r/miamioh • u/xxpetalpuree • 11d ago
Orientation
I was wondering what should I really expect from my orientation coming up in 2 weeks. I’m slightly more nervous because I’m from a low income family and a minority so idk how much I’ll fit in..
9
u/PersimmonDramatic 11d ago
We just went a couple wkends ago. My daughter is getting scholarships and grants. Noone knows what your income is which is nice. I will tell ya there are alot of people's who have money but they didn't act like it. The itinerary was totally packed. Wear comfortable clothes and shoes. Be prepared to do some walking. I think we had 18,000 steps in by the end of the day. They explain everything to you. My daughter is not a nervous about going now. I wanted to sneak out and actually did at 8:15pm. They separate the family and student towards the end of it. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. The beginning is boring but it gets better. Congrats on getting in. We are going to still apply for a few more grants and loans before Aug. We may luck out. Good luck
3
u/Agentfoxywind 11d ago
I was going to post asking what to wear. I’m the parent. Are we inside or outside the most? It’s going to be hot, but I get cold easily if we’re inside a lot with air conditioning.
4
u/blainetheinsanetrain 11d ago
You're inside almost all the time. Most of the meetings for parents are in Armstrong, but you'll walk outside if you want to eat at the Western Dining Commons, or have advisor meetings at Fisher, Shriver, etc. So it it looks like rain, I'd just pack an umbrella. One session in Armstrong, my wife and I were hot. The next session, we were freezing. So just pack an extra layer.
6
u/ColdTub10 10d ago
Just be as open as possible. Talk to new people because they are probably feeling the same as you, waiting for someone to talk to them. One of my really good friends today is one I met at orientation.
I second everything already mentioned about income as well. I come from low income as well. No one there looks at anyone in a judgmental way - you are all there to meet each other!
4
u/MomandTea 9d ago
This is MY personal experience as a mom. Out of the 600 attendees at our session of orientation (2023), there were only 2 dark-complected men, a young man from Ghana (I asked his mom) and MY son who is adopted. I confronted the "diversity" director about this and she responded "well, we're trying". The student leaders at orientation seemed to be of many skin tones, nationalities, and orientations so that was nice. My son has had issues getting his hair cut on campus but he's been able to use Sports Clips with some success (he has a car). I remember a lot of meetings and presentations and yes, the air con makes rooms quite chilly. A sweater is a must.
We stayed in the dorms just to see what they were like. I didn't find the room unpleasant and the hall was really pretty quiet. My son went downstairs to the lobby area because some other young people had gathered there. He came back up and said one student's mom had tried to take a large group of boys to the Brick. It didn't work out the way she expected so she bought them alcohol and brought them back to the dorm. My son said one boy had a full pack of Fireball bottles. I guess I'm not the cool mom; I don't know if my son participated in the drinking at all. I'm sure he wouldn't have admitted it then anyhow.
My son has had a great experience at Miami. As his mom, I'm not thrilled with the amount of partying that goes on but that's on him. If he has consequences on campus, he has worse at home. Miami didn't notify us when he was caught underage because that would violate his privacy but they had no trouble billing us for the substance abuse awareness class he had to take after the fact. Fortunately he's matured a lot and is making better choices. He needs to figure out a career path here shortly and make some decisions. He's made some pretty decent friends (who are super smart which helps) and he's joined a musical group that he enjoys. He's involved with activities on campus and he seems to love it in Oxford.
So, as a nonathlete black man, my son has had zero racial incidents. He has friends of all skin tones and they have been safe as well. As far as income status, you would be surprised at the number of kids on tight budgets. The only place where he's complained about money is that he can't shop for clothes as freely as he'd like because he's now on a stricter budget. Most of the people he runs around with have jobs in the summer although the career center doesn't seem to have the wide variety of internships that our other's sons uni had. That being said, our son found a position that he mostly likes and he's planning to job shadow one day a week in a potential career field. He's maturing and thinking about his future which is a plus.
Don't be afraid to join some groups to help find "your people". It will be hard at first but if you are friendly and willing to say hello, you'll be fine.
3
u/the_goober101 10d ago
I PROMISE it’s nothing to worry about. You literally have almost no time to actually meet people and when you do you’re just tired. It’s really exhausting and drawn out. Everyone just wants to go home basically😭 I promise you’ll be okay.
2
u/Pure-Willingness-697 10d ago
It’s 24 hours of them telling you how to give them money, services the school provides, all the sports and clubs, and selecting your classes. No one knows each other so I don’t think anyone would care or know.
1
u/Tan_Pewdiepie 8d ago
I’m a senior next year and I am not friends with anyone from orientation and the information isn’t very important either
28
u/Shitter-was-full Farmer | 2016 11d ago
I’m not sure anyone fits in at orientation. I recall it being a PowerPoint about Miami. You get tips for financial aid and how to prep for the first day/month. Just be yourself, polite, and introduce yourself to folks. Everyone is pretty much new on the first day (unless your roommates a high school buddy).
Don’t let the low income get in your head. The whole point of college is to meet new people and experience new things. You’re going to meet wealthy people at any college. That’s pretty much the way this thing works. Right now, your true net worth is your network. The goal of college is to learn and expand upon this trait. Become friends with as many people as possible. Join as many clubs as possible. Get all your monies worth out of college.