Hi everyone! While the year has ended for current students, we are here all summer to welcome the Classes of 2015 and beyond! We will be hosting summer tours and information sessions for prospective students and families Monday through Friday and select Saturdays. You are more than welcome to register for these events at www.muohio.edu/visit. In addition, the office is now on Summer Hours, so our new schedule is 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
A question we are always asked when it comes touring colleges in the summer is, “Is it worth coming to campus when the students are not is session?” The answer is Absolutely!
While there aren’t 17,000 students roaming our campus, there are still about 3,000 students taking summer courses in Oxford. In addition, with the beauty of Miami in the summer, you won’t want to stop wandering around, providing you will the full sense of what our campus has to offer. Don’t be surprised when you see people walking through the Formal Gardens or playing volleyball on Western campus. The summer showcases the outdoor activities students have available. If you see me running in the Western Woods with my dog, please be sure to say hello!
Summer is Oxford is fantastic. People are always out and about, eating outside at restaurants or benches, listening to live music at the uptown park, or walking around town with ice cream. While many restaurants and stores do adjust to summer hours, getting a bite to eat, finding an activity or looking for a place to shop is not an issue. I feel extremely fortunate to have spent the better part of the last few summers in Oxford, and I hope when you visit Miami, you will get a small piece of that satisfaction.
As you make your visit this summer here are the top 5 things to do while you are at Miami.
Take a longer tour of campus: You will have the opportunity to have a normal campus tour, but take advantage of the nice weather and see parts of campus that the tour didn’t cover.
Explore an Academic Building: There are classes in session, so the academic buildings will be open. If you are a prospective engineering major, walk through the Engineering Building. If you a prospective business major, walk through the Farmer School of Business Building.
Talk to a Student: Even in the summer students choose to stay in Oxford. Find out why and what their Miami experience means to them. Students are always happy to talk to prospective families.
Visit the Uptown Park: There are a lot of activities happening at the Uptown Park in the summer. Be a part of it!
Eat at a restaurant Uptown: Many uptown restaurants have outdoor seating so you can enjoy the weather while you talk about your visit to Miami.
As always, if you have any questions about a summer visit, you are always welcome to contact your counselor which you can find at www.muohio.edu/askacounselor or call the Office of Admission at 513-529-2531.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
The Unusual Beginning of the Rest of Your Life
Right now, the campus is still. At this point in the year, most students have packed up and left. Their absence is already being felt and unfortunately, it doesn’t feel very good. As someone who was personally counting down to the time when there was no line at Starbucks in the morning and no competition for treadmills at the Rec Center at 6:00 am, something about this feels wrong. It’s off. It’s that feeling when you complain about all the fishermen on the river banks only to return a week later and it’s just you and the fish. Instead of celebrating the isolation you reflect on how poignant chaos can be.
Don’t expect the sadness to linger. There won’t be time. The first summer orientation session kicks off in exactly 23 days. As a bystander, it doesn’t matter what campus you’re on –whether you’re in Omaha or Oxford—some orientation snapshots always look the same. Faces full of bewilderment, excitement, nervousness and anticipation. And those are just the parents! Orientation is for just that—orienting. In just a day and a half, it’s a jam packed schedule focusing on course registration, new student advising and simply getting a feel for the place.
Naturally, orientation segways into the real thing. College life. A new beginning whose structure, in some ways, is right on par with a laboratory. In fact, one definition of laboratory is, ‘a place for practice, observation or testing.’ And what a practice run this will be. Before you live (happily ever after we hope) with a spouse, you will live with a roommate. Before you devote your life to Early Childhood Education, you will explore comparative religion, political science, a semester of German and possibly French. Before you master spaghetti bolognese, you will be tempted with all kinds of foods and discover that the human body can function on a steady diet of mozzarella sticks and grilled cheese. Before you pick Minneapolis as your home after Oxford, you will have traveled to Beijing, Dijon and Washington, DC. During these “college years”, most of your best friends will live within a 1 mile radius of your hall and the majority of you will be sheltered from any kind of serious crime.
It’s unique. It’s unusual. But most new beginnings are.
For some of you, you’re transitioning from the only home you’ve ever known….. to a world full of freedom and tremendous responsibility. If you’re smart, you’ll follow the advice National Geographic dispenses to its audience daily: ‘Live Curious.’ It’s a necessary way to live, especially during that first year. It means combining your passion for Zoology and Women’s Studies. It means at least listening to what the College Democrats have to say at their meeting even though your heart is Republican. It means being open to that casting call from the Theatre Department for a hula dancing violinist dressed in purple and lending a helping hand when your roommate decides your door would look more festive with swabs of carpet.
Like I said, it’s unusual but most new beginnings are.
Don’t expect the sadness to linger. There won’t be time. The first summer orientation session kicks off in exactly 23 days. As a bystander, it doesn’t matter what campus you’re on –whether you’re in Omaha or Oxford—some orientation snapshots always look the same. Faces full of bewilderment, excitement, nervousness and anticipation. And those are just the parents! Orientation is for just that—orienting. In just a day and a half, it’s a jam packed schedule focusing on course registration, new student advising and simply getting a feel for the place.
Naturally, orientation segways into the real thing. College life. A new beginning whose structure, in some ways, is right on par with a laboratory. In fact, one definition of laboratory is, ‘a place for practice, observation or testing.’ And what a practice run this will be. Before you live (happily ever after we hope) with a spouse, you will live with a roommate. Before you devote your life to Early Childhood Education, you will explore comparative religion, political science, a semester of German and possibly French. Before you master spaghetti bolognese, you will be tempted with all kinds of foods and discover that the human body can function on a steady diet of mozzarella sticks and grilled cheese. Before you pick Minneapolis as your home after Oxford, you will have traveled to Beijing, Dijon and Washington, DC. During these “college years”, most of your best friends will live within a 1 mile radius of your hall and the majority of you will be sheltered from any kind of serious crime.
It’s unique. It’s unusual. But most new beginnings are.
For some of you, you’re transitioning from the only home you’ve ever known….. to a world full of freedom and tremendous responsibility. If you’re smart, you’ll follow the advice National Geographic dispenses to its audience daily: ‘Live Curious.’ It’s a necessary way to live, especially during that first year. It means combining your passion for Zoology and Women’s Studies. It means at least listening to what the College Democrats have to say at their meeting even though your heart is Republican. It means being open to that casting call from the Theatre Department for a hula dancing violinist dressed in purple and lending a helping hand when your roommate decides your door would look more festive with swabs of carpet.
Like I said, it’s unusual but most new beginnings are.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Full Circle
Of all the moments in the Admission cycle, this is by far my favorite. It’s that in-between time when acceptance letters have been sent out and confirmations begin to roll in. It’s the time when—unlike a lot of professions—you can physically witness the fruits of your labor. To paint a picture of our office, imagine a canvas where brush strokes illustrate words like contentment, excitement and pride.
Yesterday, Senior Associate Director Ann Larson whispered the phrase every Office of Admission wants to hear in May : “We made the class.” Translation—good work team. We were tasked with recruiting the best and the brightest, and somehow we managed to pull it off. Again :)
To quote our President, Dr. David Hodge:
“As a result of this effort, we have so far confirmed 3,648 students, which is right on our target goal. It is a very strong, academically accomplished group with a significant increase in the number and percentage of out-of-state and international students.”
In other words, we’ve come full circle. Rather—you have come full circle. For many of you, your introduction to Miami started with a visit to our website, a campus tour or visiting friends and family associated with the University. From that initial visit, a spark was somehow ignited. Fast forward and you went from filling out the Common Application, to a full-fledged candidate for admission, to an accepted student and then—a student with many options on the table. We might never know what sealed the deal for you to confirm. And that’s okay. Perhaps it was one of our Make It Miami accepted student events, or a final conversation with a counselor. It might have been our impressive statistics or maybe you connected with an enthusiastic alumna or alumnus. Whatever the case may be, it turned out that we became the priority option in front of you. And for that—we will always be grateful.
Speaking of gratitude, take a moment (in between the remaining senior year parties, Facebook posts and on-line residence hall furniture shopping) to remember what a gift this education is. You will spend many years on campus just thinking and learning, and meeting new people. It may not come neatly wrapped with a bow---but it’s the most significant gift you will ever receive. And you should not take it for granted. If not now, someday you will understand what this really means.
As you transition to college, know that another circle is about to begin. It starts off with orientation, meeting that friend who will turn into a lifelong friend, an amazing trip abroad or interest in a major that turns into your life’s passion. Before you know it, four years will have flown by and yet another circle will be complete.
As you begin this next chapter, take a moment to celebrate not only your impressive admission to Miami but also the foundation you built that got you here, right now, in this very moment. Congratulations Class of 2015--it’s now full speed ahead……
Yesterday, Senior Associate Director Ann Larson whispered the phrase every Office of Admission wants to hear in May : “We made the class.” Translation—good work team. We were tasked with recruiting the best and the brightest, and somehow we managed to pull it off. Again :)
To quote our President, Dr. David Hodge:
“As a result of this effort, we have so far confirmed 3,648 students, which is right on our target goal. It is a very strong, academically accomplished group with a significant increase in the number and percentage of out-of-state and international students.”
In other words, we’ve come full circle. Rather—you have come full circle. For many of you, your introduction to Miami started with a visit to our website, a campus tour or visiting friends and family associated with the University. From that initial visit, a spark was somehow ignited. Fast forward and you went from filling out the Common Application, to a full-fledged candidate for admission, to an accepted student and then—a student with many options on the table. We might never know what sealed the deal for you to confirm. And that’s okay. Perhaps it was one of our Make It Miami accepted student events, or a final conversation with a counselor. It might have been our impressive statistics or maybe you connected with an enthusiastic alumna or alumnus. Whatever the case may be, it turned out that we became the priority option in front of you. And for that—we will always be grateful.
Speaking of gratitude, take a moment (in between the remaining senior year parties, Facebook posts and on-line residence hall furniture shopping) to remember what a gift this education is. You will spend many years on campus just thinking and learning, and meeting new people. It may not come neatly wrapped with a bow---but it’s the most significant gift you will ever receive. And you should not take it for granted. If not now, someday you will understand what this really means.
As you transition to college, know that another circle is about to begin. It starts off with orientation, meeting that friend who will turn into a lifelong friend, an amazing trip abroad or interest in a major that turns into your life’s passion. Before you know it, four years will have flown by and yet another circle will be complete.
As you begin this next chapter, take a moment to celebrate not only your impressive admission to Miami but also the foundation you built that got you here, right now, in this very moment. Congratulations Class of 2015--it’s now full speed ahead……
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