To help parents and families better understand what their student is experiencing at college, we've put together a Semester Timeline for you to reference. To use the timeline, just choose the month you're interested in and read through a week-by-week breakdown of important events, deadlines and things to consider for you and your student.
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Be honest with your student about family issues but avoid leaning on your student too heavily because he or she will not be home or available to help much while managing college responsibilities. |
| Week 2 | First week of class. Encourage your student to "walk through" his or her schedule ahead of time to find the rooms in the buildings where the classes meet. Parents and students can access the weekly DUS News for weekly information about events and opportunities for students. Walk-in advising is available in Grange Building (M-F 8:15-11:30 a,m,; 1:15-4:30 p.m. through January 19, 2011). If your student has a concern about his or her spring schedule, encourage attendance! |
| Week 3 | Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration. No classes. Encourage your student to attend an exhibit or participate in community service! |
| Week 4 | A Day in the Life is a job shadowing program your student will receive information about in DUS News. Encourage participation! |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | If your student seems to be having academic difficulty, encourage him or her to try iStudy for Success modules that focus on study methods, time management, and communication. You can also suggest the free tutoring available at Penn State Learning. |
| Week 2 | Sophomores will have received multiple notifications to confirm their major preferences on eLion prior to the entrance-to-major deadline. Encourage your student to read DUS News for details. |
| Week 3 | Penn State's Dance Marathon is this week. Consider supporting Penn State students' annual effort to raise money for pediatric cancer research. THON is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world! |
| Week 4 | Internship and research opportunities are great ways for a student to expand his or her college experience. Please encourage your student to take advantage of Penn State's many resources! |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | It's not too early to encourage your student to look into meaningful summer work experiences that could help to explore majors and future jobs. Career Services can help with resume writing and interview preparation. |
| Week 2 | Spring Break. No classes. |
| Week 3 | If your student has not yet started to research majors or made an appointment with his or her adviser, please suggest both! |
| Week 4 | Your student should read DUS News for information about Spring Career Days. It's a great way to see what career fairs are like and also check out summer job and internship opportunities. |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Late drop deadline is this week. If your student tells you that late dropping a class is something they may need to do, please listen, discuss .the reasons, and recommend an advising appointment to learn about possible options. |
| Week 2 | |
| Week 3 | |
| Week 4 | Last week of class. Withdrawal deadline is this week. If a student is earning poor grades in most classes, withdrawal is an option that needs to be considered. If your student brings this up as an option, please listen to the reasons and encourage he or she make an advising appointment. Part of the reason for academic difficulty could be a lack of interest in the initial choice of major, and a guided discussion about new goals should happen. |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Finals Week. Sending cookies (enough to share) is always nice. Finals may be scheduled through Friday, so please plan family events after this date. |
| Week 2 | Talk about the events of the past year and review your student's financial needs for the upcoming year. Do any changes need to occur academically or financially? Summer is a great time for your student to volunteer in hospitals or schools, interview people in interesting job fields, and research education abroad opportunities. Remember, your student has been on her or his own for several months. You and your student may have some adjusting to do. Students often have different ideas about who they are as individuals and what they want to study at this point. Remember, their choice of major should be their choice - not their friends' or families'. |
| Week 3 | |
| Week 4 |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Summer Break. |
| Week 2 | |
| Week 3 | |
| Week 4 |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Summer Break. |
| Week 2 | |
| Week 3 | |
| Week 4 |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Before arrival. Topics you can discuss with your student include budgeting and finances; calling, texting, e-mailing, and visiting home; living with a new roommate; taking responsibility for his/her education. |
| Week 2 | |
| Week 3 | Move-in day. Encourage your student to "walk through" his or her schedule after you leave and find classrooms/buildings ahead of time. |
| Week 4 | First week of class. You and your student can access DUS News and join the DUS Facebook fan page for important weekly news. |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Encourage your student to get involved! The Student Involvement Fair (usually the last week in August) and Student Organizations website can help. |
| Week 2 | Parents and Families Weekend. Let your student show you around Penn State! |
| Week 3 | After a few weeks, students sometimes need to vent or express some concerns. Listen and encourage your student to problem-solve. For academic help, students should contact Penn State Learning as soon as possible or check out iStudy for Success modules that focus on study methods, time management, and communication. |
| Week 4 | This week's DUS News reminds students to research majors and make an appointment with their advisers. Please encourage your student to do so! |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | If a student has initial trouble in a course, the instructor may send an Early Progress Report with details and suggestions. Encourage your student to talk openly with you about academic performance, but expect him or her to take the initiative if changes need to be made. |
| Week 2 | Colds and flu can occur in any school environment. Encourage your student to use University Health Services if needed. If counseling services are appropriate, Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) are available. |
| Week 3 | Mid-terms tend to happen in clumps around this time. Consider sending some "stress relief" to your student and his or her roommate: cookies, gum, pizza coupon, vitamins, headache medicine, card of encouragement, massager, music gift card, relaxation music, etc.) |
| Week 4 | If your student has not yet begun to explore majors or made an appointment with his or her adviser, consider sending a reminder. |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Want to become more involved with the Penn State community? Consider applying be part of The Parents Council through Penn State's Parents Program. |
| Week 2 | Late drop deadline is this week. If your student feels late dropping a course might be necessary, please help to review the reasons and encourage her or him to make an advising appointment to discuss options. |
| Week 3 | Unexpected ideas. Your student's goals may have changed since NSO. Discuss these new ideas about majors, minors, or other educational experiences - they could be great! |
| Week 4 | Thanksgiving break. No classes. |
| Week in the Month | What you may experience: |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Parents Council application deadline. |
| Week 2 | Last week of class. Withdrawal deadline is this week. If a student is earning poor grades in most classes, withdrawal is an option that needs to be considered. If your student brings this up as an option, please listen to the reasons and encourage he or she make an advising appointment. Part of the reason for academic difficulty could be a lack of interest in the initial choice of major, and a guided discussion about new goals should happen. |
| Week 3 | Finals Week. Sending cookies (enough to share) is always nice. Finals may be scheduled through Friday, so please plan family events after this date. |
| Week 4 | Winter Break. This is a great time for students to volunteer in hospitals or schools, interview people in career fields they are considering, and research education abroad opportunities. Remember, your student has been on her or his own for several months. You and your student may have some adjusting to do. Students often have different ideas about who they are as individuals and what they want to study. Remember, their choice of major should be their choice - not their friends' or families'. |