That's a LOT of information!

New Student Orientation was fun! But it was long and they crammed a whole lot of information into just a day and a half! I admire the parents who came in from out of town and stuck with it to the end. I was familiar with a lot of the info from being an employee, so I can only imagine it's a bit overwhelming for someone brand new to campus. I didn't hear a count, but there were likely around 500 students plus their parents -- a big crowd which was, of course, divided into smaller groups most of the time.

While us students were doing our thing, they had separate sessions for the parents. In retrospect, I should have signed Juan up as my "parent" because then I could have found out what they were telling the other group. A lot of the parents seemed younger than me, and most of the students, of course, looked like 12-year-olds!

As I anticipated, Math Placement didn't go well! The test was a bit easier than the practice ones online, but I still didn't score high enough to get placed into Math 110 (entry level at UA). Right now my placement is Pima Math 122 which I would take at our local community college. They said it would count as elective credit when I pass, but I'm not thrilled about using an elective on an additional Math course. So I plan to retake the exam on August 13 and try to get better placement.

What DID go well was my Language Proficiency Exam. I took mine in French and placed high enough that I don't have to take a single semester in foreign language! I tested straight into French 202 which is higher than my major requires. So, unless I choose to minor in French, or decide to do it as an elective for kicks, I don't ever have to write a five-page double spaced paper in French! Whew! That's more of a relief than you know. When I learned French, it was the speaking kind; I can't write worth a dilly.

While I was very impressed with how efficiently orientation was run, I still have some bureaucratic snags to clear up. My Student ID was supposed to be converted from my SSN -- and it was -- just not to the number I was told it would be! And it turns out while I was ACCEPTED into the summer session, I wasn't actually REGISTERED in it so I have to visit the Admissions office tomorrow in person as they don't do that stuff over the phone or by email.

But by 4pm tomorrow I should be all set with my two summer session courses which I will take on the web, and two classroom courses for the Fall. With a Winter and/or Summer session or two in the future, I'll be right back on track with the rest of the kiddies!