By Dharshani Dharmawardena
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
When incoming freshmen arrived early for their orientation to
UCLA, some of the counselors took them to Westwood Village and told
them to find their way back to campus.
“They took us to Diddy Riese and said “˜This is Diddy
Riese,'” said Monique Evans, an incoming math student.
“They didn’t even take us home and we ended up coming
back the long way.”
For their part, some orientation counselors who conduct this
introduction to UCLA said the trip to the village was meant as a
traditional rite of passage for early arrival students.
“You have to find your way back,” said Brendan
Raher, an orientation counselor and third-year African American
studies student. “The students work as a team and make
friends, and they get used to getting around a college
campus.”
Because attending a large school can seem daunting to college
freshmen, coming to one of the 12 summer orientation sessions makes
the transition easier, said Nichol Davis, an orientation counselor
and third-year mathematics and economics student.
“We’re here to help students get adjusted to coming
to college both academically and socially,” she said.
“We’re here to answer any questions that may come up
for students and to let them know what UCLA is like in a general
sense.”
The orientation counselors, who live in Sproul Hall with the
students, began training during the first week of spring
quarter.
From their training, the counselors learn the specific rules,
regulations and requirements for the School of Letters and
Sciences. Each counselor focuses on a specific major area and the
student groups are arranged according to major. Undeclared students
are placed in groups in the area they indicated on their
application, such as life sciences or humanities.
As part of their job, counselors inform a student about his or
her specific academic program. Some of this advice includes
referring incoming students to departmental advisors and helping
them to create balanced class schedules for the first quarter.
For Davis, who advises math and atmospheric science students,
balance means taking a math class with two other classes that
satisfy general education requirements. Enrolling in a difficult
class and two easier classes will make their first quarter easier,
she said.
Some students said they found planning their fall quarter the
most difficult part of orientation.
“I’ve been working on my schedule for hours,”
said Judith Spiro, an incoming freshman.
Nicole Yamada, who also plans to attend UCLA in the fall, said
she never anticipated that counselors would spend so much time on
academic planning.
“The OCs were very helpful in organizing everyone to plan
their schedules,” she said. “I just didn’t expect
them to focus entirely on classes.
Although Yamada met people in her group, she said she did not
feel the program was as social as it could have been.
“I would have more activities where students could
interact on a broader spectrum,” she said. “I
don’t think you really get to branch out and meet other
people the way the program is set up.”
Davis, on the other hand, said orientation introduces students
to both social and academic aspects of UCLA.
She added it lets each student find out more information about
campus through various workshops and the traditional barbecue.
“On the first day, they start off with a presentation by a
professor and by the dean,” Davis said. “Then where
they take workshops ““ then they can pick and choose what they
want.
“They have to have two meetings individually with their
OC,” she added. “One on social, one on
academics.”
A panel of students also talks about their college experience to
help the students, Davis said.
Tye Elliott, an incoming biology student, expected all the
academic advice and information that orientation counselors
provided for her.
“I was happy that they focused more on all the academic
aspects,” she said. “That is what college is really
for.”
Raher said although orientation is structured well, the groups
could be smaller.
“I think it might help if they had more sessions with
fewer students,” he said. “Or they could hire more
counselors to decrease the size of the groups.”
Whether or not they enjoyed everything about orientation, most
students agreed the experience helped them meet students they would
never have met in high school.
Elliott said that during orientation, she met people from all
over the West Coast with a variety of backgrounds, unlike during
high school.
To help students meet people and foster school spirit, the
orientation counselors organize Carpe Noctem, a night scavenger
hunt, and Cabaret Night.
Though many students take part in these activities, others
choose to participate in off-campus activities instead.
Emily Richards, a third-year political science student who works
at the Sproul front desk, noticed that these days, more students go
out instead of joining the scheduled activities, a marked
difference from her own experience.
“They’re clubbing or at a water polo party,”
she said. “I think they’re all about meeting other
people right now.”
Davis said that although she did not know specific information
about Carpe Noctem, attendance at Cabaret, a variety show put on by
the counselors, has declined.
Just as orientation can create new friendships through its
activities, it can often mean breaking old ties for some
students.
“The parent-son/daughter relationship is
underestimated,” Raher said. “We have parents follow us
on tour because this is the first time their children have been
away from them.”
Raher emphasized that during orientation, some counselors try to
get students to realize that going to college should be their own
decision, not their parents’.
“It’s hard for students to get out of that,”
he said. “A majority are still nervous about leaving their
home situation.”