<p>My parents and I were reviewing the costs of orientation and, combined with plane tickets, it is a lot of money for just two days. Would they be missing out on anything crucial by not attending? Would I be fine on my own? Could some of the parents on this forum help me with this? Thanks!</p>
<p>I am sure you will get varied responses on this. When I attended years ago with my son I was glad I went-the parent program is totally separate from the students and we were provided with a lot of great information. It was not essential however for me to be there. IMO you would definitely be fine on your own. You sound like the type of person that would be comfortable with that. My husband and I decided that to cut down on the cost just one of us would go-have you considered that as a possibility? Another possibility would be to ask the Orientation staff for all the assembled parent info on your parent’s behalf. There were plenty of kids there without parents that did that my son’s year. Back then almost 25% of the students were getting either 25%, 50%, or 100% tuition merit awards so many of the parent’s didn’t mind spending the money to fly cross country and pay the orientation fee. Good luck with your decision.</p>
<p>Hey-</p>
<p>I’m currently a freshman at USC, and I didn’t bring my parents to the orientation session. Not only was this not at ALL a problem, I actually liked it. Even though the students and the parents do separate for a lot of the programs, not having my parents there meant that I was able to interact with other parent-less students and make friends. In my group, all the kids who were on their own ended up banding together and I met some great people. The kids whose parents were shadowing them the whole time didn’t interact with other students as much.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that its a bad idea to bring your parents, just that you really shouldn’t worry about it if they can’t come. For me, it was a matter of expenses because we really just couldn’t afford to ship the whole family out. But like I said, I met some awesome friends, a lot of whom I am still friends with today.</p>
<p>Is there any way your family can drive? (Not sure how far you are…) That, right now, is actually sometimes cheaper than flying, depending on distance.</p>
<p>I personally think it’s important for at least one parent/guardian to come for several reasons:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Your parents, even if they don’t say it, might be afraid/worried/nervous about you going to school out of state/out of your area. Additionally, I know A LOT of parents were hesitant to send their kids to USC because of the bad reputation of the area. Coming to orientation will allow your parents to express their fears and get informed responses from USC faculty and staff. Plus, they will meet other parents and be able to discuss these “fears” – and maybe get insight from 2nd time Trojan parents!</p></li>
<li><p>It’s important for your family to be familiar with USC’s location, layout, structure and traditions – especially prior to move in day! It will make navigating the campus/area when you move in a lot less hectic.</p></li>
<li><p>Depending on your major, your parents and you may sit down with your advisor (and other students admitted to your program) to discuss traditional 4 year plans for the major, answer questions about the program, etc. I’m sure parents have fears/questions about your major program – I know mine did!</p></li>
<li><p>It’s fun to share in the excitement of attending USC with your family – after all, didn’t they play a role in helping you get there in the first place?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I understand times are tough and travel can be expensive, but see if there’s a way you can swing it. If one parent can make it, I think it’s 110% worth your time. (HINT: You can try to get cheap plane tickets by going on Craigslist and looking for people selling Southwest/Jet Blue/United/etc vouchers and free flights that are about to expire. I’ve done it before and I usually save a few hundred bucks, depending on the destination!)</p>