<p>Anybody back from the first NSO (students and/or parents? Would be interested in your feedback (especially parents orientation). Is it worth it? Did you learn anything worthwhile? My son's NSO is the 12 and 13th of June and I'm thinking about the parents orientation but I'm just not sure. </p>
<p>I went last year and enjoyed. Stay at the campus hotel. We parents had more fun than the kids!</p>
<p>Good to know but I already made a reservation at a place that is half the price. Stayed there when we went up for the tour so confident. </p>
<p>What I meant was we had fun at the reception where they gave us free beer!</p>
<p>Well I guess I’ll find out tomorrow.</p>
<p>We didn’t have to drive.</p>
<p>Daughter just finished hers on Tuesday and reported that it was interesting and occasionally fun but <em>really</em> tiring. You are on the go from the minute you arrive to the minute you leave. Rest up before you arrive! </p>
<p>I got back from the parent orientation on Friday night and despite the weather being very rainy and overcast I found the program to be very well done and I learned more than I thought I would. I met some really wonderful parents and had a good time. Some of the parents there had been through this before as they were sending their second or third child to umass Amherst and they skipped out on the tour but mostly the parents were there to learn, some great questions were asked and I would do it over again if it were my first time. If you have the opportunity to go I highly recommend it. And I was told that the parents program doesn’t actually fill up so jump in even if the orientation is coming up shortly.</p>
<p>For a large university, UMass Amherst has learned how to handle large crowds. Accepted student day, NSO, student move-in and student move out have all been handled very well so far (S is a rising junior). Even tours, I was surprised how well the tour gave us an overview of the campus without trekking all over creation.</p>
<p>In two years, I’ll report on how graduation was handled!!</p>