Lafayette Questions: Part II

<p>person33,</p>

<p>Good catch! I did not notice that small detail in lafayette1234's post.</p>

<p>Just to reiterate, the June Academic Advising days were designed to help incoming students choose their classes. New Student Orientation is designed to familiarize first-year students with campus resources and get them to mingle with one another. </p>

<p>According to the online calendar, New Student Orientation will run from Thursday, August 23rd through Sunday, August 26th. Thursday may be intended for move-in (never before has Orientation run for four days!), and I imagine the actual Orientation activities will begin Friday morning.</p>

<p>To view last year's Orientation itinerary, please visit the following webpage: <a href="https://www.lafayette.edu/press/orientation/index.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;https://www.lafayette.edu/press/orientation/index.html&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>question about accomadation when do i get to find out where i will be living. Also as an international can i arrive early on the weekend b4 orientaion and have a place to stay .</p>

<p>damn cant beleive this is it im going to college baybeee!</p>

<p>fsa1,</p>

<p>First-year international students actually arrive on campus about a week before other first-year students for a special orientation program sponsored by ISA (International Students Association).</p>

<p>You will be picked up from the airport (JFK, Newark Liberty, Lehigh Valley) upon your arrival to the States.</p>

<p>I recommend visiting the ISA website at <a href="http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Eisa/index.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~isa/index.htm&lt;/a> for some very helpful information intended specifically for international students. Start by clicking on "New Students" to the right and downloading the "ISA Freshman Handbook". You might also wish to view a video of last year's ISA freshman orientation by heading to the "Media Lounge".</p>

<p>I'm sure you'll receive more information about this special orientation program from ISA within the next few months. If you wish to speak with an international student to learn more about arrival procedures, you might wish to send a private message to the CC user rytis. Rytis is a first-year student from Lithuania, and I'm sure he'd be more than willing to answer your questions.</p>

<p>With all that said, you should receive your housing and roommate assignment around the same time as other first-year students (no later than mid-July).</p>

<p>You have every reason to be excited about college...it really is an amazing experience!</p>

<p>All the best,</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>Class of 2011:</p>

<p>I thought I'd post this very important piece of information regarding computers at Lafayette before anyone makes a quick purchase.</p>

<p>This information comes directly from the ITS website:</p>

<p><<< ITS has been testing Microsoft's Vista operating system since its release and has discovered several incompatibility issues with Vista and key network, academic, and administrative applications used on campus. For this reason, ITS continues to recommend Windows XP Professional as the operating system for all campus computers. >>></p>

<p>Just to reiterate, do not purchase a new computer with Windows Vista preloaded. Buy a "Vista Ready" piece of hardware so as to be prepared for the eventual shift in operating system.</p>

<p>FYI, I have already answered many questions of the "which laptop should I buy?" variety back in the "I'll Answer Your Lafayette Questions!" thread (post #69 comes to mind).</p>

<p>Mac fanatics, feel free to ignore this post!</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>Justin, thanks for the heads up on the computer info. In the past, the relatives have bought a computer for the graduate in the family, now I can direct the computer knowledge relative in the family to this post. I had called about this the other day and I was also told to have the students Lafayette ID# on hand to use when purchasing from the purchasers you recommended.</p>

<p>janesmom1
I think they mean Lafayette's ID with the vendor not the student's ID although you may need their Lafayette e-mail address. Check you in-box, I've sent you some more specific information.</p>

<p>janesmom1,</p>

<p>I believe joinville is correct on that point.</p>

<p>For some very helpful information on purchasing a computer for college, visit the following link to the "New Student FAQ" page: <a href="http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Eits/help/faqs/froshfaq%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~its/help/faqs/froshfaq&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p>

<p>It looks as if the college has eliminated Gateway from its discount program. If you would like to purchase an Apple or Dell online, use the following link: <a href="http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Eits/help/sales%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~its/help/sales&lt;/a>. You can also purchase software (think: Office) at a significant discount by clicking on the AICUP link on that page.</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>i have a question about housing..i sent my deposit in pretty late but i really want to be in south college and filled out the housing form accordingly..i was wondering if that was an especially preferred residence or if i still may have a chance in being placed there</p>

<p>girl10,</p>

<p>Let's take a look at the situation. South College has about 110 spaces reserved for incoming students (55 doubles), which is a significant amount. However, as you may already know, South is consistently one of the most popular places to live on campus. </p>

<p>Why, you ask? </p>

<p>Well, the doubles, on average, are much larger than in our other residence halls. The building was last renovated back in 2002, so it is in rather good condition. Each room has wall-to-wall carpeting and A/C. Also, many students like the social atmosphere in South...with so many residents, something is always going on in there!</p>

<p>So, yes, it is an "especially preferred" residence hall. Does that mean you have absolutely no chance of being assigned there because you sent in your deposit just recently? Not at all! In the end, the Office of Residence Life has the ultimate power to place incoming students wherever they want based on their own priorities.</p>

<p>If I were you, however, I wouldn't keep my hopes up. Don't let my prediction dampen your mood...Easton, Ruef, or McKeen (just to name a few) would serve you equally as well. Wherever you are assigned, just be sure to get to know the other people on your floor. </p>

<p>I can also promise you that, wherever you end up, you'll consider it "home" in no time.</p>

<p>All the best,</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>justin,
i was wondering if most freshmen at lafayette usually take 4 or 5 courses in their first semester of freshman year? in the second semester? i think i am planning on majoring in biology (as you can probably tell from my previous posts) so should i plan to take 4 or 5 classes?
thanks!</p>

<p>lafayette1234,</p>

<p>Only engineers need to take five courses a semester to graduate in four years. As a B.S. Biology major, you'd only need to take four each semester (unless you felt like taking five...I wouldn't recommend it).</p>

<p>Click on this link to view a curriculum planning sheet created by the Biology department at Lafayette: <a href="http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Ebiology/planBS.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~biology/planBS.html&lt;/a>. Notice that you'll have adequate opportunities to take electives, and can take upper-level Biology courses in any order.</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>thanks!!!!!!!</p>

<p>hi Justin
I'm told as a freshman i have to choose courses online before june 30th. i'm wondering if we can make any changes after we actually begin school?
thx!</p>

<p>Jack</p>

<p>Hey Jack,</p>

<p>Yes, students are allowed to change courses around during the first two weeks of classes. It requires the student to obtain various signatures from professors and advisers, but it is very common practice.</p>

<p>Classes begin on Monday, August 27th. The official deadline for adding/dropping courses without penalty is Friday, September 7th. During that period you may change courses, assuming the course(s) you wish to enroll in have not reached capacity.</p>

<p>Ah, the beauty of course registration!</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>Class of 2011:</p>

<p>The following link will bring you to a complete list of First-Year Seminar (FYS) choices for the upcoming fall semester. While you should still expect a packet of information regarding course registration within the next few weeks, I thought you all might be interested in selecting your top five choices in advance. </p>

<p>Short descriptions of each course will be provided in the registration packet (a few descriptions are listed beginning on page 26 of the College Catalog 2005-07 at <a href="http://www.lafayette.edu/academics/catalog/index.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.lafayette.edu/academics/catalog/index.html&lt;/a&gt;), but I thought that the course names might pique the interest of eager college students.</p>

<p>Here's the link: <a href="http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Elibrary/fys_roster.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Elibrary/fys_roster.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Happy choosing!</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>Justin,
My D. has decided to come to Lafayette! We talked back around Accepted Student Day. My question -
AP scores only come out in July. This makes it complicated for D. She took the AP Psych and AP Spanish exams and her scores may influence her course selection. Suggestions? Thanks</p>

<p>pegorden,</p>

<p>Of course I remember talking to you "way back when"! Your daughter made a wonderful decision in choosing Lafayette, especially since she is considering two of our strongest academic programs (psychology or pre-med).</p>

<p>Regarding the AP Psychology examination: if your daughter receives a 4 or a 5, she will receive an elective credit toward the psychology major. However, she would NOT be granted placement out of the intro psych course (PSYC 110). She should still enroll in PSYC 110 in the fall (go with Professor Shaw for the lecture portion) to work towards the major.</p>

<p>Regarding the AP Spanish examination: whether it was the Spanish Language or Literature exam, if she earns a 4 or a 5, she will place out of Lafayette's foreign culture requirement. If that does not occur, she can take a foreign language placement exam during Orientation before classes begin in August to potentially place out. Is she looking to enroll in an upper-level Spanish literature/culture course, or just hoping to fulfill the requirement? I wouldn't worry about enrolling in a Spanish language course first semester. If it turns out she needs to take a few more language courses to fulfill the requirement, there's always next semester.</p>

<p>Just to summarize my remarks, her scores on those exams should not really affect her course selections. She should take PSYC 110, her First-Year Seminar, maybe a 200 level psych course without prerequisites, and a fourth course to work towards fulfilling the Common Course of Study (math course, humanities/social science course).</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>hmmm how come the lafayette forum boards on the webstie dont work. It just says "Sorry, but this board is currently unavailable. Please try again later." i have tried later but it just dont work.</p>

<p>fsa1,</p>

<p>If you are referring to the Accepted Students Forum on the Lafayette website, just know that it was removed due to spammers creating fake accounts.</p>

<p>Could you please provide the location of that link so that I can get it removed from the website?</p>

<p>Thanks,</p>

<ul>
<li>Justin</li>
</ul>

<p>Hi again Justin!
Thanks for all your advice to date, everything is working out fine with registration and I've been in touch with a professor for some additional guidance. That was really generous of him and very helpful. I'm just soooo
curious about Lafayette's numbers for admissions this year, and I don't see them posted yet. Any ideas on %accepted, SATs, yield etc? When do they usually post this? I know applications were up a good amount (a lady in admissions told me they went over 6,000?). Not that it is essential info, but I can't help wondering. Thanks.</p>