Have you ever been so excited to go into a restaurant and order your favorite dish? My favorite happens to be chicken parmesan.
I went out to eat a couple of weeks ago and as I waited for my meal to arrive, I remembered how good it was the last time I ordered it. When the server placed the meal down in front of me, she could not help but notice the look on my face. “Is this chicken parm,” I ask. “Yes,” she said, “isn’t that what you ordered”? The dish did not look anything like what I am used to, and although it was delicious, I had to adjust my thinking and be willing to try it. If I read the menu closely, I would have noticed the difference in the description of the dish. My point is, as human beings it is natural to assume that “things” with the same name are the same, but as you know, that is often not the case.
Every day I receive at least one phone call from a new transfer student asking me if they have to attend orientation because they attended one at their previous college. While I refrain from telling my chicken parmesan story, I explain that orientation is a time when the campus comes together to welcome you. It is a required program for all new students, including freshmen, transfer, international, resident and commuter students.
Orientation is important because it allows you to become acquainted with the different aspects of our campus, such as the buildings, student services, parking, etc. By attending orientation, you will have an opportunity to meet and establish relationships with the deans, faculty and several departments. Most importantly, you have a chance to meet your classmates and current student leaders, and this is an opportunity to build friendships that will last a lifetime.
To quote my friends in the Academic Achievement Center, a department involved with orientation, “orientation is not something we do to you, but something we do for you.” I promise you that you will walk away from orientation with a lot of useful information that you did not know before.
This post written by Sandy Christoun, Transfer Coordinator at Bridgewater State College in Bridgewater, Mass.