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Sunday, August 25, 1996

By Linda Yoon

Summer Bruin Contributor

The heat of the summer brings to UCLA a glimpse of new beginnings and additions to the Bruin community. They are the incoming freshmen: braving three-day treks into the Freshman Orientation program.

Ripe with quirky gimmicks and informative aids, the program is available to help incoming students adjust to life at college. It gives students the opportunity to view college beyond the competitive edge of academics as Orientation counselors familiarize the students with the campus and the lifestyle of a UCLA Bruin.

"The counselors seem more socially oriented than academically," said Greg Snyder, an incoming first-year undeclared student. "They have all the information that we need but the whole time that we're here, we're learning about how our life is going to be ..."

Orientation counselors are looked to as guides, expected to divulge the secrets of fitting in so that UCLA ceases to be just a sea of faces.

"It's ... like a bit of a safety net, as far as meeting people is concerned ... I know it'll help that first day if I know someone ..." said Erin O'Leary, an incoming first-year undeclared student.

In order to equip themselves with the knowledge and ability to be an Orientation counselor, the upperclassmen undergo intense training beginning with a mandatory recruitment meeting in the beginning of Winter quarter. The process continues with an application, the personal/group interview, training throughout Spring quarter, and finally a week-long retreat.

The main objective of the training is to teach counselors to alleviate the confusion often felt by new students adjusting to life on such a big campus. The counselors say the program requires dedication.

"This isn't like a part-time job. You're living Orientation," said Masa Hayashi, a 1996 business economics/Japanese graduate.

For its participants, too, the itinerary is rigorous. When they first arrive, the new freshmen hear presentations from UCLA staff members, who discuss their own personal experiences with college.

Day two is laced throughout by workshops, placement tests and the commonly feared scheduling process.

The final day of the orientation is most significantly marked by tours of the campus as well as presentations on issues like drug and sexual abuse.

Orientation itself, counselors say, is a bonding process, not solely concentrated on facts, but also on amusement to provide the incoming freshmen a common ground when they enter UCLA as students.

Counselors like Hayashi and Juanita Padilla, a 1996 dance graduate, say the most popular aspect of orientation is the telling of UCLA myths on the campus tour.

The infamous legends of Jim Morrison's locker and the hapless sixth step of Janss Steps have been well-organized and practiced, by the counselors, who say the tours do not always go off without a hitch.

"One thing that is really frustrating on the tour is that a lot of people like to take it upon themselves to [tell the group] 'don't listen to what they're saying, they're lying' ..." Padilla said. "But then again ... we've had professors come up and listen to the story, and then they say, 'yeah, I remember when that happened' ... and that's so much fun when people play along ..."

Hayashi recalls one group's trademark during the tour that failed two years ago: the water-gun.

The Orientation groups were given water-guns to engage in water fights when sighting or sighted by another group. Unfortunately, innocent bystanders were sometimes accidentally squirted, and due to complaints, less precarious humor took the place of water-guns.

Many of the incoming freshmen chose UCLA for their own personal reasons; Crystal Borde, an incoming first-year communication studies student, decided to attend UCLA for its reputation and the opportunities that reputation will provide after graduation.

Katherine Weir, an incoming first-year undeclared student, favored the diversity and options UCLA has to offer. Whatever the reasons may be for their decision to come to UCLA, the incoming freshmen often said that the Freshman Orientation program helped significantly in reducing their fears and smoothing the transition from high school to college life.

"I like going to college for a brief stay ... I was getting a little bit worried about it ..." Snyder said. "But coming here, everyone is really nice, it's made me feel a lot better about it, I'm not anxious about it ..."

Looking back on their three-day stay, students said their fears about the size of UCLA were also quelled.

"My first reaction was that ... this is big. I've been on some other campuses and it's, like, big and almost intimidating," said Andy Perkins, an incoming first-year psychology student. "This is big, but I know I already like it here ... it's cheery ... it's kind of welcoming almost when I came on."

The students express their newfound confidence that will return with them in fall quarter as they walk to their first class and avoid the sixth step of Janss Steps.

JUSTIN WARREN/Daily Bruin

Tiffany Chan (center), an incoming freshman, discusses the possibilities of college life with members of her orientation group.JUSTIN WARREN/Daily Bruin

Following a "wellness" workshop in Haines 39, Juanita Padilla's and Anna Pesch's orientation groups congregate nearby to discuss issues regarding rape awareness, drug and alcohol (ab)use and sex.