<p>
I believe you referred to Morse College. Strictly speaking, Morse used to have most singles, but not all singles. An example: in sophomore year, out of 6 suitmates from DS’s freshman suite, 4 were in doubles, and 2 in singles.</p>
<p>That was true for my daughter also, she had a single freshman year and so did another suitemate. This year it’s the same, 2 have singles others in doubles.</p>
<p>Good news! DS finally got his grade today for that last class. Certainly took long enough!</p>
<p>^^, ^^^
Does Morse still have the most singles, or did they reconfigure the rooms somehow during the renovation?
Does Morse have a “reputation” one way or the other??</p>
<p>My son is at Morse (and loves it). He is in Durfee now as a freshman where most suites are 4 singles and a double. He told me that next year when he moves into Morse that there are no singles (at least for sophomores) and that the suites are all doubles. I don’t know how true that is but that is what he indicated.</p>
<p>from YDN, Nov. 18, 2011
" Like most other Yale residences, Stiles now mainly offers suites instead of the standalone singles that used to predominate in the college."</p>
<p>From Yale Herald, 24 Sep. 2010
“While not every room has been attached to a common space, the majority of Morsels now enjoy … suites”"</p>
<p>
This is correct.</p>
<p>How it used to be: [Residential</a> college funds remain unevenly divided](<a href=“http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2005/feb/22/residential-college-funds-remain-unevenly-divided/]Residential”>http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2005/feb/22/residential-college-funds-remain-unevenly-divided/)</p>
<p>How it is now: [Residential</a> college budgets to be equalized](<a href=“http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2010/sep/14/residential-college-budgets-to-be-equalized/]Residential”>http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2010/sep/14/residential-college-budgets-to-be-equalized/)</p>
<p>I found a thread from several years ago in which someone said that well over half the freshman attend one of the pre-orientation programs (FOOT etc).</p>
<p>Anyone here have a student who did not attend a pre-orientation program, due to summer job / family commitment / whatever? The programs sound great, but surely are not do-able by everyone. But I worry: Will a student who does not attend be a little “out of it” socially once everyone hits campus, having not already had this nice bonding experience with future classmates?</p>
<p>Thanks so much any insights you can provide.</p>
<p>I can only give you our perspective. My (freshman) daughter did FOOT, and enjoyed it (though said she’d never want to do it again-- she’s not really the “enjoy being dirty in the woods” type of kid!). In October I asked her if she ever ate a meal with her fellow FOOTies or got together with them, and she said no, she barely ever saw them-- just enough to say hi to on the sidewalk from time to time. Remember that they are only with 7 or 8 other kids. She says she’s glad she did it, but it <em>really</em> does not affect who she’s friends with now. So I wouldn’t worry about it if it can’t be done.</p>
<p>^ on the various FOOT trips etc…
Our student would have enjoyed them–has done some serious primative camping/canoeing/hiking before and enjoys it…
yet kiddo was gone all summer with sport–and only got home for 10 days to shop/pack to leave for college. So passed on the opportunity.
I have read that kids who go to pre orientation trips of all stripes on various college campuses are at an advantage of being connected.
That said–kiddo has made lots of friends in the freshman dorm, on the team, and in the classes.
No issues whatsoever about feeling left out etc. </p>
<p>Question re MOVE-OUT/ from freshman dorms to res colleges. </p>
<p>Ok so from freshman dorms to the res halls-----
Do the students need help moving stuff and them packing/moving home </p>
<p>Our student is flying home ie --we aren’t arriving by car to load it up. I could fly up, rent a car and help load stuff etc
Our student’s res college allows 5 boxes plus fridge…according to initial info from fro co back last summer.
Our student and the roommate hope to also be able to leave the very large, very nice “leather-like” futon in their new room.
Kiddo has 2 large Rubbermaid bins with “out of season” clothes. </p>
<p>Kiddo arrived freshman year with just 3 duffle bags of stuff (all clothes/linens/towels) and we then picked up the duvet, lamp, fan etc at BB&B. So I don’t know where that stuff should get stored…</p>
<p>I gather fro-cos will tell them in plenty of time how big a box may be stored etc…And I wonder about how the bedding and blankest etc will be cleaned before storage…</p>
<p>I am trying to get an idea as to whether one of us needs to fly up to help bring kiddo back…
Does CT Limo limit luggage? Because of sport commitments–kiddo won’t fly home directly after finals/dorm closing if that matters any.</p>
<p>I think kiddo is going to fly with 1 duffle of summer clothes/stuff- plus 2 carry ons, the laptop and a flat screen monitor.</p>
<p>I would be very surprised if they allow storage of a refrigerator. That item appears particularly exempted from storage even if you can leave a couch. The RCs are not uniform in how much stuff you can store but as mentioned elsewhere, there was a student group that set up a drop off point for container storing at a modest price. It would be great if the school opened some of its abundant space on West campus for storage. My S had access to a car and rented off site storage with a friend. It cost a couple of hundred dollars including moving van costs but it was shared by two and was inexpensive compared to a parent fly-in. As for getting stuff to the RCs from old campus, a few roomates easily moved a 6’ IKEA particle board book case and a sofa. Must be a bonding experience.</p>
<p>As for FOOT, I’m sure it eases the transition experience since your kid is away for four days and they get one more 30 hour block of time with you to make a final good bye.</p>
<p>With regard to the pre-orientation program, my daughter ended up doing Harvest. Even though on a farm, they still slept out in the elements in tents, did not shower, etc. When she got back, it seemed that she was happy to have the experience behind her, as she is really not the outdoorsy type. I got the impression that she tolerated, rather than enjoyed, the program. It does not seem that the program has had much influence on her current social life.</p>
<p>One factor to consider is that the buses carrying participants back from these trips arrive on campus in the middle of the move-in day. I felt bad for her, since she had not slept well for nights, yet had to jump immediately into freshman orientation activities. It would be so much better if the pre-orientation participants were allowed to return the day before move-in day.</p>
<p>YaleGradandDad has made an astute observation about the transition experience, although I think it’s maybe the parent who is helped more. I even remarked at the time that the two-stage goodbye was so much easier for me to handle.</p>
<p>S2 did FOOT and S1 did not. S2 seemed to know many people just walking around the streets of NH during move in. He stayed in touch with many of his FOOT friends. I think it made the beginning of school really easy and comfortable for him. That said, he would have been fine without it since he gets involved in everything. S1, who is not naturally as gregarious, and has a fairly narrow set of interests, struggled a lot in the beginning. He said he felt at first that he had to stick close to his roommates all the time. He did Directed Studies which helped to create a community for him of like-minded people over time. He ended up fine, but I do think he would have benefited by doing one of the pre-Yale programs. </p>
<p>One thing I noticed for my sons is that most friends at college come from participating in activities or from meeting others in the residential college (what a wonderful system!) and not from being in the same class.</p>
<p>
The other side of this is what happened with my son, who strolled in from his FOOT trip after we had delivered all his stuff, put it in the room, and even put most of it away (his mom even made his bed). I didn’t feel sorry for him at all.</p>
<p>He enjoyed the FOOT trip a lot, but I wouldn’t say it was essential. I think Bulldog Days was more valuable.</p>
<p>Ha! No way did we put her stuff away while we waited for her to return from FOOT. Well partly because we couldn’t-- the kiddos had to decide their roommate situations once all 4 had arrived. So we just wandered around campus hoping for a glimpse of our dirty, tired gal!</p>
<p>Our very athletic (but not Yale-varsity athletic) son just had to do FOOT, but when he got back middle of move-in day, he was exhausted having gotten little sleep in drenching rain in bug-filled camps multiple nights…none of his room mates did any such activity and they were all nicely settled and moved in when he arrived. FOOT is an experience and it makes a hectic start even more hectic. By the way, our son built up on his immunity too, eating food mixed with dirt for a few days!</p>
<p>I think FOOT makes little difference socially. Our son has gotten together with his FOOT mates a time or two for dinners. His room mates, who didn’t do FOOT, are well adjusted socially. So I’d say neither encourage nor discourage FOOT. Just pass on the information and let them decide!</p>
<p>My D had engaged in no real athletic or outdoor activities during high school except for occasional hikes during family vacations- typically 2 to 3 miles long. Nevertheless she signed up for FOOT and really enjoyed the experience. She did not seem tired when we met her on campus on move-in day. Yes, she arrived in the afternoon and not the morning, but that did not really seem to matter to her. She is still friends with her FOOT buddies and occasionally gets together with them for a group dinner, probably once a semester. The FOOT experience also boosted her confidence in her own physical abilities.</p>
<p>YMMV.</p>
<p>My son is a pretty seasoned camper, but no athlete. He did FOOT and loved it. I don’t think he is in major touch with any of his fellow FOOT-ers. Doing a pre-orientation program is certainly not key to a student’s ability to integrate into the social scene at Yale! Most kids will develop friendship groups based on EC interests and their RC. The RC system is sheer genius; a high-functioning artificial community that lets kids build strong friendships with kids who are very different from them.</p>
<p>Re arriving to campus late: Yes, the kids who go on FOOT arrive mid-afternoon on move-in day. Mine was extremely dirty, but happy and not tired at all. Among his four roommates, two did FOOT, two did no pre-orientation programs. Families waited till the last kid arrived before choosing beds, etc. No problem.</p>
<p>^ Just to clarify, you are assigned individual rooms over the summer so if your 5 person suite has three singles and a double and you are in a particular single, your are not choosing a bed per se. DS’s non FOOT attending roomate did choose his bed in the double before my son arrived. Even though it was clear why that one was preferred, it was never an issue. I was not one of the first to arrive on move-in day, probably timing it to get there closer to when DS showed up, but my perhaps faulty memory still had that before noon. I most certainly did not unpack and set up his room before his arrival. Had I done that I would have done what another poster mentioned on an older thread of putting a $20 bill and a note to call on finding it between the mattress and the fitted sheet. The parents thought it was hysterical how long it took their kid to change his initial linens.</p>
<p>Son’s freshman suite was two doubles – no singles. YaleG&D, you and your son are good sports. I think it’s unfair for one roommate to unilaterally choose the “preferred” bed before the other arrives. Our guys did not do that – and they are still roommates as juniors.</p>