Okay, I need some more transportation advice, please. I called United and he can add the Amtrak but it then I check the times. For his 12:30 arrival in Newark he would have to wait around until 5:00 p.m. for a train to New Haven. And then returning is even worse. For a 7:49 p.m. flight he’d need to leave New Haven at 10:40 a.m. and arrive at 1:00 p.m. That’s a lot of time and we’d be killing that time on the return with him as our friend is picking us up at Newark after he gets off work. Is this really the best option or is he better off taking a shuttle to Grand Central and catching the Metro North?
@mcat2, I don’t remember when we received the commencement folder, but I would guess it was in February. It looks like it’s for parents and includes the commencement schedule, general housing information, dining options and extra events (glee club, dramat). Now that I look at the housing sheet more closely, I’m not sure they really mean we’ll receive anything more than the confirmation we received when we first signed up for lodging. If you didn’t receive the folder, I’d be happy to scan information for you. There are two dining options - brunch on Sunday and lunch on Monday - that you can preregister and pay for in advance.
Worked out the transportation. Turns out there are fewer trains that go out of the airport, but if you go to Newark Penn Station they run more frequently. The guy at United didn’t know that I guess but Amtrak was quite helpful.
Our commencement folder arrived over Spring Break because I remember sitting down with DS when he was home and going over items (frame, yes or no, video, yes or no, etc.).
@vtclover, Thanks. We did receive the confirmation when we first signed up for lodging. I think as long as we bring the printed confirmation, it is good to go.
Another question: For some college, their graduates could keep their school’s email address after they graduate. does Yale have the same policy? (if yes, sooner or later there will be the conflict of names between a graduate and a current student. Hiw will Yale handle this?) I heard from someone that he has been graduated from a grad school at Yale for almost a year and he still used his yale.edu email address. DS had a gap year between Yale College and his graduate/professional school at Yale, and we noticed there is no change in his school’s email address between UG and grad school.
Also, when will be a good time to close the bursar account at Yale, in your opinion? I do not know whether Yale may still charge something from now till, say, July or August. Is there any charge recently because of the commencement activities?
My daughter graduated in '08 and could not keep her email address.
I have wondered about email addresses too. From a quick search it looks like there are aya.yale.edu alumni addresses available if the student email stops working at some point.
It makes sense for Yale to give out alumni email addresses.
I guess it is a pure luck that DS got to keep the same email address.
Question about health insurance waiver. Do you know when we will be able to do this for first year students? I have had no email communication from Yale at all .
I stumbled upon a check list when I was looking for health forms. http://catalog.yale.edu/freshman-handbook/important-dates-deadlines/
It looks like June 17 is when students can begin to waive parts of health coverage.
My daughter is managing it all herself, but it is good to know that there are some things the parents need to sign or be involved with (student bond, authorized payers on e-Bill/e-Pay).
Just noticed the housing and advising form for freshmen was due yesterday.
@Faulkner1897 @Kelowna : the deadline on the housing and advisory form was extended to May 8 (see the website).
How strict are they on the 12 noon Thursday 4/12 move out deadline from old campus? Son wraps up finals fairly late on Wednesday, and I somehow doubt he’ll be packed and ready to go when we show up to move him out Thursday morning…
^We bumped into that deadline (not old campus, but in the RC) one year. As I recall, they DO need to turn in keys by then, but kids generally are still in the last dregs of moving out (and propping doors etc.) So it’s pretty strict, but not absolute. Don’t know if OC is different. We got out by 1 pm.
D just barely made the deadline in the RC. DH said there were still LOTS of people in the process of move out at noon. Still, you might be surprised if you set the expectation high for him to be packed up. Tell him that packing will be a good study break. 
@tdy123, Our experience on OC was that keys were due, but that the doors were propped open and still allowed traffic in and out. If your kid is packed, I’m open to adopting. Mine tells me he’s “almost packed, just a couple of things,” and then a few hours later we’re out the door, because of course he has to say goodbye to his friends.
Ymmv, but I found that not quite making deadlines was as much SOP for Yale as it is for Elon Musk. Just keep prodding.
I’m curious, there must be lots of kids whose parents are not able to go pick them up due to distance. I guess they just store things. People have mentioned storage companies that will come and pick up everything, store for the summer, and deliver in August during move in. I am thinking this is what my daughter will need to do since we are not within driving distance.
@IxnayBob @musicmerit @donnaleighg Thanks, good to know that when my kid is finally done packing at about 4… I’ll at least have the the company of a few other somewhat amused and exasperated parents.
My kids never had our help packing up and moving out (except at graduation) because we live on the West Coast. And DS ran into the issue of having a final the evening before move-out. It was crazy but he did it. It’s a lot harder for the kids who live far away who have to stand in long lines at the post office to ship things or run all over New Haven storing things. The RCs allow something like five boxes to be stored in a truck. One year DS had his stuff stored in about a half-dozen spots on and off of campus. What bothers me is that the dining halls are not open for breakfast on move-out day. So kids who have flights to catch and are desperately trying to pack up don’t have time to eat until they get to the airport. I know it’s a small thing, but it would make move-out a lot easier if kids could dash in to their dining hall to grab a bagel to fuel the last mad dash of moving and catching flights.
Nice job by Yale students…
http://www.businessinsider.com/impressive-students-at-yale-2016-4
My D1 worked graduation after freshman year. The student workers are housed on Old Campus (Vanderbilt) and there was a 2-hour gap between move out and move in. When she went to move in, the previous year’s occupant was still moving out, and his mother seemed to want to stop her from moving in. Meanwhile people were making off with anything left unattended (or seemingly so) outside on Old Campus. Someone took D’s electric teakettle, and my husband watched a staff member check out her mini fridge. Someone else picked up a bottle of her soda as my husband sat watching him… Then changed his mind and left it. So anyway, if you have a kid in Vandy, be aware that there may be someone waiting to move in that afternoon.