville in her pre-enrollment fall, is she doomed never to make any friends at UF? Will everyone else know one-another? Do most people in IA move there before they enroll, or are there plenty of people who don't? Should we be reconsidering Clemson so she can have a normal freshman experience?</p>
<p>We were really excited about IA, but the whole thing about having to cobble together something to do in the fall so she can pretend she's going off to college anyway is not appealing at all. Thanks.</p>
<p>You sound pragmatic (like us) when we faced some of these issues last year.</p>
<p>Do you have relatives out of town where she can have a fall experience and go to a community college in that town?</p>
<p>I am the youngest, with aging parents, so my son became a helper to my parents in their 80’s on his first fall. He went to Gainesville for a football game with high school friends that started in the fall. He crashed in his friends dorm room overnight.</p>
<p>While Clemson is an option, it is a private school and transfering credits may not be as easy. Per Florida Law, UF must accept as credit any classes taken in the Florida post-secondary system that has the same number assignment.</p>
<p>Thanks. I was talking about just going to Clemson INSTEAD of UF (It’s not a private school, btw, but a state school in South Carolina). I found the meeting Friday a little frustrating. Glad your son is enjoying IA, though. That’s helpful.</p>
<p>She will probably just stay in Miami and go to MDC. She has a number of friends who are going to stay right here, either to save money or because their parents don’t want them to go away. We have no relatives out of town that would be reasonable for her to stay with. Ironically, my brother-in-law’s family lived in Gainesville until TWO WEEKS AGO, but they moved back here. MDC is a reasonable option, and she can get her math out of the way while I’m still around to pay for the tutor.</p>
<p>Alex23, I know that you are worried about your daughter not being able to make friends when coming in the spring but let me just say that the University has a very large student body. I was here in the fall taking courses at Santa Fe in my pre-enrollment period and still met some amazing people. In regards to spring, I know some people who were not here in the fall but still were able to make some great friends in the spring through living in dorms, clubs around campus, and classes. there will be people that will be in the same situation, generally people are very nice and approachable!</p>