<p>If I had attended this as part of a campus tour, this would have put the school on the bottom of my daughter's list.</p>
<p>9 hours of talking and it basically came down to:
1) Your child won't get the classes they want...but we'll give them something
2) Your child won't get any of the dorms they want...but we'll give them something
3) If your child does A work, they may get a C, if too many people in the class do A work
4) We guarantee you that your child will call home depressed and crying</p>
<p>They spent 2 hours telling us not to hover over our children then 2 hours telling us all the reasons our children will get kicked out of UNC so hover over them and make sure you discuss all these obvious issues with them like cheating and dealing drugs. They gave the same 2 hour speech to our kids, a 20-minute piece of which talks to being beware of getting sexually assaulted because the majority of people do.</p>
<p>I am so upset I could scream.</p>
<p>Out of the whole 9 hours, I only came away with 2 useful pieces of information:
1) Whatever courses they register for at CTOPs, they can change starting August 2nd
2) The Writing center will proofread pages for them</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I actually have to agree with 1, 2, 3, and 4. As a freshman, you probably won’t get all the classes you want. You probably won’t get the dorm you want either (I picked Hinton James as my first choice freshman year because I knew I would probably end up there anyway). Nobody gets everything they want.</p>
<p>Also, freshman year was a BIG slap in the face for me for a couple of reasons. I went to a pretty tough high school and always worked extremely hard, but my hard work would pay off. I would get As, etc.</p>
<p>Then I came to UNC, worked just as hard, and heck, I didn’t get all As. I did well, but it was obvious I wasn’t in high school anymore. If my mom and dad had a dollar for every time I called them crying and freaking out over something, they would be living it up on a timeshare in the Bahamas right now! Some professors do give so many people As, so many people Bs, etc, but for the most part UNC’s classes are just hard, and it’s hard to get As.</p>
<p>Also, the majority of people do NOT get sexually assaulted. UNC just wants everybody to be safe and make good choices, and that means sitting through lame videos about what can happen if everybody gets too tipsy at a frat party.</p>
<p>The drop/add period (which you mention) is a great time to work out schedule issues. Everything usually works out. I’ve never really used the Writing Center’s services, but I’m sure they are helpful for some people.</p>
<p>Now go eat some ice cream and relax. Everything will be ok. Welcome to college!</p>
<p>I don’t understand why crying is a given? Seems like something is wrong if it is. Neither my husband nor I can ever remember college making us cry. Granted it’s been a long time…I definitely remember being stressed and overworked…but never crying.</p>
<p>Why would you want to stay at some place that made you cry all the time.</p>
<p>And I hope your daughter had a better time… Although I didn’t have a great time at CTOPS either (weird orientation leader, picking classes was super stressful, etc) so I can relate! Ha! Trust me, she will have a great time once school starts and everyone gets past the initial shock.</p>
<p>No offense, but college was waaaay different back then. My parents were SHOCKED by how hard everything seemed to be when I came to college. Things were totally different when they were in college. You went to class, got good grades, graduated, immediately got a good job… We all know things are different now.</p>
<p>Crying is not a given for everybody, but for a sheltered, sensitive perfectionist like myself, it was definitely a given. I had never been away from home before, and it was so frustrating in the beginning to be working so hard and not have anything pay off. Eventually I got the hang of things and life went on. I had to grow up a little bit.</p>
<p>awayfromitall, I thought CTOPS was long and the amount of information overwhelming, but I didn’t feel the way you’re feeling now when I was done. My son actually ended up getting a pretty good schedule after registration, although some of his friends were not so lucky. It sounds like the drop/add time is the typical time to get the classes you’re missing. They did also stress that the classes they would get were still needed for graduation requirements.</p>
<p>I was happy to hear all the policies. I also thought it was good for the kids to hear that they won’t all be at the top of the class, that someone will have to 4,000. I know my son is very confident and I also know that, despite doing very well in high school, he did not always put in 100% effort. I wanted UNC to tell him what to expect and make sure he arrives ready to get to work.</p>
<p>As far as the tears, I guess I don’t expect that so much from my son, but I know I did it to my mom when I was in college. That was my end of the semester/exam time call. I was always teary, at least the first two years.</p>
<p>Sorry it was so stressful for you. Make sure you go listen to the professor’s lecture tomorrow. I hope you get the geology professor we heard. He was awesome; I wanted to sign up for his class. Good-luck tomorrow.</p>
<p>^^ I just wanted to say that I love the Geology teacher’s lecture! It seriously has me now wanting to take geology with him.</p>
<p>However that graph he showed was a bit frightening. I am very worried about the grading system. I just have always been in the situation where if you put forth the effort and the quality you get the good grade. </p>
<p>The problem nowadays is that a C is no longer considered acceptable work, it is considered poor to the general public. Yet some professors still grade where C is acceptable (meaning you did the assignment to standard) and a B is ABOVE average and an A is exceptional. By definition exceptional is not typical. Then to top it all off grad schools want their 3.6 gpa. Its just frustrating I guess.</p>
<p>Then of course the “your only grades are your 3 tests a semester” scare me way more than the “2 papers every week” classes.</p>
<p>I just can’t wait to get in there and really get a feel for the system.</p>
<p>Yes, I do. I worked so hard, and my final grades usually all ended up being fine and what I felt like I earned. Getting grades during the semester was what drove me nuts, but everything did end up working out and being fine in the end. The process was just a little upsetting.</p>
<p>That being said, I did take one class (for the philosophy requirement - double ugh) and my prof ended up giving everyone in the class a B-. He was totally bizarre and random and 100 years old, so we all just sucked it up. I think everybody takes a class like that at some point.</p>
<p>What corey91 is saying is right. A lot of professors feel like a C isn’t a bad grade, a B is above average, an A is for the psycho students, etc. It can be frustrating, but it’s not like that in every class. Once you get in and get a feel of what your classes are like, how the prof is, what is expected of you, etc, everything is fine. I obviously had a frustrating experience at first because I was so used to working my butt off in high school and having it immediately pay off and not having to worry. Getting a grade in a college class is more like delayed gratification. Your grades during the semester might not be amazing but then the final will be ok and somehow your final grade will be ok. It does work out, they just like to leave you hanging until the last possible second.</p>
<p>I forget what the class was called, but the prof’s name was Ruel Tyson. He would be an amazing grandpa (LOL) and he seemed like a great guy, but his class was totally bizarre. It was one of those classes where you feel like you shouldn’t even get a grade b/c it was so out there. But then again, I am not philosophical, ha ha!</p>
<p>Oh, whoa. The grading system scares the crap out of me. Do you think the professors are flexible if you have open communication with them, or are you totally on your own? (Like, if you go to office hours and ask questions and are really engaged in the class, will they take that into account?) I know at some schools participation and preparation can make the difference, but maybe not at UNC, obviously.</p>
<p>This is because UNC’s definition of sexual assault maintains that if a girl has a beer and then proceeds to have sex with a boy (with consent, mind you), she was in fact raped and could not think for herself. It is a bogus definition and I wouldn’t believe the garbage statistics that they throw at you.</p>
<p>Anyways, don’t worry. UNC is one of the happiest, funnest places in the world and most students never want to leave.</p>
<p>ArtemisDea, it just depends on the class and the prof. Some professors totally love you forever if you email them a lot and go to office hours, and they do factor that into your final grade. You’re never totally on your own (at least I’ve never been). Professors want you to come get help and talk to them, so definitely do that. Don’t be afraid!</p>
<p>I’ve been on these boards for a LONG time and you are the first person to express such dismay after attending CTOPS. I am not in any way trying to dismiss your feelings and am truly hoping that things haven’t changed THAT much over the last few years.</p>
<p>For some reason CTOPS Parent Day One sessions take on a bit of a “shock and awe” sensibility but I can tell you from experience that it is WAY over exaggerated. Day two brings in the warm and fuzzies…at least it did when we attended.</p>
<p>I think they feel they would rather put the worst case scenario for any situation out there for consideration and then have the actual experience be far better than have everyone expecting roses and balloons and be disappointed or surprised when the first “crisis” arises…and it will…they are college freshmen away from home for the first time and inevitably, some drama will occur from time to time…but it all works out in the end and they all end up loving the place.</p>
<p>It’s very important to not let your feelings about your CTOPS experience color your kid’s experience…they need to remain open minded, objective and excited about their new home and having mom or dad seem upset or disappointed can make them question what they are feeling themselves.</p>
<p>As far as grades and grading are concerned they HAVE to say what they say because no two high school experiences are the same…a rigorous high school curriculum in a rural community may not even compare to what someone from a top prep school in a big city experienced and the level of true preparation can be vastly different. For example I know that most students felt that junior year at the prep school my son attended was more difficult than the first year at any IVY yet a good friend’s D, coming from a highly regarded suburban public school (as salutatorian) was in no way prepared for the rigor and amount of writing required at one of said Ivies whereas my son’s friends at the same Ivy had been doing far more required writing due every Monday every week since seventh grade and actually thought it was a breeze!</p>
<p>Unfortunately many very smart kids do see grades they have never seen before when they go to college but that happens at most colleges…at least UNC warns you that it might happen, it might cause stress and you will get a phone call so be prepared.</p>
<p>I have one quick question: Does my mom have to go to the 2nd day of CTOPS? She wants to go home after Day 1 is done and then come back to pick me up at the end of Day 2. Should she stay for Day 2 of CTOPS? :)</p>
<p>She doesn’t have to go to day 2 but I found day 2 much more useful than day 1. Seemed like day 1 was all about scaring you and day 2 was all about talking about all the opportunities on campus. I found much more info in day 2 that I can help my D with in the future than on day 1.</p>