Each year College of Business Advisor Jayne Andersen tries to give incoming students a little something more than the basics of degree requirements and where the advising office is.
This year her presentation to incoming students includes a photo of Daniel Changkuon, a recent COB graduate, with a list of his accomplishments at Oregon State; president of multiple clubs, scholarship winner, Nike intern and much more.
“If we had you up here in four years, what would you want it to say about you?” Andersen asked a crowd of incoming freshmen and their parents Monday.
The presentation is part of Oregon State’s annual START orientation, advising and registration program for new students.
START gives students an introduction to life at OSU, leading them through their first advising appointments, signing up for their first classes and sharing the information they’ll need to succeed in September.
“It makes college more real,” Andersen said. “We plant the seeds for opportunities but also expectations.”
While the College of Business presentation lays out import things such as Professional School requirements and how to use the college Career Success Center, advisors also touch on clubs, study abroad and other opportunities.
“We’re always trying not to tell them too much info,” Andersen said. “We want to start to build that connection and community.”
Each session (advisors in the college will run around 15 START sessions in the summer for a total of around 500 freshmen and transfer students) includes a several tips to help students through their first year.
Andersen always reminds students to treat college like they would a job, including checking their ONID email every day.
She counsels students to think about what they want to get out of college and start making a plan now to make it a reality.
As part of that, students should also make sure and schedule an advising appointment each term. She suggests using Halloween as a good marker in the fall.
While students get a ton of information in these first few days at Oregon State, Andersen has seen it pay off once they officially become Beavers.
“My favorite thing is when they come in and say ‘I’m here for my Halloween appointment,’” she said.
