Written by Mikhela Hull |

As we all know, the end of the school year is finally here! Many seniors have made their final college decisions and are anxious to graduate. Throughout the end of May and most of June, seniors have had orientations at their future colleges. Orientation gives upcoming freshmen an opportunity to get a feel of what college will be like in August. Students usually get to make their schedules for their upcoming college experience. This gives students the opportunity to pick classes that are suitable for them. Kim Driscoll, a Morgan School graduating senior, said, “Southern picked my classes for the first semester. I was a little nervous because they do not know me as a student yet, but they made great course selections based on my major.”

Many colleges also give upcoming freshmen the opportunity to meet their roommate/roommates for the fall. Alexa Adams, a senior at The Morgan School, found her roommate through Southern Connecticut State University’s Facebook page. This Facebook page gave students the chance to write a little bit about themselves and hopefully find another student with common interests. This makes the process of finding a roommate easier because they can get to know each other through Facebook and other social media sites. They can both then request to room with each other, and usually they will be placed together.

Orientation consists of programs, activities, and educational workshops that will help upcoming students. Alexa Adams said, “Many people were sitting around and not really interested in the activities, but I was trying to have fun, even if some of them were childish.” Orientations are  mandatory for many colleges because they provide new students with information they will need to have a successful first year at college. These sessions usually include an overnight stay in one of the dorms with a roommate so students can get an idea of what it will be like in the fall. Alexa and Kim were able to room together because they drove to orientation together, and when they signed in, they requested it. Caroline Best and Rebecca Raab were able to room together at Quinnipiac University as well after requesting each other.

Overall, it seems that college orientation makes graduating seniors even more excited for their future experiences. There are many mixed emotions on graduating from the seniors, but I think that after college orientations, students are ready to enjoy our last summer together and go our separate ways for college. We still have all the memories to look back on, and many more to create!