Last orientation: uh-oh?

<p>I have a trip to Europe (my parents are paying for half as a graduation present and it isn't moving) scheduled for a week and a half over the first 2 sessions that I need a "4-day" window for, covering the third session. The next session conflicts with TSA nationals, and I think I'm going to skip debate nationals this year.
Anyway, I'm already booked for the LAST orientation session at UT. I'm going to McComb's. I have thought about the class availability. Will it be that bad by the time I get there?</p>

<p>I believe that they reserve spots in all classes that you'd need and most that you want a few for each session, so availability wise you'll have no problem and possibly be better off.</p>

<p>However, most of the choice time slots for those classes will probably be gone, so you won't have the flexibility to plan off days for yourself or the like.</p>

<p>I think you might end up with some early morning classes but it's just one semester. You'll be okay.</p>

<p>morning classes may be a blessing in disguise for a big university. smaller classes anyways...</p>

<p>Morning classes suck. No one wants to get up that early. Students aren't best prepared to learn and teachers aren't best prepared to teach, so it's a lose-lose situation.</p>

<p>In required freshman classes, they usually hold a certain number of places for each orientation, and release more each week. In other classes, freshmen get the leftovers from returning student orientation anyways, and attending a late orientation is going to give you little, if any, selection from these classes.</p>

<p>Plan on taking as many large, mostly freshmen classes as you can imagine, because that's all that will be left.</p>

<p>the voice of reason..............................</p>

<p>How much of a disadvantage does going to a later orientation put you at? I'm attending 6/23-6/26 so that a friend and I can room together, but I wasn't sure if that meant I would have a horrible choice class-wise. I'm majoring in Design, by the way. Thanks!</p>

<p>Oh well.
I guess I won't be able to stay up too late.</p>

<p>As for classes that count toward a major, will those be in short supply? I'd like to leave the option open for a double major and I know I can do it if I can get into the classes. Does McComb's leave any classes for the later orientations?</p>

<p>EDIT: How many classes do freshman typically take that count toward requirements for a major anyway?</p>

<p>For McCombs, you won't take any major-related classes your freshmen year. Your first "business" class will be B A 101, and unless you're in BHP, you won't be taking that class until the spring semester of your first year.</p>

<p>In your second semester of freshmen year, business classes you MIGHT take in addition to B A 101 will be STA 309, MIS 301, and ACC 311.</p>

<p>Everyone will get classes that will help them graduate. Most people have to take a Freshman Signature Course, and they keep a proportion of each of those open for students from each session. So that can be one of your classes. Just look at all of the general education requirements you will need. Government, American History, etc. There will be plenty of useful classes for you to take.</p>

<p>At orientation, you will learn to use waitlists and you will learn the helpful trick of waiting for the payment deadline - seats in closed sections of classes open up exactly when the payment deadline passes because some people don't pay their tuition on time, so if you are waiting for a seat in a class that has no formal waitlist, you may be able to slide into it then.</p>

<p>It can even be helpful to register after July 4 so you know for sure what credits you will get from your senior year AP scores.</p>

<p>And don't worry - if you are, say, a biology major, you will get into your first year biology class and the lab that goes with it no matter which orientation session you register in. You just won't get the coveted 10 am, 11 am classes this semester. Everything will be okay! Early classes build character ;)</p>

<p>Alright. Thanks everybody :)
I'm feeling a bit better about this now.</p>

<p>For future reference (just in case my OOS son gets in next year, lol), can you tell me where I can find the dates of orientation session for this summer, so I'll know what they might be for the summer of 2010? Thanks!</p>

<p>If you join a FiG, it will help you out.
Freshman Interest groups are groups of about 15-20 Freshman they put together in the same classes, often holding spots open for the best professors. Thus, if you join one, you will get into all those classes as well.</p>