All new students are expected to be here for all of Orientation, which will take place on Friday, August 28 - Sunday, August 30, beginning at 8:30 a.m. (International students will arrive on Monday, August 24, with their Orientation beginning the following morning.) Parents and/or family members will participate with sons/daughters throughout the afternoon of Friday, Aug. 28.
You may move into your room after you've visited the main Orientation tent. Your room key will be distributed at the tent.
This information will be posted on the Web site in late June.
Past Orientation Coordinators have created a list of items that will make students feel more at home and more productive on campus. Their suggestions are listed on the right side of this page. Members of the President's Climate Commitment have provided a similar list, packed with environmentally sound products and places that'll make your time on campus eco-friendly.
Each student is provided with a desk, chair, dresser, closet or wardrobe and bed, as well as window shades. Because campus storage space is limited, you will not be permitted to remove these furnishings from your room. The June Web posting will include approximate dimensions of your room, windows, furniture, etc.
You may use posters, pictures, and other decorations to make your room feel like home. Please note that materials that damage the walls, such as transparent tape, adhesive stick-on cork board, nails, and screws, are not permitted when hanging pictures and posters. Poster putty and masking tape are acceptable. Tapestries are prohibited.
Small kitchen areas or microwave ovens are provided in many residence halls. These areas are intended for cooking snacks and occasional meals only. Each student will be allowed a small mini fridge (3 cubic feet large maximum) in their dorm room. More information about leasing a MicroFridge is available online (PDF). For safety reasons, cooking appliances in student rooms is strictly prohibited.
Renovations, housekeeping, and occupancy by our summer programs prevent the previewing of rooms. Campus tours are available through the Admissions Office and usually include a typical room.
All students are assigned new post office box numbers over the summer. Log in to the Orientation Web site and select Student Profile for your box number and combination. All letters and packages should be addressed to you at:
(Name)
(Box #) Scandling Center
Geneva, NY 14456
Please note: Do not mail to P.O. Box (Box#). As it will slow your mail and make sorting it more difficult for the Postal Service.
We strongly encourage those who must rely on shipping to delay their shipments so that they arrive the week of August 24, 2009. Sending packages ahead is discouraged because storage space is extremely limited. If you must send packages prior to your arrival, please send no more than two boxes, via UPS, to your campus mailing address. The UPS Office will be open from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Friday, August 28, and 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. on Saturday, August 29, to enable students to pick up packages.
All student residences offer full Internet access including access to e-mail, the Internet, and the online library catalogue. Ethernet connections are required, and students need to install campus virus protection before being able to access the internet.
Computers are an increasingly important tool for students at the Colleges. They are used to run instructional software, access course materials, access HWS library catalogues, obtain updated curricular information and advising resources, access information on campus events and activities, perform word processing, write and receive electronic mail, and access the World Wide Web. Most of these uses require not only a computer, but access to the network. The campus Ethernet network provides all students with high-speed network connections in their dormitory rooms, the library, study carrels, classrooms and laboratories. All students receive a network username and password prior to arriving on campus.
Having a computer is a significant convenience, especially toward the end of semesters when demands upon computer labs are high. All student residences offer full Internet access. (A network card is required.) In case you do not bring a computer, there are multiple computer labs in the Warren Hunting Smith Library. Most serve as multimedia classrooms during the day and become open labs evenings and weekends.
Labs are open variable hours depending on need, but approximately 12 - 14 hours a day. Additional hours are added during peak usage times. For those late night study sessions we provide one cluster of 12 computers in the all-night study area giving students computer access 24 hours per day during the semester. Currently, about 95 percent of the computers on campus are Windows/PC compatibles running Windows-based software and the other 5 percent are Apple Macintosh machines.
The Colleges have list of Recommended Hardware and Software that first-year students should look for when buying a computer for use on our campus network.
Residence Halls generally open the day before classes begin.
Residence halls close 24 hours after your last final exam or by noon (whichever comes first) the day after exams end each semester.
Special opening dates are arranged for athletes and residence staff.
Requests for early arrival due to extraordinary situations are due in writing by August 3.
The request should be faxed to (315) 781-4026 or mailed to the director
of residential education.
Residences opening and closing dates for 2009-10 are:
Fall Semester
- August 28 — Residences open for new students
- Oct. 10-13 — Fall Recess
- Nov. 25-29 — Thanksgiving Recess
- December 19 — Residences close at noon or 24 hours after your last exam, whichever comes first
Spring Semester
- January 19 — Residences open
- March 13-21 — Spring recess
- May 12 — Residences close at noon or 24 hours after your last exam, whichever comes first
- May 16 — Commencement
Basic cable in the lounges of all residence halls and in student rooms. Students may purchase additional services (digital cable, premium services, etc.) for their rooms when they arrive on campus in the fall. Time Warner can be contacted by calling 1-800-756-7956 and they are usually on campus for several days during the first full week of school. Be sure to have your residence hall and room number ready when you call to order service.
Please visit the Share My Info page for instructions and more information about the academic information sharing service provided by the Registrar's Office.
