My Dorm Room

As a first year, the most common question I'm asked (besides name and major) is "Where do you live?" I reply, "Edison, what about you?" Thinking I misunderstood the question, the person clarifies, "No, I mean where on campus do you live?" And here's where I can try to be funny and say my backpack, my car or those comfy couches in Alexander library. 
I am a commuter. Most of the time people's reactions will be something similar to, "Aw that sucks", "Why can't you dorm?" or "So how does it feel to be a commuter?" Commuting may seem and feel like one is missing out on the so called "college experience" but that is only true if you allow it. Rutgers provides endless resources and services to all of its students, including those who don't take residency on campus. 


The Off-Campus Students' Association (OCSA) is dedicated to advocating and fulfilling the needs and interests of commuters and off campus students. 

During my first semester, I would stop by at some of their events and commuter connection tables but I had never really taken the time to visit their office until the start of this semester. Located at Busch Campus Center in Room 171, the OCSA office or lounge is fully equip with a microwave, fridge, computers, several couches, a TV with video games and welcoming people. Sounds very similar to a dorm room right? Nino A., the OCSA Community Service Chair, likes to call this comfy lounge, 

"The dorm room for any off-campus student and commuter" 

It's true! The OCSA lounge/office used to be located in the Rutgers Student Center at College Ave. This past fall was their first year at Busch Campus. Having expanded more than double their original size, the lounge is a place for commuters and off-campus students to hang out, do homework, learn more about upcoming events, bring friends including on campus students and discuss any problems concerning commuter life. Click here for a virtual tour, if you haven't seen their office/lounge yet! 

As a first year and a commuter, I did find it stressful transitioning into Rutgers. My typical day consists of waking up early in order to get good parking (needs to be as close as possible to the bus stop), packing everything I need or might need (including books, clothes and food) for the day in my backpack/car, getting to school, going to classes, attending events and finally coming back home to finish up any homework or studying. When you commute, you don't always have the opportunity to check back into your dorm for a quick nap or to drop off things. In my situation, it would be a waste of gas to make frequent trips back. Commuting became stressful for me because I made it that way. I didn't realize what the OCSA had to offer. 

It isn't only a lounge for commuters and off-campus students to sit in; it's a place where you can discuss #commuterproblems. Chances are the students there have been through the same exact thing you're experiencing and know how to help. The OCSA holds these "lunch & learns" for students and representatives from Transportation Services and Commuter Life. At this event, you can gain information about parking permits/lots or discuss any commuter-related problems and how they can be resolved. First year commuters might feel like they won't get the opportunity to meet more students like one would in a residence hall. The OCSA provides many different events to combat this problem. Fliers of their semester programs can be seen in any student center. They not only welcome commuters and off-campus students but also any student in general. Nino A. stressed to me that a lot of their events are geared to the entire Rutgers community, not only one particular group, because the OCSA wants commuters and off-campus students to feel included in the university. Not only have I met more fellow commuters and fellow students through the OCSA, I have also gained a lot of information about commuting and the university through them. As one of their fliers says, 

"We strive to change the commuting mentality" 

So now when people ask where I live on campus, I will happily answer, "Busch Campus Center, Room 171. What about you?" 

Photo Collage: R U Ready for College Ave?

COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS

All of the photos in the collage are distinct places and landmarks of the college avenue campus. Each place characterizes the campus to make it unique from Rutgers' three other campuses. As a new student it's important to familiarize yourself with these places to get a sense of the culture, tradition, and most importantly to make use of the resources available. Whether you are studying at the Alexander Library, waiting for a bus at the student center, strolling down Easton Avenue, getting tutored at the learning center, or eating a fat sandwich at the grease trucks, all of these activities and places help new students assimilate to college life and Rutgers' diverse and amazing culture.

I Love Livi!

I Love Livi!

 10 Places You Need to Know on Livingston to Make Your First Year at RU Convinient

                                                                                                     

There’s no doubt that Livingston is the freshman campus here at Rutgers. Jumping into such a large environment can be intimidating to most first year students. Making Livingston Campus feel like a home away from home is going to be crucial to a successful first year. This list is of places that will help lead to that feeling of a small community rather than a large university. Enjoy!  

                                                                                        1. Livinston Student Center

 Simply a home away from home. The Livingston Student Center is the hub of the campus. Duncan Donuts and Sabarros are conviniently located in the center's cafeteria. Sabarros even offers slices for meal swipes. The center also offers mant lounge/study spcaes throught both floors. Feel free to stop by the Campus Help Desk to get pamplets on upcoming programs and organizations. Freshmen will find the center due to the many activities that they will mind happening here.

2. Livingston Convinience Store

Convenience at its finest. The Livingston Convenience Store has almost anything students may need during their stay on Livingston. Feel free to stock up on treats and snacks for late night studying. The Convenience Store saves many students from unneeded trips off campus.   

3. Rutgerszone

Take a break from studying and come to the Rutgerszone located in the Livingston Student Center. This awesome place has food and came to cure any boredome. The Zone offers large screen TVs and tons of arcade games. With events happening almost every night, this is the place to be. When freshmen can find the fun at their campus, they don't have to venture out off campus. Ps. The workers there rock!

4. Livingston Post Office

Never lose mail ever again. Many first year students don’t even know there is a post office at every campus. The Livingston Post Office is conveniently located in Tillet Hall. Every student’s mail box is also located there. Students can have books and packages mailed directly to the post office instead of your home. Take advantage of also being able to mail packages out as well. Having a post office right on campus makes Livingston feel more like a small neighborhood.

5. Kilmer Library

Welcome to late night studying! The Kilmer Library is the Livingston Campus library. Hours run from early morning to late night. If freshmen ever need to leave their room to study, this is the place to be. The library has tons of computers and work tables for group studying. It is also the primary place to print out papers and assignments; no need for printers on your dorm with the library feet away.

6. Tillet Computer Labs

The library is the not the only place that has all the fun. Located in Tillet Hall you will the find computer labs that have tons of Mac computers and a printer. When the library is a bit overcrowded for your liking, this place is an alternate option. This is also the place to come to when you need to fix things with your RUid account.

7. Livingston Dining Commons  You’re lucky you’re on Livingston! Livingston Dining Commons is the newest dining facility at the university. It has plenty of food options for everyone. The dining hall includes the typical stations along with The Pub, a made-to-order burger station. The dining hall on Livingston is also where many students meet up after class and meet new people. The dining hall also offers a takeout section on the outside of the hall for those students rushing to class.

8. Livingston Recreation Center

No Freshman 15 over here! With all the food conveniently available, it’s important to maintain good health. With gyms located on every campus, students never miss a workout. The Livingston Gym offers a weight and machine room as well as a multipurpose open gym. Basketball, Volleyball, and Tennis courts are located on the outside of the gym. No need for expensive gym memberships, gym facilities are free to students.

9. Rutgers Bus System

Get to class on time! There is no surprise that Rutgers is a HUGE university. Although Livingston may be the home of most freshmen students, there will be times where you will have to take the bus to another campus. Don’t fear though because the Rutgers Bus System is one of the largest campus bus systems in the country. Busses often get crowed during mid day but they will take you where you need to go. Getting accustomed to the bus system will help you get acquainted to the Rutgers lifestyle faster.

 

10. The Residence Halls

You’ll be living here for the next 10 months, better enjoy it. The residence halls on Livingston are made to give first year students a sense of home. Most of the halls are only first years, giving them a chance to experience this for the first time together. The main lounges in the halls are made for students to connect with each other and relax. The RAs in each hall provide students with resources they may need throughout the year. They over residential help and are there to answer any questions students may have about things on campus. Meeting new people in your residence hall will lead to a  more comfortable living environment.

High School Students Planning to Attend College

Welcome to College!!

Excitement:                                                                                              Biggest Fears:

- Party                                                                                                                 - Failing

- Meeting New People                                                                                        - Not Making Friends

- Reinventing Yourself                                                                                       - Not Standing Out

- Networking                                                                                                      - Stress

- Fraternities & Sororities                                                                                  - Being Overwhelmed

- No parents                                                                                                        - Lack of Money

                              

- Freedom

- Adulthood

- So much to do

                                                 



High School Senior Planning to Attend College

This is Emily Rodgers.  (Soon to be 18 years old this February)

And the challenge she's facing like most high school students her age is graduation. 

Emily is a senior at Winslow Township High School in Atco, New Jersey. 

She's eagerly awaiting her high school graduation this year, where after she'll be commuting from home to Camden County College. 

And soon Emily and her peers will soon be faced with all the excitements and fears that come with their first steps into the real world. I interviewed Emily to get a better look at what goes on in the minds of 2012's graduates about school, friends, and life. 

Excitements: 

"I'm excited I don't have to wake up at 6 in the morning."

Emily like many other teenagers finds many things to be exciting about college. 

Her biggest excitement she says is to spend more time with friends. She'll have the opportunity to take the classes that she likes (hopefully they'll be more enjoyable for her), go to parties, and just make memories. 

And while many teens can't wait go to school half way across the country, Emily's perfectly content with going to school at home. "I'm relieved that I don't have to be in a dorm and worry about things like laundry; I'm horrible at doing laundry." 

With a schedule that'll be more flexible than her tightly structured one at Winslow High, Emily really wants to become more involved in extracurricular activities and community service. One of her not so hidden talents (seeing how she's an active member in the drama club and the school talent shows) is Emily is a wonderful singer. "I want to join an acapella group, choir, and study abroad everywhere," she excitedly answered when I asked what clubs she was interested in join once at college. From Asia, to Europe, to Australia she wants to learn languages and see the world. While back home she wants to continue her interests in environmentalism and animal rights. 

Fears:

Although Emily's transition into college life may be a bit easier than others because she'll be commuting, she has made it very clear that she still has fears about entering college life. 

Emily is an aspiring East Asian Languages or Game Design major. She said, “In 10 years I see myself on an island (laughing) just kidding. I want to be in a good relationship with a happy family, working in a place that I find enjoyable but also where I’ll be respected and not antagonized as the “woman”. I want to have an impact.” Emily like many incoming first years has big dreams and imagines a future where she can live comfortably. But she also shares another similarity...

 The stresses of how to pay for student loans, deal with peer pressure, or learn how to network will continue and always resonate in the back of her mind,  but Emily stated clearly that her biggest fear of all is:

“I’m not sure I’m gonna be able to handle it.”

The fear of failure and not being able to keep up with the balance between a social life and academics. Just after four short years in high school, students are being pushed out in the "adult" world, where the pressures of bills, drugs, consequences, and growing up are becoming all to real and all too quickly. Many students feel like Emily; that they won't adjust to all the freedom they'll have after graduation, coming out under from Mommy's and Daddy's wing, so easily. 

Or the fear of if the major they chose will be able to support them after them in the future. Or even before that, the confusion of what major to even choose. Many of us who are already enrolled in colleges and universities still have not decided on a major. Students who are sophomores and juniors. 

“I’m worried that I won’t be able to do it. I have quit so many things in my life like classes, tutoring, clubs, but if I quit this…I don’t have much confidence in myself, so I need people to have confidence in me and tell me it’s going to be okay…but it’s just so important that I complete this to have a good future.”

so...

The question now is, as an Orientation Leader, what can I do to help my friends, and future peers coming who are coming into the college scene?

Reflection: 

There are many things that we as Orientation Leaders can do to help incoming freshman, but I want to focus on 3 main points that I feel are essential to start with.  

1. Set the right example: 90% of what you learn is just from listening, watching, and repetition. If a good example is set from the beginning, students will unconsciously begin to mimic what they see. Its because Emily had good mentors and leader in high school that she says she's not scared to be a leader and set an example for her friends, peers, and siblings. If Emily can pick up a skill as difficult as learning how to become a leader in her high school so early, imagine how quickly she could learn proper time management and networking just from watching one of her friends at college do it.

2. Encouragement: Whether you are the President, Pope, Martin Luther King Jr., the biology professor at your community college, or a nurse in your local hospital, you wouldn't be where you are today if someone hadn't encouraged you that you could get there. Our incoming first years have been encouraged this far to enter college, but now that the circumstances push them to become more independent, the encouragement they might of once had is now either weaning or gone. Since Orientation Leaders are some of the first staff members new students meet, it is up to us to start their encouragement process. By doing this, students like Emily who feel they have no confidence in themselves will begin to find the drive that is necessary to pull them through struggles and keep moving forward. 

3. Strengths: 

This is an image I made a few years ago, which I like to call a Graph of Life. 

Listed here are 11 qualities (please don't think people are limited to only these 11), and all of these qualities symbolizes a strength a may person have or is capable of achieving.

These 11 qualities are some of the easiest to identify. Why is that important? 

Because during orientation when you may be faced with a student who could be having a hard time connecting with  an activity or the group,  by identifying one or more of these strengths in them they may find the will they need to bounce back. 

As Orientation Leaders, it is also part of our duty to help students identify the strengths they have in themselves. If we can do this, then later on they may be able to find and develop other strengths in themselves they never thought they had.  Strengths that will help then through the rest of their college career and their future. 

-Andreana Barefield

The Transitioning Senior

February 10, 2012

The Transitioning Senior

“Enthusiastically petrified.” Those are the words of a high school senior anticipating her transition to college. My interviewee, Melissa Aversa, both ardently awaits college and fears its implications. Let me first elaborate on her excitements of college.

Melissa excitedly awaits independence. Unlike high school, she will choose her own academic schedule and balance her academics and social life. Admittedly, she recognizes this has its challenges. But she eagerly wants to demonstrate it is possible to excel academically, maintain a social life, and still enjoy a normal sleeping routine!

Melissa cannot wait to escape from high school drama. She attended the smallest public high school in New Jersey, South Hunterdon. As she says, “Boy there is a lot of drama!” She has been classmates with most of the students since first grade, a span of twelve years. With less than one hundred students in her senior class, she is excited by the opportunity to form new college friendships!

(South Hunterdon High School-http://www.google.com/imgres?q=south+hunterdon+high+school&hl=en&)

Most admirably, Melissa embraces the academic challenge of college. Being an honors student in high school, she wants a rigorous schedule in college. As she says, “It will only help me when it comes to the real world.” This alludes to a second reason Melissa is excited about college academics: she recognizes the benefit and near necessity of a college degree for entering today’s tumultuous labor market.                         

                                                                  (Melissa Aversa)

On a pessimistic note: Melissa is not only excited about college but also weighed down by some current fears. She has an older sister, Katie, who graduated Georgetown University with significant debt. Affordability is a major concern of Melissa’s. Though I was the interviewer, Melissa posed a question to me. “What schools did you apply to, and why did you choose Rutgers?” I was forthright with my answer. I explained I was accepted to some top forty ranked schools, but that their price tags deterred me from going. Instead, Rutgers was a great appeal. I was accepted to their Honors Program with an academic merit scholarship, it is well known for academics, and has a fun student body. Melissa was intrigued. Acknowledging she just does not “know how much money is actually worth [undergraduate school].”

Meanwhile this revelation leads to Melissa’s second fear:  finding her ideal college. Melissa wants “to go to school in the Boston area because it’s so beautiful.” But she has hesitations of being away from home, even if it means attending her dream school, Boston University. Like many of her peers, Melissa embraces the idea of college independence, but is concerned by the prospect of living far from home.

                                           

                                (Boston University- http://www.google.com/imgres?q=boston+university&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=)

Melissa’s biggest fear is being unsuccessful. She is an ‘A’ student, who is active in high school. She is a two sport varsity athlete, and has spent two years in drama club. What worries Melissa is whether this success will transition to college. This is something that many high school seniors worry about. Yet as I explained to Melissa, “many of the same things needed to be successful in high school are needed for college.” You still need to work hard, be focused and attend class.

Instead, Melissa and all high school seniors should enjoy the last year of high school, and focus on why they have excitedly awaited college for eighteen years.

To reflect how this interview experience influences orientation programming, it is important to be insightful to the needs of incoming Rutgers students. For instance, a beneficial ice breaking game might be asking students to share their excitements and fears of college life at Rutgers. In this way, as Courtney and Brian emphasize, this helps students step out of their comfort zone, while achieving the ultimate goal of student orientation: making students comfortable with their transition to college. Conducting an interview with Melissa and seeing how relieved she was after talking about her fears and excitement of college, makes me recognize how beneficial it would be to utilize this type of approach in a small group setting.

Posted by Justin Harnett at 3pm

“Hi! Welcome to… Seton Hall University?”

Icebreakers at Seton Hall University

Many of Rutgers’ peer institutions have orientation programs that exist for reasons similar to ours: guiding new students to have a well adjustment to the university and encouraging them to explore and make the most of their four years. After reviewing the orientation schedules of other universities, such as Drexel University, Columbia University, Monmouth University, and Seton Hall University, I found that these programs have themes and topics that are parallel with those evident in our program schedule. In addition, I recognized differences in the schedules, ranging from the focuses of the program to how long the program is. But pushing the differences aside, I was pleased to see how every orientation embodied the answers and solutions to a lot of the new students’ biggest questions and concerns.

Reoccurring Topics and Themes

Go RU!

Diversity, commuter/residence life, involvement in clubs and activities, and campus resources are a few of the abundant topics I identified in each of the programs. I believe it is important for a university to embrace their diversity and encourage their students to appreciate how it can enhance their college experience. In our orientation program, the topic of diversity comes up in numerous parts of the two days, whether it is in the Life on Campus skits performed by the orientation team or the discussions that occur within the breakout groups with an orientation leader. In Seton Hall’s program, they have a diversity session in which students interactively explore and celebrate the diversity of their campus. Commuter/residence life is another huge topic that orientations cover. Students will have different needs and resources depending on if they decide to live on campus or commute. For example, commuter students may want information about how to get involved with an off-campus association, while students residing on campus may want to learn about what they can have in their rooms and what is prohibited. Rutgers NSO has split sessions involving commuter and residence life. In contrast, Drexel University has developed a student panel devoted to these topics. Campus involvement and resources are other topics incorporated into the various orientations through workshops (like at Monmouth University), breakout sessions (like at Columbia University), and a resource and involvement fair (like at our wonderful institution).

Differences

One of the biggest things I noticed that we do differently than other universities is that we do not include academic advising and planning into the actual orientation program. Some of the programs set up times during which students can meet with an advisor and plan their schedule, and others even give students the opportunity to take placement exams.  I understand that putting the two programs together may be more convenient, especially for out-of-state students. However, in my opinion, I like that academic advising is separate from orientation because it allows the new students to focus on one or the other.

In conclusion…

Campus tours at Monmouth University

Having seen how our orientation program works in the past summer, I was curious to view other programs from around the area. It was interesting to compare the different orientations to the orientation we have at Rutgers. I was also excited to see that Rutgers’ SCREAM theatre performs during Seton Hall’s orientation, just like they do at ours.

As I was reading the schedules of the other universities’ orientations, I was able to get a feel of the values that are important to them, and I got a sense of how they want to represent their university to incoming students. It made me think about how our orientation displays the values and pride our university holds. And therefore, I believe it is critical for us, the orientation team, to really uphold these values and represent our university in the best way possible. Orientation programs are similar and different in a lot of aspects, but it is important that the program allows new students to be able to adjust and connect to the university so that their college experience can be lifted to a great start.

 - Ashley Aya