I’m a freshman right now. My parents (and most) only stayed for a few hours to help move in. The rest of the day my roommate and I unpacked, went to some mandatory thing, and went out that night. Most parents are gone within the first couple of hours of move in, but I guess if your son or daughter is going to be really homesick, it doesn’t hurt to stick around! The first week was so crammed with things to do, and you’re trying to meet a ton of people and unpack your room, so there isn’t much time to be homesick anyways:)