What To Expect At Freshman Orientation As An International Student

Always keep in mind, that every school is different and I’m just sharing with you my personal experience. And giving you tips according to what I personally experienced.

Almost a yer ago, my college journey (finally) started. I was more than exciting about moving to campus, but not so excited about college orientation. I just consider myself a somewhat shy person, and going to orientation with lots of other people, where you’re put in awkward situations, just didn’t seem that fun. But, it wasn’t as bad as I thought, it wasn’t that bad at all! And if you’re reading this, then you must be going through orientation anytime soon. And I got you, fellow international students. Here are some tips for orientation as well as what you can expect from it.

What to expect

I know orientation can seem like a lot of fun for some and really overwhelming and somewhat scary for others, so here are some things you can expect. Also, don’t be scared and overwhelmed, there’s no reason to ;). I’m going to tell you about my orientation day and how it was, so that you can have an idea of how yours can be. Also, my freshman orientation was divided in two days: official orientation day (only for intl’ students) and welcome day (for every freshman).

Orientation day

Presentations

We just had to go to an auditorium and we needed to sign in (so that they know we attended orientation). After that, we just sat in the auditorium and there were lots of presentations, about campus security, library information, and more.

I know sitting in an auditorium for a couple hours listening to people talking might not sound appealing at all. But, just do it, (you can’t skip orientation anyways). Besides, a lot of information is given, information about visas, campus security, what the school has to offer, and another things you might be interested in.

Ice breakers

During the presentations, there were a couple of ice breakers, like learning the school’s dance. That was definitely awkward at the beginning but it ended up being fun. After the presentations, we were separated into groups of like 15 people. We headed to a classroom to get to know each other and we had like a leader (?). She was a sophomore and was in charge of the ice breakers.

So one thing you can expect are ice breakers. They can be awkward, but they’re good conversation starters and they also can be fun. Don’t be shy, loosen up and make some friends.

Be prepared to talk

As I said before, we were separated into groups and in those groups we were supposed to talk about ourselves. We were asked questions like: what is your major? What’s your name? How old are you? and those basic questions. So, be prepared to talk about yourself, and also to join conversations. It might be weird at the beginning since, you’ll be in a classroom with complete strangers, but just get out of your comfort zone and try to participate, try to make some friends and most importantly, try to have fun.

My group leader, created a group on GroupMe for us to use and to keep in touch, so that when we have any question, we can just hit her up. That’s a great idea, since us international students don’t have anyone on campus yet (if you already do, you’re lucky).

Welcome Day

Unlike orientation day, this day was for every freshman, not only for international students. We all met at the stadium and the UC president officially welcomed us to the UC community. A couple students shared their experiences with us and that was all. But we were sitting in the stadium for at least 2 hours (hi there, sunburns).

Again, be prepared to listen

As mentioned before, we were sitting there listening to some presentations for a couple hours. I know it might sound boring, but after all it’s interesting information that might be useful. So, don’t forget to pay attention.

After, we were again separated into groups, but this time it was groups according to majors. We were given a short campus tour and then taken to specific classrooms. There we met our advisor and were given a first week on campus checklist.

So, you can expect to meet your advisor

We also got to know the classes we were taking that semester and were taught how to use blackboard, canopy and how to enroll in classes.

Expect to learn

Don’t get frustrated if you don’t learn how to use all these platforms (blackboard and canopy) immediately, there’re people there to help and if you still don’t get it, remember you can always go to the library and ask.

So, that was it. That was my orientation experience and below are some tips 😉

Tips

Wear something comfortable

For both, orientation and welcome day, try to wear something comfortable and light. There’re lots of activities that require movement, like some ice breakers or the campus tour. And the last thing you can do is wear something cute but not comfortable and then regret it for the rest of the day. Besides, it can keep you from enjoying the activities.

Pack light

Just bring a water bottle, an extra phone charger, some snacks and maybe a cap. Because you don’t want to be carrying a heavy backpack on the campus tour.

Get out of your comfort zone

I know this might be hard for some, but in order to make friends, you might have to get out of your comfort zone and start the conversation. Just remember that everyone’s in the same boat, everyone’s new to college and everyone wants to make friends.

Keep in touch after orientation

The people you meet at orientation, will probably be the first people you’ll meet in college. And they also can be your first friends, so don’t forget to keep in touch with them.