Notes

							                                                The Basics
Welcome - Congratulations on being admitted to the UW
(Introductions – Introduce yourself and have students introduce themselves and
say where they are from. You may also ask them what they plan to study, if they
know, and to also let us know if they are undecided. This information will help
provide some reference points as you move through the session.)


The purpose of today’s session is to give you the information you need to get
started at the UW.
                                               Who am I?

                          •Personal identity
                          •Confidence
                          •What to expect in college
                          •Establishing a support network


Personal Identity:

What you bring to the university is what we want here, so don’t think you have to leave your identity behind.
You were chosen from among 20,000 applicants. What is great about a large university is that you can be
yourself here. There are all kinds of people here from all different places, with all kinds of interests, all kinds of
backgrounds and experiences. You can find your group!

Ask O leaders to give examples of unique groups/way to get involved on campus.

Confidence:
•Build on Existing Strengths, each of you were accepted to the UW based on your strengths.
•Think about what interests you (themes and topics)
•Know it will be challenging
•Know you can do it!

Expectations:

•Take charge – Can’t be passive learners – what do you want to know and get out of your UW experience?
What are your personal goals and expectations

•Start with Things You Are Already Confident About

Support:

We all need it. You are starting a new chapter of your life. You need a support system. Ask the students who
might that include? You can then ask the O leader if they have found other support while at the UW.

Personal team for success – Advising, family, friends, faculty, other students,

Become Part of a Learning Community – different ways to study with groups, classmates, CLUE, ECC, dorm
mates, if living on campus.

This is another point where the O leaders can chime in.
               What will I do here?

            Inside the          Outside the          Your UW
            Classroom
                           +    Classroom
                                               =     experience




What happens both inside and outside the classroom matters! Both make up your
UW experience.
The Magic Number
Does anyone know what this means? This is the minimum number of credits
required to graduate, although some majors will require more credits.


How do you get to this number? A simple equation, although everyone will deviate
from this is: 3 classes at 5 credits each = 15 credits each quarter, 3 quarters each
year = 45 credits each year over 4 years = 180 credits.


Planner: Page 9 – what is a credit? Typical credits per quarter. Typical class
schedules.
                    Major            Minor/
                                    Electives


                            General
                           Education



                                In the Classroom
Here are the pieces of your undergraduate degree:


Major – this is your specialized study in one academic field. It makes up about
one-third of your bachelor’s degree program.


Pages 14-15, Pages 16-17 lists all of the majors at the UW. You can find this list
online and link to the website to learn more about each.


Ask O leaders what they are majoring in.


Electives/Minor – Minor (Page 15) allows you to explore a department or theme
with less of a commitment than a major. You may also decide to take electives in
many different areas. This


General education – See page 20 in your planner.
             General Education
             Requirements
                         Composition & Additional Writing
                         Foreign Language
                         Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning

                         Areas of Knowledge
                         • Visual, Literary, & Performing Arts (VLPA)
                         • Individuals & Societies (I&S)
                         • The Natural World (NW)



All majors require most of these but the amount may vary.


We talk about general education in this session because most of the classes
students take the first year will apply to these requirements. Taking a wide range of
classes is a great way to explore!


We use acronyms here! Explain some of the acronyms.


Pg. 20-28 of the planner describe the general education requirements.


The UW is organized by Schools and Colleges. On Page 29 you will see the
requirements by the school and college and you’ll notice that there are a lot of
similarities. So, when you look at courses to take the first quarter, whether you
have a strong idea of what you want to study or not, the courses you take will apply
to any major.
   Outside the classroom
 Research                   Internships



                              Volunteering
Campus                            and
Activities                    Community
                                Service

             Study Abroad
                    Building Community
                        Relationships
                           Take the time to find your niche...




              Learn about U-District         Jumpstart Program @ UW




Another piece of your academic experience is all that occurs outside of the
classroom. Here are a few examples.


You may recognize some things you were involved in in high school. In college
there are more ways to get involved.


Ask O Leaders talk about how they have gotten involved.


Begin at bottom of pg. 64 – 79 describes different programs and offices where you
can get involved. There are a list of student organizations on pages 117 -122/


Advisor contacts pg. 51.
             Developing a UW Identity
                          Contribute to existing knowledge, or create
                          knowledge through undergraduate research
                          opportunities.




You chose to attend a Research I university. What does that mean?


•You will be taught by the experts in their fields. Faculty my have written the
textbook you are using or talk about cutting-edge research that they were a part of.
•Anything you are interested in you will find a faculty member that is involved in
that area.
• You will have the opportunity to get involved in research.
•There is everything here. You will find your group!


Remember, you applied to the UW and the UW chose you. What you bring to the
UW is what we want!


Ask O leaders if they have been involved in research
                 What you will do here
               Study Abroad                     Internships


             Volunteer
                                                       Electives/Minor



                     Major                        General Education

                                  Research

So, all the things we discussed are part of your education.
           Time Management



Your college experience is likely to be very different from most high school
experiences.


Managing your time is very important. We talked earlier about a typical quarter
being 15 credits. So, while you will only be in class 15 hours each week, you can
expect to spend 2-3 hours outside of class for each hour in class. That’s 45 – 60
hours a week. Seriously!


Ask O Leaders to talk about their transition
                                                                            Engineering, Math &
                                                                             Physical Sciences
                                             Business & Economics

                 Arts & Humanities




                                                          Social Sciences
                          Environmental &
                         Biological Sciences


                                                                                          Links
There are approximately … advisers on this campus. Some are in centralized advising offices, like me, and there are
advisers in college and department office. There is a list of advising offices on page 51-52.


We have divided all of the majors at the UW into five learning links from which you can choose for your next session. If you
know what you want to major in, there is a link for you. If you are not certain, think about things that interest you and make
a selection based on that. It is fine if you don’t know for certain. You may also choose a link in an area of interest and not
necessarily what you are thinking of majoring in. It’s an opportunity to learn about an area of study.


Describe each to help them decide. Ask them if they know where they are going ?

 •     Arts and Humanities study different forms of human expression and ways of living through literature, language,
culture and the creative arts.
•     Social Sciences is for those who are fascinated by people and how they relate to others both locally and globally, how
they form groups and governments, what and how they believe.
•     Environmental and Biological Sciences might appeal to you if you were the kid that brought snakes home as pets, or
got hooked on dinosaurs or microbes, or wanted to keep the world green and healthy .
•     Business and Economics looks at money and exchange and how we use it, how we produce and market goods and
services, how we manage a business or an agency or other people; how we keep track of things and build budgets.
•     Engineering , Math and Technology might be a good fit for someone who wants to build stuff, or who thinks it would
be cool to make ice cream out of dry ice, who has been programming their computers ever since they can remember, who is
a problem-solver.

Before you leave this session, please write down any questions you have that you want to make certain you get answered
before the end of the day tomorrow. You will have opportunities to meet with more staff and students who will be able to
answer your questions.
Have fun!