The first week of college is the second worst time of a student’s year, right behind finals week. Emotions are running high as frazzled parents leave their babies to care for themselves for maybe the first time ever and nervous students who are trying to find their place away from everyone and everything they know.
During this time, it is primarily up to the university to make a student feel comfortable on campus and to help parents feel better about where their children chose to go to school.
A year after I arrived at Wichita State, I find myself wondering if Wichita State does a good job of welcoming students onto campus.
I know I said the first week is the second-worst, but, to be honest, feeling accepted on campus begins during orientation, the mandatory day you must spend on campus as a freshman, learning about resources and preparing before the semester begins.
My freshman year I honestly wasn’t looking forward to orientation, and if you asked me now, I wouldn’t want to do it again, but I can see the benefits of it. You meet people from your college and learn about important programs listed on pamphlets you probably threw away after your campus tour, and it’s a chance to get any last-minute questions answered.
It’s long, and probably hot, but useful and necessary in preparing for college. Plus, there’s always free stuff and high energy as the transition mentors hype students up for the activities.
But after orientation and after move-in, which is fun for nobody, comes WSU’s Welcome Fest. Welcome Fest is four weeks chock-full of mostly free events, activities and give-aways for new and returning students to learn about Wichita State and experience campus life.
It starts after move-in with a week full of evening activities, and it just keeps going. The involvement fair happens around this time, an event helpful for students looking to join clubs but unwilling to scroll through ShockerSync. There’s the annual NXT LVL Garage Party, Meet the Greeks, welcome tables and the annual Clash of the Colleges.
It’s free, it’s of the time fun, but there are dark clouds within the silver linings.
Welcome Fest can be overwhelming. This year when I went to the free Shocker bowling event, Shocker Lanes was crowded, loud and definitely past capacity levels. I ended up leaving because there was nowhere to wait comfortably for my turn to bowl without catching an elbow.
The times these events happen can also be inconvenient. When school officially begins, many events are between 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. which, for many, conflict with their class schedule. Last year, I barely made it to any of the free RSC events because of the timing.
But the biggest con is the fact that these events, especially the big ones that happen before school, are really only convenient for on-campus students. As someone who lives on campus, it’s easy for me to attend these fun and free events, but for commuters it becomes a hassle to drive to campus and drive back home, which can mean these students miss out on the opportunities to make new friends and get to know campus.
I understand not everyone can be happy in these kinds of scenarios, but it’s unfair for people who would want to participate but find it impossible because of not having time.
To try to make up for this flaw, WSU does hold commuter events, but even those can be a struggle to make it to.
Overall, I think Wichita State does a decent job of welcoming students. The Welcome Week activities are free and fun a lot of the time. Even though I mourn our missing commuter community most of the time, I accept WSU’s Midwestern hospitality for the most part and will be enjoying my free pens and stress balls too.
