I’m going to orientation in a few days and am wondering what I should expect. I know we’ll sign up for classes and probably get a variety of presentations, but what else is there to it? Is it really as important as some people make it out to be?
I’m a rising senior so some things might have changed in the last three years, but you are right, it’s basically signing up for classes and LOTS AND LOTS of presentations. Like, so many presentations you’ll wonder if they’ll ever end.
But anyway. There is a bit more to it than that. Here is what I remember:
-You arrive at the dorm in which you’re staying (East Quad, I think). I think you get a folder with a schedule in it. Everyone’s schedules are a little bit different, depending on the program you’re in. You get guided to the dorm room in which you’ll be staying and you get some time to unpack your things. Be grateful you don’t have to bring a fan this year, LOL. East Quad is luxurious in comparison to South Quad pre-renovation.
-You go on a tour of campus with your group, similar to one on campus day or any other normal tour of campus, if you’ve ever been/taken one
-You get a lecture from a police officer about drinking on campus and how if you call 911 while underage drinking because your friend has alcohol poisoning you won’t get a citation because you could be saving a life
-You meet with an orientation leader and have the opportunity to ask any questions you might not want to ask around others, in my group we wrote questions down so they were anonymous; we ended up talking a lot about the winter weather because we had a strangely large amount of scared southerners in my group
-You can take language placement tests or the chemistry placement test
-There were activities planned in the evening you could participate in. A movie at the State Theatre, frisbee in the Law Quad, that kind of thing. They were totally optional, but could be fun.
Other random words of advice:
- Don’t wear your room key lanyard around town
- Explore on your own if/when you get the chance, either by yourself or with others. Definitely walk around State St. and down E. William or E. Liberty at least for a few blocks. Also walk down to the very end of South U.
- If you don’t make new BFFs, it’s fine, I don’t think I saw more than a few people I met at orientation after the school year started.
- BRING FLIP FLOPS
That is all. Have fun and good luck! If you have any more questions, let me know.
Thank you very much this was everything I wanted to know!
The key things are placement exams, advisory session, and class registration. If you took AP exams, you would need to remember/estimate your score(s) for the advisory and registration purpose.
When my son went last year, some students felt a lot of pressure selecting classes in the advising appointment. It would be a very good idea to do some work in advance and know at least some of classes you want to take, with several alternatives for additional courses. I think they did an excellent job at orientation for both the students and parents last year.
@jen101. Answers like yours which are detailed and honest is what makes these forums so helpful. BRAVO!