<p>I came across this program which lists all info that parents need, with links to the various departments.</p>
<p>USC</a> Office of Parent Programs </p>
<p>It requires you to subscribe to the Parent Listserv. but for some reason I keep getting "error or invalid" when I try to sign up.
Has anyone else tried this or know more about this?</p>
<p>I just signed up and it went through.</p>
<p>Thanks for posting - I saw this earlier, but never signed up. The link works for me when I enter my email address in that first box for subscribing to the listserve.</p>
<p>The Parents Weekend preliminary schedule is also up at the same site.</p>
<p>Sequoia: Thank you for bringing this to my attention and I signed up. Type your e-mail address in the box, then click return on your computer key. Next, type in your first and last name, plus your e-mail address again, click. This should register you.</p>
<p>Oh thanks guys! I didn't see any instruction that one needed to put email in the box (thought that was for a password that would be made AFTER you signed up)! Too much on my mind these days has overloaded my circuits lol. (D is at orientation this Thursday..do you think she's prepared? NO. Still is trying to decide on TO or not TO, but at least pre HW is done)</p>
<p>Works now and I am subscribed to the newsletter.</p>
<p>Sequoia - that must feel like a very big decision for her. But how exciting!</p>
<p>Everyone - I really want to hear the nitty gritty details about orientation after your kids are finished. Right now the plan is to send S on his own (late July). He will fly down the day before, take the shuttle from LAX, and hopefully meet some kids who arrive the night before orientation starts. It looks like the parent stuff is info I can glean on my own, and he is perfectly fine with the travel. But it would be nice to hear from more experienced folk whether that plan is seriously flawed.</p>
<p>FauxNom: I thought about it, particularly given the extra expense, but decided to send my husband to orientation to get the parent info. Also, since the orientation ends late afternoon, and we live on the East coast, I am more comfortable with my son leaving USC with my husband to stay another night in a hotel before leaving LA in the morning. If you live in S. California, and get the parent info. easily, then perhaps it is not necessary for you to attend. But, if you live far away, I would try to go. Also, I like the idea of my husband being at USC to make sure the classes my son signs up for are the right fit (i.e. no need to discuss this further).</p>
<p>My S is trying to get ready for orientation. He's going to be there June 17-18 (darn, Faux, I thought our boys might be there on the same dates). </p>
<p>Did I miss the posting that listed the TO classes with specific topics, professors, and schedules? Can't find that detailed info so if you might post me a link--I'd really appreciate it.</p>
<p>His major has just 12 freshmen/women and from what he can tell, the department will want them all together in specific courses during specific semesters throughout the four years, but the dept won't tell them exactly what classes and when until they sit down with the department advisers during orientation. My S was gung ho to plan his sched a bit yesterday, but is now chomping at the bit.</p>
<p>Luckily, he is Facebook friends with several of the incoming Interactive kids and one boy will be at orientation this week. My S is hoping he'll get some advance word back on what is in store.</p>
<p>Like FauxNom, I'd love to hear back from all those who go to the early orientations, too. :)</p>
<p>It's kind of a drag to have to go to such a late orientation, but the others were all full by the time he received the go-ahead to sign up. The way this works out, he'll only have a month between orientation and move-in, so we're hoping to avoid the extra expense of sending a parent. The whole family will be coming for move-in (why do I feel like we're re-enacting the Beverly Hillbillies??)... Like mdcissp, I worry most about the course signups, but I'm hoping S can consult with me on the phone if he has any questions. And he can fly home the night that orientation ends, so I'm not worried about the travel part. Hope it will work out.</p>
<p>Madbean: My D has received a lot of info from a present student regarding TO.
Apparently, at orientation, the TO kids are taken separately, not with whatever major group they would normally go to for the GEs selection and major courses.
Their advisers for TO at the same time know what they need for their majors etc. so they advise on that too. Students actually get individualized attention rather than group attention also. They are given a catalogue and list of TO courses and allowed to study what interests them on that afternoon and evening, then they register the next day with their choices. (GE kids get the info on the second day whilst registering and with the help of advisers.)</p>
<p>All along we've wondered, what are the TO courses offered (there are only 2 or 3 class samples on websites for each core, but evidently some cores offer up to 15 classes). I also believe that TO kids generally take the Core 102 (with the first writing requirement) in the fall. </p>
<p>It seems classes are not published onsite, maybe because they change each year. D was also told that given the choices, it's sure one would find a class that interests one, since there's such a variety of student types (sciency versus history/philo/lit versus artistically bent etc). This info has actually caused my D to reconsider TO and try it.</p>
<p>What I don't know is whether AP waiving (like in GE Cat history and science, Cat 1 and 3 I think) is possible with TO at all. I think they have to take all cores regardless. (can spread out over years). Also not sure if the Diversity somehow can count in a TO class.</p>
<p>Will certainly let you all know how things go this week.</p>
<p>Although planning out class schedules beforehand is a good idea, keep in mind that your sons/daughters/self might not be able to get one of the classes in, and therefore, might have to change the whole schedule around. I know I have spent hours upon hours coming up with the best possible schedule for myself only to find that one of the classes I wanted to take to be full and therefore having to change everything last minute. But there will be advisors around to help should he run into any problems. Also, you can also change around your schedule after orientation as well. And, though this is more for students who attend the earlier orientations, spots open up for classes around course registration times on the second day of each orientation. So if you went to the first orientation and didn't leave with a schedule you like, you can try to get into the class that was full earlier by waiting by the computer around when the students at the second orientation are supposed to register, and hope you beat them to it. That's the main disadvantage of going to the later orientations... though it shouldn't be too big/bad of a problem.</p>
<p>I just like the idea of my husband consulting with my son at orientation about which classes to take given that there are bound to be many choices. Classes really need to be chosen very carefully to get the full benefit of your education.</p>
<p>The TO courses that will be offered have been up on the web server for quite some time now, Nikara posted the link a while back: CORE</a> | USC Schedule of Classes</p>
<p>However, there is no description of what each course is, reading list, etc. I have been nagging D to contact the TO office and get this info for several weeks now, but as usual she is procrastinating till the last possible moment. I have had to fight the urge to "just do it" for a while.</p>
<p>I believe that it was Nikara who also posted that you can meet TO core requirements with AP classes the same way you can do it for the regular GE.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I just like the idea of my husband consulting with my son at orientation about which classes to take given that there are bound to be many choices. Classes really need to be chosen very carefully to get the full benefit of your education.
[/quote]
mdcissp, relax, take a deep breath, then back away from the kid :D You and your husband will not be there when classes are chosen, in fact from accounts on this site the parents attend general-purpose and tear-jerker sessions (how to pay for college, how to deal with the crisis midnight phone call, etc), and don't see the kids at all except for the social parts of the schedule. Even if he manages to talk his way into the advising sessions, what about next semester? You can always change things after the fact, so might as well let the kids do their thing, and ask them to change the day after if you feel that it is really necessary (e.g., if they signed up for the boating class during the first semester of freshman year).</p>
<p>Groovy: I can't resist asking, are the tear jerker sessions the ones about how to pay for college? ;) God help us if we haven't figured that out before orientation rolls around. </p>
<p>It's weird how this feels so much more significant when it's your kid registering for classes than when you did it yourself. It is hard not to be involved, but still... am I alone in remembering that registration was mainly just trying to physically deliver the little hole-punched computer cards for each course to the right station in the gym, while hoping the end result is a schedule that allows you to sleep until at least 9 a.m.? I think our smart kids will do fine; they're far more sophisticated than I was at their age! After all, I went on to become a successful professional even though my transcript included classes such as badminton and camp leadership...</p>
<p>FauxNom: there were a thread or two on this topic in this forum. Apparently there are parents of current/past students who convey colorful stories of the calls they have received froim their kids in the middle of the night. Somebody wrote that there was an actual box of Kleenex being passed around.... grrr.... I agree with the insanity of having a "paying for college" session during orientation. Yes, it is hard to let go of the kid, especially when it is your first and only one, but what's gotta be done 's gotta be done.</p>
<p>Sequoia, very interesting info about TO--that they hand out the specific course descriptions/reading lists the first orientation day and sign up the second Thanks for sharing it. At the TO presentation at Explore (wow--that was a long time ago) they confirmed that AP scores of 4 or 5 in AP Bio or AP Chem will place a student out of Core III; AP scores of 4 or 5 in AP History of Art and AP Euro will place her/him out of Core I. </p>
<p>Of course I expect that the special meeting with the TO advisers will be in direct conflict with the special meeting of my S's very specific major, as he's already been contacted by his department about their meetings. Sigh. Never easy. heh.</p>
<p>My DS (I rarely use the designation "D" but I should, because my son really is
darling--;) ) said he wants to consult with me on his schedule and I was surprised and rather flattered. But when he discovers all the resources there at orientation to advise him, I think he'll get it all down. I am actually happy to have him making decisions on his own. (And with the safety net, as mentioned here, that any class can be changed if necessary after orientation). </p>
<p>I think we need to show our pride as our kids display their growing independence. It's a good idea to give our kids the impression (as we sometimes need to work on the reality a bit) that we have faith in them making good choices. And just let them know we're always here for back-up.</p>
<p>This is a little off topic but closely related (?)</p>
<p>The Parents organization is looking for more volunteers for Orientation. If any parents in the area are interested, PM me and I'l give you the email address of the president of the Parents Council who is looking for volunteers. Parents are needed to help students check in from 9:15AM-10:45AM.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Parents are needed to help students check in from 9:15AM-10:45AM.
[/quote]
I thought that the thing starts at 7am...
<a href="http://sait.usc.edu/orientation/schedules/FreshTransHawaii.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://sait.usc.edu/orientation/schedules/FreshTransHawaii.pdf</a></p>
<p>Oh golly! FauxNom!!! I remember the punch cards, too. We had to run all over campus and collect the cards and then race back to the gym to turn them in. My first semester registration was on a 102 degree day. I had run about 4 miles collecting my cards and, exhausted, was ready to register. Unfortunately I had locked the keys in my car, and couldn't get my shot record out. They wouldn't let me register unless I got the shots then and there from a nurse sitting at the end of the registration table. It was a painful day.</p>