<p>Sorry if I was misleading in earlier posts about going/not going. We went and never considered not going, so I wasn’t aware that they wouldn’t bend the rules about scheduling classes. I’m not surprised, though (see below). You’ll find classes if you don’t go. Remember that you have 8 semesters in college. You’ll just have to be very flexible about what you take next semester and about the possibility of some 8:00 classes. Meeting with an advisor helped my son decide what to take now and what to take later, and it resolved some questions about credits he was bringing in. It wasn’t just about doing the schedule.</p>
<p>You are finding out that there is a reason for attending Summer Welcome. Despite the seemingly rah-rah, activity-oriented nature of the program, it has intentional academic and social benefits for students and for the university. Mizzou tries hard through Summer Welcome and Fall Welcome to make a huge school feel smaller. Understand, too, that this just isn’t a Mizzou thing. We have lots of friends, nieces, and nephews who go to OOS public schools, and they took that extra trip to Boulder, Bloomington, Madison, Burlington, or wherever. Yes, it’s a pain and expensive, but that’s the way it is.</p>
<p>Some professional insights: I work with complex institutions (not universities) whose mission is to deliver individual experiences of the highest quality. They know (based on solid research) what it takes to make the experience successful, and their strategies reflect that understanding. Universities know it helps freshman academic success, social adjustment, and retention. Huge state universities have found that these summer orientations work, or they wouldn’t devote such considerable resources to them. Whether you’re in- or out-of-state, it doesn’t matter. You’re still a new student.</p>
<p>So this doesn’t answer your question about how to register early for classes. The bottom line is, I don’t think you can do it. To add a practical suggestion: I notice that Southwest is having a fare sale, and airfares all over are supposed to be pretty good this summer. What if you flew down without your parent(s)? It’s a good dry run for your vacations next year. You can take the MoX bus from the St. Louis or Kansas City airport (check which has the best fares for you) directly to the Summer Welcome dorm; schedule the whole thing online.</p>
<p>Now I’ll wait for the poster from a few months back who told parents to get off of the Mizzou forum because they don’t know anything ;)</p>