College orientation

[linders]

Any hints from BTDT? Leaving in a few minutes for DS18's college orientation. Two full days. He is required to stay overnight in the dorms, I could have stayed but chose to drive the hour home and then back tomorrow morning. I'm baffled at what could possibly take that much time, especially since he is already registered for classes. One friend told me, "It's a great chance to meet other parents!" Uh, this is DS's college experience, not mine, I'm not really interested in making new friends at a college that I'm not attending. So what should I be paying attention to? Asking about?

Right now my plan is to slip out for a couple of hours to the campus museum where there is a new history exhibit I've been wanting to see😉

Update: Day 1 was much better than I had anticipated. Yes, there was a bunch of "Rah, rah, welcome to our university family!" And some of the basics from the parent sessions repeated info from the website. But every single one of the speakers was very good to excellent, serious and humorous, and they drilled home ideas on effectively supporting your students through a variety of specific situations. DS loved his "small group" that assembled periodically throughout the day between larger sessions, finding many like minded students who were engaged in and excited about learning. The small "elective" sessions he chose for us on mental health resources and career services gave him early connections in those departments - I'm not sure he would have made the time to contact them in the early weeks of starting school.

Edited June 18, 2019 by linders

[8filltheheart]

Typically they offer info on how their FA works and how parents can access the system to pay bills, info about campus health services and campus safety, how the meal plans work, etc. I went way back when our oldest went to college back in 2007, but been to one, you pretty much have been to them all. Nothing earth-shattering and nothing kids can't handle on their own and tell you later. So, don't feel any guilt. You don't need to be bored to tears listening to their talks.

[Pawz4me]

We went to both of our boys' orientations. We weren't bored at all! The first one (a two day event) was exhausting mentally and physically. The second one not so much, but still informative. Both times there were some impressive speakers, a couple of whom were truly memorable. No way would we have wanted to miss either one. But I'm sure how well orientation is done varies from school to school. You've probably already left, but my simple advice would be to make sure you bring a bottle of water and a couple of simple snacks in your bag.

[G5052]

My younger one went to transfer orientation Friday with her brother who is also a student there. She's intimidated by the size of the college (much, much bigger than the community college), so I was glad my son could go. I couldn't go. Thankfully she got guaranteed admission and is going right into her junior-level classes. 

Frankly the morning was very boring for her. All standard college stuff. She got to eat though at the cafeteria that has a special food allergy station, which she really enjoyed. And then she went to a departmental meeting and got to meet one of the professors who advised her. That cinched it. The professor was very friendly and helpful and gave DD her card. They had packets prepared with lots of handouts and worksheets to figure out their schedules. They told them to register at home because the system was slow. DD registered after dinner, and then emailed the professor as the professor recommended. The professor checked her schedule, and she's good to go. She's excited about her classes. Thankfully this was the first transfer orientation of the summer, so she got everything she needed. Their classes seem to fill up quickly because there were only a dozen or so slots left total in the two required classes she must take in her first semester. But she got a schedule that works for her and good professors. 

Having been there or having sent my kids to four orientations now, I would say that the most important thing is indeed to bring water and to orient yourself ahead of time where things are. They give you maps in the orientation packets, but traffic and parking are always dicey at the big four-year both of mine now attend. 

Edited June 17, 2019 by G5052

[klmama]

My oldest insisted on going alone, so I don't know what I missed.  I went with dc2, and the students and parents had different orientation sessions.  It was just a 9:00-3:00 event, but it was a good experience for both of us.

[J-rap]

I only went to one of ours (didn't purposely ignore the others, but legitimate reasons for not going :)).  My take was that they covered in two days what could have been done in a big welcome ceremony on the first day of school and handed out in a pamphlet.  🙂  However, you do get to hear the school's president, etc. speak and meet other students and families, plus pick up extra information that you might gloss over in a pamphlet.  

[RootAnn]

I think orientation for parents is meant to help them feel (more) comfortable sending their child(ren) there. I agree that kids can attend themselves as I sure did back in the day. My kid could have if she would have set up rides to/from the airport and had a place to stay overnight the first night (since her orientation started at 8:30 am). This is my eldest, so I wanted to go.

There was information about specific programs  (pre-professional, honors, majors & classes within your residential college), Financial Aid sessions, and small group meetings with a Housing employee to ask questions. The Dean of Students talked about activities/groups available on campus, the Campus Police talked about campus safety & precautions, and Career Services gave a presentation about all they offer . There was a parent dinner with different faculty present, too. 

None of the speeches were fantastic. I did learn one or two new things,  but I admit skipping some of the combined parent/student sessions. DD already had her classes scheduled but was required to get the schedule checked by both her major and the honors college advisor before she checked out.

I also think the colleges invite the parents so they sell more swag.

[teachermom2834]

We have not attended the events with our child or the parent sessions but dh did accompany both boys to their colleges and then find a place to work while they attended. He was available if they needed anything. Our big concern was making sure they got registered appropriately (registration was during orientation). We both have a skeptical opinion of advisors steering new students appropriately. Oldest did consult dh when the classes he was planning filled before he got in them. 

Oldest ds was just a one day deal. Second ds had two full days and had to stay in the dorm. If he was an experienced traveler we would have sent him alone but this was another chance for dh to fly with him, show him where to catch an Uber to campus, etc. 

I know this sounds bad but I just had no desire to attend any meetings, info sessions, etc. By the time my kids go to college I am ready to step away. I don’t want to join the parent association or attend the official parent weekends or any of that. I’m burned out on college visits and this feels like more of that. I am very involved with and supportive of my college kids. But I really don’t want to sit through another meeting for them ever. 

I might feel differently if so much info wasn’t available online. I am pretty good at digging for info online so I can answer most of my own questions quickly. My kids would always say after we took the generic college tours that they already knew all that info because their mom told them. LOL. 

Edited June 17, 2019 by teachermom2834

[Melissa B]

I didn't go to either one. Both my girls thought their orientations were boring and should have been optional as they didn't learn anything they didn't already know. And they were expensive as they both required an overnight stay in the dorms.

[8filltheheart]

1 hour ago, teachermom2834 said:

We have not attended the events with our child or the parent sessions but dh did accompany both boys to their colleges and then find a place to work while they attended. He was available if they needed anything. Our big concern was making sure they got registered appropriately (registration was during orientation). We both have a skeptical opinion of advisors steering new students appropriately. Oldest did consult dh when the classes he was planning filled before he got in them. 

Oldest ds was just a one day deal. Second ds had two full days and had to stay in the dorm. If he was an experienced traveler we would have sent him alone but this was another chance for dh to fly with him, show him where to catch an Uber to campus, etc. 

I know this sounds bad but I just had no desire to attend any meetings, info sessions, etc. By the time my kids go to college I am ready to step away. I don’t want to join the parent association or attend the official parent weekends or any of that. I’m burned out on college visits and this feels like more of that. I am very involved with and supportive of my college kids. But I really don’t want to sit through another meeting for them ever. 

I might feel differently if so much info wasn’t available online. I am pretty good at digging for info online so I can answer most of my own questions quickly. My kids would always say after we took the generic college tours that they already knew all that info because their mom told them. LOL. 

Yes on so many levels.  I am sick of standard college tours and any general info sessions.  That are so repetitive and the info is easily found. I really expect them to be on autopilot once they graduate.  

[MerryAtHope]

12 hours ago, linders said:

now he can keep the Experimental Music class he somehow signed up for. What do they do in this small class? Example: What sound is made when rice is dropped on a cymbal? 🙄 It satisfies his "Fine Arts" requirement.

LOL, from a sound effects standpoint, this could be an interesting class! (I actually can imagine dry rice tinkling on a cymbal.) I hope they encourage the kids to really think outside the box. 

[MerryAtHope]

Ours requires orientation before registering for classes, and also requires the overnight for incoming Freshman (but not for transfer students--we're going to my son's transfer student orientation Wednesday.) I mainly hope to be a second set of ears and to pick up on things that my son misses because it's all new to him. We'll see. I learned things at the open house that weren't on the website, so I felt that trip was worthwhile & hope this one will be too. If nothing else, we'll enjoy lunch out together. Mainly I'm going to be moral support though!

[Chris in VA]

VCU orientation for students was one day of parent/student info (parents separated from students), then students spent the night and were picked up the next day. It was done very well and ITA that it was basically to ease the transition and reassure parents. I don't remember JMU's orientation because we did a visit, then Dd and I (and my best friend) went back for auditions (music ed). I know dd went a week before school started and the students did a sexuality/drug/alcohol lectur and had to take a course online before arriving that covered that sort of thing before they got there. They had fun activities to foster relationships and "build the Rah-rah culture" i.e. I LOVE JMU stuff. 

[Corraleno]

On 6/17/2019 at 10:10 AM, teachermom2834 said:

I might feel differently if so much info wasn’t available online. I am pretty good at digging for info online so I can answer most of my own questions quickly. My kids would always say after we took the generic college tours that they already knew all that info because their mom told them. LOL. 

After going through DS's orientation, I came to the conclusion that this may be a homeschooling thing. We're used to doing lots of educational research and planning and customization, but it seems like most parents of schooled kids are used to just letting school staff handle everything, and they just continue that when it comes to college. And I guess most students are so used to being told what to do, where to go, what classes to take, etc., that they show up to orientation with the same passive attitude instead of being proactive. 

I sat through all of DS's orientation sessions bored out of my mind because I already knew everything they talked about. I kept thinking "Why are they repeating all this info that is clearly available on the website??? Surely everyone here already knows this stuff!" So I was surprised when everyone else in the parents group raved about how amazing it was, saying they were in "information overload" because there was just so much new and important information to take in all at once. And I just kept thinking "have you guys literally never even looked at the website???"

A few weeks before orientation I asked on the parents FB group if the schedule of fall classes was up yet, because I couldn't find it online. Every single response was some variant of "Oh, you don't need to know that — the advisor chooses their classes, because they know what the major requirements are, what GEs they need to take, etc." Well, DS already knew what all the requirements were for his major and minor, he knew what all the GE requirements were and which courses could count for both GE and the major/minor, and he knew what the prereq's were for each course. He wanted to get the GE's out of the way in the most efficient way possible and jump right into upper level courses in his major, so we'd already drawn up a rough 4-yr plan with a list of all the courses he wanted, which requirement each of those fulfilled, which GEs he could eliminate with DE or CLEP, etc.  Eventually I found the course schedule online, so DS showed up to the meeting with his advisor with color-coded copies of a 4-yr plan and several alternative course schedules for fall semester. He said his advisor was really surprised and wanted to know how in the world he figured all that out, lol. 

[RootAnn]

Yep, @Corraleno. My DD had her 4-and-a-half-yr plan, an alternate one if she doesn't do study abroad at a specific time, and a third option if she chooses to do a foreign language certificate in one of her languages instead of another minor. No one looked at them since DD was already registered.

I feel like the other parents who had read the website probably weren't at orientation.

I did have a few questions to ask that I could not find the answers to online, although I admit to asking one I did know the answer to just so I could follow up with a request for them to consider offering what they don't currently do (ability to receive allergy shots at the campus health center). I was completely disappointed with that response.

One of DD's professors was manning the undergraduate research/REU display at the information fair, so she's already met one professor she'll have this fall.

[DawnM]

I have made my husband go to all of them! 🤣

It was honestly by default.  Both times for my middle (he changed colleges for next year) it has been offered at times that are not good for me to take off (I am a school counselor and they always fall during testing, and I am partially in charge of testing for our school)

He says it can get boring, but he catches info my ADD son doesn't, so he needs to be there.

We did try to both go to my older son's Orientation, but orientation got cancelled due to weather (he started in January) so there was no orientation!

[Miguelsmom]

We most likely will not be going to orientation as his chosen school here charge an extra $150 for a parent to go.  Is that standard?

[katilac]

7 hours ago, Miguelsmom said:

We most likely will not be going to orientation as his chosen school here charge an extra $150 for a parent to go.  Is that standard?

Yes, that's common.

[Corraleno]

11 hours ago, Miguelsmom said:

We most likely will not be going to orientation as his chosen school here charge an extra $150 for a parent to go.  Is that standard?

 

3 hours ago, katilac said:

Yes, that's common.

 

Wow, I had no idea that some schools charge parents.  What does the $150 cover??? 

DS's orientation was 2 full days, and the student cost was $100, including all meals and one night in the dorm, with lots of evening activities. (It was $50 with no overnight.) There was no charge for parents, and many kids were accompanied by both parents (and in some cases siblings), so I guess I should count myself lucky that at least I didn't have to pay to be bored, lol. 

 

Edited June 24, 2019 by Corraleno

[MerryAtHope]

14 hours ago, Miguelsmom said:

We most likely will not be going to orientation as his chosen school here charge an extra $150 for a parent to go.  Is that standard?

 Wow, that’s awful! My son is a transfer student, but there was no charge for parents to come to the transfer student orientation. No meals or overnight were included, but they had a special for lunch that we got for $6.99, and it was really good. Your comment made me check, and for the freshman orientation, parents pay 33 for meals if they are not staying overnight, or 102 if the hotel stay is included.  So, I guess if the $150 is including the hotel stay and all the meals, maybe that’s not so bad. 

 

[Miguelsmom]

It's $195 for students. It's 2 days, over night, all meals and activities included. For parents it's $150 2 days, all meals and activities included but no hotel.

[MerryAtHope]

23 hours ago, Miguelsmom said:

It's $195 for students. It's 2 days, over night, all meals and activities included. For parents it's $150 2 days, all meals and activities included but no hotel.

 what are these expensive activities? Blech!

[Miguelsmom]

6 hours ago, MerryAtHope said:

what are these expensive activities?

I have no idea they don't say but they make about $20k a year or more on it.

[RootAnn]

I think my kid's orientation fee was $125. One breakfast, two lunches & a dinner. Plus one overnight in the dorms (towels & linens provided). Includes two guests (meals but no lodging) for the same fee. (Extra guests are $50 each.)

I don't mind them charging for orientation because the school hires students as orientation leaders and they have to get money from somewhere to pay them. I assume any leftover goes for the kids who give tours during the school year as part time employees of the admissions dept.