In late March, I received a packet in the mail from OSU. It was about my orientation and contained a wealth of handy information I would need to know about the two-day procedure. There were some important steps that had to be completed prior to arriving on campus. I eagerly opened up the packet to read its content.
On the inside cover was my major (I was undecided, in a Scholars Program), and I could choose from several different orientation dates listed on the page, and I picked the earliest one possible so that I could get into the classes I wanted. I decided to go to orientation June 6-7. That afternoon, I registered for orientation online just by following the steps in the booklet.
*Tip* Pay your OSU admittance/acceptance fee ASAP and the sooner you get your orientation packet! Whenever you get something from OSU, get it done immediately.
*Bigger Tip* Check your BuckeyeMail DAILY. That’s how OSU communicates with you the most.
After reserving my spot in the June 6-7 orientation, I excitedly began looking up what classes I would take in the fall. I’m an ambitious, go-getter student, often going above and beyond to be prepared for everything. I’m also a freshman going to OSU with 55 college credits from taking post-secondary classes at local colleges while still in high school. I began dual enrollment courses in tenth grade; it saves so much money and time. I became more independent and intelligent from doing PSEOP/College Credit Plus. I was 90% sure I would eventually major in Public Health so I looked at the prerequisites, which includes taking Math 1116 or higher, Sociology 1101, and more. My transfer credit from colleges knocked out a bunch of General Education requirements for the major.
I spent HOURS looking at the class search and finally came up with a list of classes I was interested in taking:
Sociology 1101 (a requirement for Public Health)
Chinese 1101 (three semesters of a language is required for Public Health)
Asian Philosophies (it fulfills a GE Literature requirement I lacked)
University Exploration Survey (Every freshmen here has to take a survey course; it’s like “homeroom” class in high school.)
Health Sciences Scholars Seminar (I’m in one of OSU’s 17 Scholars programs; each has a different theme. Find out more about it here: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/home)
Young Scholars Program Freshman Seminar (There’s a variety of freshman seminars to take; see https://freshmanseminars.osu.edu to learn more)
These classes/seminars total up to 14 credit hours for Autumn semester; students should ideally take 14-16 credit hours every semester to stay on track to graduation within 4 years. I was satisfied with my mock schedule.
Fast-forward to June, and I began packing clothes, notebooks, and pencils for orientation. Feelings of excitement and anxiety flooded my brain. I did not stay overnight at Morrill Tower with other students; I had family members living just 20-30 minutes away from OSU campus, so I slept over their house for a few nights, saving me $52. 🙂
Anyways, here is how orientation went:
Monday June 6 –
- 7:50 am (or s0) – Check-in at Morrill Tower. I got a folder filled with papers and a buckeye nut. Thank goodness OSU provided me with a campus map to navigate its campus. There is a label on the folder with my name, OSU ID, and the name of my Peer Leader during orientation.
- 8:00 am – Resource Fair – There were tables lined up in rows; at each table was a student organization or campus resource. For example, there was a Huntington bank booth where students could sign up for checking accounts. People were also giving out wallets, stickers, phone cases, and other things. Lots of FREE STUFF. It was a good thing I brought my big backpack with me to store everything in.
- 9:30 am – Opening Session – Students filed into the giant auditorium and parents sat in a different section behind all the teenagers. There were hundreds of students, at least 300. It was a fun session where the Class of 2020 was welcomed to orientation by Bernie Savarese, the director of First Year Experience at OSU. He’s a very cool guy. I found out that there were 4 teens from California at the session! Bernie actually called them out by name. He also called out the twins present in the room. I enjoyed the session a lot.
- 10:45 am – “FYE Peer Leader Small Group Meeting #1” – All new Buckeyes got split up into small groups, lead by FYE Peer Leaders. On my orientation folder was a label that had my Peer Leader’s name on it: Kyle. I was looking for a boy named Kyle but was surprised when Kyle came up on stage and it was a girl in a red polo shirt and khaki cargos. “Kyle’s group! Follow me!”, she said, and I stood up to follow her out of the theatre/auditorium. About 15 kids were in my small group. We went outdoors onto the Oval to do icebreakers. After introductions was lunch: a plateful of pizza, an apple, and a bag of chips or pretzels with a bottle of soda or water.
My group for Orientation was sweet. We all got along well. For this photo, we did silly poses with our leader, Kyle. The group also has a GroupMe page to stay connected.
- 12:45 pm – “Doing Business Buckeye Style” – All students and families were in the same room again as we were presented information about how to get the BuckID and how to navigate BuckeyeLink. We were reminded to get our vaccination requirement, student health insurance requirement, and other items done.
- 2:00 pm – University Exploration Academic Overview – Being undecided is called being in Exploration at OSU. I went to a different building to attend an academic overview. I received individualized instruction from an advisor about what classes I should choose and what I should talk about at my actual advising appointment on Tuesday, when I register for classes for the first time.
- 4:00 pm – There is free time to do whatever: to get my BuckID, or to take a foreign language placement test if needed, or to tour residence halls. I explored campus some more instead. I forgot what else I did, but I do remember getting lost and confused even with a map in my hand.
- 5:00 pm – Dinner time. I went to the Ohio Union and sat down to drink some water. I looked over the materials I was given today and wrote down a schedule of what to do tomorrow.
*Tip* Bring water with you to orientation; you’ll be walking around a lot under the heat of the blazing sun.
A current student sat at my table and chatted with me. We exchanged numbers; she was friendly. After she left, I went to get Chipotle; there was one right outside the Ohio Union. I was supposed to be eating dinner with my small group/family, but I felt like eating dinner by myself, so I chowed down in solitude on the second floor of the Ohio Union. (I am not sure if I recommend this to others. Maybe it is better to eat with your group/family.) - 6:15 pm – “Get Involved” session – This is a fun, interactive session all about ways to get involved at OSU, whether it be undergraduate research, student organizations, volunteering, or working at a job. We watched funny videos and got swag bags after the session was over at 7:30 pm. In the swag bag included a book listing all the active student clubs.
- 7:30 pm – I told my Peer Leader, Kyle, that I had to leave campus since I wasn’t staying overnight and therefore wouldn’t be participating in the rest of the evening activities. My parents were already waiting for me impatiently all the way back at Morrill Tower. It took me a while to get there because I was on the other side of campus! With my heavy backpack on, and several bags on my arms, and also a hoodie in hand, I trekked over to West Campus. When I got back to my aunt and uncle’s house where my mom, dad, brother, and I were staying at, I fell down onto my bed in exhaustion. My feet hurt a little from walking miles in my brand new Converses.
*More Tips*
-Wear comfortable shoes and clothes, preferably a T-shirt and jeans because you do get in the grass to participate in icebreaker activities and sit down to talk.
-Bring sunscreen to continuously slather on throughout the day. I definitely darkened several shades that day. -Get the contact information of your Peer Leader as well as your peers in your group.
-If you are unsure of something or need assistance, do not be afraid to ask. Everyone at OSU is friendly.
This is my haul from orientation: T-shirts, stickers, booklets, wallets, water bottle, lanyards/card holders, earbuds, and eyeglass lens wipe.
The most important thing is that you enjoy your orientation! It might be your first time visiting campus, or you may have already become familiar with some buildings. Hopefully you take the time to make friends. Everyone here has unique backgrounds and experiences, so get to know your fellow Buckeyes during your time here at Ohio State! 🙂
To Be Continued…
See my next post for Part 2, the Tuesday of orientation
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Helpful links:
http://registrar.osu.edu/courses/index.asp – Click on “Search Schedule of Classes” to see what courses are offered during a certain semester.
orientation.osu.edu – The official OSU orientation website. Look at this before you go to your orientation! There’s even driving directions and a list of things to bring.
https://www.transferology.com – Free, super useful and easy tool/website to see how your transfer credit is evaluated by colleges.