Parents of HS students who will be college freshman this fall

[Anonymous]

The college likely has some type of roommate matching app. DC should go there now to 'pick' a roommate based on preferences. A compatible roommate is very important to DC adjustment to college.

[Anonymous]

"Any person at 18 or 81 could use some helpful advice when doing something for the 1st time. You're also assuming a lot that the college and USPS will be efficient enough to allow students enough lead time if they don't think to look for information online themselves."

It also matters what your DC is doing between now and the first day of college. Our DC is going to be a camp councilor at a camp that is not connected to the web and USPS mail would have to travel an extra 3000 miles if it was forwarded. DC's lead time is much different than the colleges will assume for students with a life guarding job down the street all summer.

[Anonymous]

I was excited to finally get a packet of info from the school this week. It turned out to be all marketing--places to order sheets, dorm supplies, etc. Essentially useless. Well, at least I know what size mattress!

[Anonymous]

Funny how everybody assumes every kid has a computer or a computer in the house.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, I'm a bit concerned about the OP who talks about filling out "our" roommate application, signing up for "our" courses, etc. Picking out "our" wife, purchasing "our" home, choosing "our" specialty in medical school, etc.

At our kid's spring open campus, the admins specifically said that parents don't need to be overseeing the filling out of the forms like dorm assignment. I was matched freshman year with a girl who said she didn't smoke, since mom was watching her fill out the form. Actually she smoked like a chimney, and I had to put up with it, despite asking for a non-smoking roommate, since according to her form she didn't smoke! it wasn't exactly delightful . .. .

[Anonymous]

I think every college does things a bit differently so just prod them every few weeks to make sure they're on top of it. My daughter was starting freshman year last fall and her college required roommate forms, health forms and allowed them to select 3 courses (out of 4) by early June. They didn't learn their roommate or dorm assignment until late July or early August I think. For the classes it was first come first served online so being on top of that was important - my daughter got all three of her choices because she was ready but others didn't. There was no mid-summer orientation, hers was right before they began the school year because they are a school that draws from all over the country (and world) and there would be no way to ask students to show up in June for three days.

Basically, just ask them to find out all of these things and have them track everything. Once they go through the process they're ok and don't need reminders - trust me they get smart pretty quickly about how classes fill fast and how annoying it can be to get waitlisted for a course or day/time they want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was excited to finally get a packet of info from the school this week. It turned out to be all marketing--places to order sheets, dorm supplies, etc. Essentially useless. Well, at least I know what size mattress!

What? Everyone knows it's twin XL. How could you not have known that? That's college standard.

[Anonymous]

Ellen DeGeneres — ‘You should never assume. You know what happens when you assume. You make an ass out of you and me because that's how it's spelled.’

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I'm a bit concerned about the OP who talks about filling out "our" roommate application, signing up for "our" courses, etc. Picking out "our" wife, purchasing "our" home, choosing "our" specialty in medical school, etc.

At our kid's spring open campus, the admins specifically said that parents don't need to be overseeing the filling out of the forms like dorm assignment. I was matched freshman year with a girl who said she didn't smoke, since mom was watching her fill out the form. Actually she smoked like a chimney, and I had to put up with it, despite asking for a non-smoking roommate, since according to her form she didn't smoke! it wasn't exactly delightful . .. .

OP here, please don't be concerned about me. You are way over analyzing my post.

Thanks for all the responses, they have all been very helpful. This is a huge adjustment for my kid and it sounds like he hasn't dropped the ball or missed anything important as we all seem to mostly be in the same boat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ellen DeGeneres — ‘You should never assume. You know what happens when you assume. You make an ass out of you and me because that's how it's spelled.’

Pretty sure this predates Ellen.

[Anonymous]

It does but she improved it!

[Anonymous]

Op, seek solace on the College Confidential website, read/post re: the specific school. Find your tribe!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It does but she improved it!

It's not an improvement to explain a joke to death!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was excited to finally get a packet of info from the school this week. It turned out to be all marketing--places to order sheets, dorm supplies, etc. Essentially useless. Well, at least I know what size mattress!

What? Everyone knows it's twin XL. How could you not have known that? That's college standard.

I took that as sarcasm, not as the pp actully didn't already know the size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It does but she improved it!

It's not an improvement to explain a joke to death!

The world is full of all sorts of people with different senses of humor