Summer B has begun and both Santa Fe College and University of Florida campuses are finally looking lively.
I recently moved to Gainesville to attend UF (and start my new job at The Courtyards) so I wanted to give my perspective as not only the new girl in town but a new Gator!
MY FRESHMAN 101
Preview & Sleepovers
From what I saw on my Preview dates everything seemed to be an overall success. Definitely overwhelming with a packed two-day schedule that included: seminars about the campus tours and a sleepover in the dorm - Jennings Hall. It was without a doubt a huge help - a big thanks to all Preview Staffers for going out of their ways to welcome us to town and especially after helping me when I got lost the first morning on campus.
Connecting with other Students
As all freshman know the university hosts what they call The Common Reading Program - basically all incoming students are expected to read the same novel before the semester begins. This year's text is The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon. The idea behind the program is to give us all a common conversation piece something that we can all relate to.
The historic Bell Tower near Turlington Plaza
Saving Cash
A lesson I learned the hard way is not to buy books from the campus bookstore...a significant amount of money can be saved by using other sources online. Chegg.com or Amazon are two of my top recommendations. Amazon also offers the Amazon Textbook Buyback program so once I'm finished I can resell my books there and perhaps purchase the ones I'll need for new classes. Hopefully.
Student Football Lottery
Each year for a small fee the university will enter your name in a drawing for season passes to Gator Football games (with the exception of the FL/GA game and away games) - the best part if your name IS NOT drawn you get reimbursed. The results are in! The 2012 football lottery has ended and I was fortunate enough to receive season tickets for my first fall semester (hooray!) However if you weren’t so lucky there are still a few chances each week when Fall comes around.
GatorZone is a great resource for ticket and game day information.
Weeks of Welcome
A lot of hard work and planning was put into the Weeks of Welcome at UF. Campus affiliated groups host some of these events. It seems most students starting school like me have moved from out of town. The “WOW†activities have made it much easier to see what’s going on in Gainesville and also allows us to meet other new students as well.
Have more tips? Have a good Summer B experience to share?
Leave a comment in the box below!