Preparing for Moving In and Orientation

Summer is an odd time for newly graduated high school seniors. For me, I know that I certainly felt like I was in a weird transition state between living at home as a highschooler to moving away and being at college. It’s also a really exciting time. I had all of these vivid fantasies of decorating my dorm room perfectly, meeting at least 30 new BFF’s on the first day of orientation, and easily deciding on what classes I wanted to register for. Spoiler alert, while my dorm room was cute and I eventually decided on classes, my move in experience wasn’t nearly as seamless as I had glorified in my head. That being said, these are my best tips for how to make your move in and orientation process go as smoothly as possible. While I’m certainly not an expert, I hope that these suggestions help you get ready and excited for coming to Oberlin! 

1) Remember to get a fridge! Oberlin dorms don’t come with a fridge or microwave, so if you want one I highly recommend either bringing your own or renting one from Bedloft, which is a rental company that can deliver your fridge directly to your room. 

2) Bring a dolly! Similarly to my last point, a bit of planning ahead can go a long way. I highly recommend bringing a dolly to help move in go more quickly and with less back straining. Although, if you happen to not bring one remember that Oberlin Residence Life has big rolling carts that you can borrow. Rather than moving one box in at a time why not bring all of them in one go! 

3) Make a spreadsheet of classes! Something I wish that I had done way in advance of orientation was plan out which classes I wanted to take. While you do get to register for 1 or 2 classes prior to your arrival on campus, the remainder of your schedule will be determined after a meeting with your advisor once you arrive on campus. I made the mistake of assuming that my meeting with my advisor would be her recommendation for which classes would be a good fit for me and my interests. However, it was much more along the lines of her asking me which classes I had already found and then us examining how they fit into my long term plan at Oberlin. I don’t think you need to know exactly what classes you want to take, but having a spreadsheet of potential ideas is always good. When I make my spreadsheet I typically include the class title and section number, the time that it is held at, who it is taught by, and which one of my majors/minors it counts towards. 

4) Go to as many events as possible! Oberlin has over a month of orientation events and activities. I highly recommend you go to as many of those as possible. While I didn’t quite make 30 new BFF’s on my first day of orientation, I certainly introduced myself to well over 30 people and definitely made friends, many of whom I’m still close with even as I head into my third year. 

5) Prepare for Oberlin weather! At Oberlin we get the lake effect, which means one day it’s 80 degrees, another snowing, another day rainy and windy. This being said, the first two weeks at Oberlin are definitely going to be your hottest during the school year. Because of that, bring a fan, especially one that you can use while you're sleeping. An even more advanced level tip is that while you are packing for college make sure that you have a fan that can be easily accessed on your very first day of moving in. That way, you can have a fan set up in your room as you move in so you don’t get overheated as you scramble to organize all of your stuff! 

6) Explore Oberlin a bit! You’re going to be crazy busy during move in and orientation, but I highly recommend checking out Oberlin with your family. It’s also a great thing to do as your family gets ready to leave, that way you are able to explore your new home a bit as well as hang with your family before they head out. Pro tip, I definitely recommend getting to restaurants early since the popular meal times get busy very very quickly. 

I hope these tips make your transition to Oberlin as smooth as possible. It’s definitely one of the most exciting times of your life, and I know that all of you are going to make the most out of it!