For incoming freshman, orientation marks the beginning of their college experience. It is a time to find roommates, schedule classes and begin their journey at Ball State University.
To help these students along the way is the orientation team, which is made up of Ball State students, including senior Kyle Holster.
Holster, who is an art education major, has returned for his second year as a student orientation team leader.
Holster said for him, the best part of being a team leader is meeting the freshmen and seeing all of the different personalities. He also said he likes helping out and answering all of the student's questions and getting paid to meet people.
"It's a great experience being able to help freshman students through this two-day course," Holster said. "Being with an advisor or staff, you may be intimidated. Instead, being with someone your own age, you may feel more comfortable in asking questions. How often do you get paid to go up to someone and say hi?"
Lindsey Speer, assistant director of admissions, said much more goes into planning and executing orientation, which is a year-long process. This year, 22 students were chosen to represent Ball State from an applicant pool of more than a hundred, Speer said.
Holster has been a resident assistant for three years and is a participant in the Art Education Club, Cardinal Core and the vice president of the National Residence Hall Association.
Once chosen, the orientation team goes through a two-week training course before freshmen orientation, which lasts from June 1 to July 10.
During training, leaders are trained to expect the unexpected, Speer said. A representative from almost every office on campus meets with the team of leaders to keep them informed.
Speer said this year, the biggest change to the orientation program was the addition of a $100 program fee for incoming students, which was set by the Board of Trustees. This fee pays for a $25 meal card for students and funds Welcome Week activities in the fall, she said.
There hasn't been much negative feedback to this, Speer said, but even if there is, leaders are trained in how to respond to upset family members.
Holster said he doesn't just have to handle frustrations from parents, but he also gets to answer many questions from the incoming freshman, which he said is one of his favorite parts of the job.
"The freshmen ask about everything, from questions about Ball State to college life in general," he said. "The most common question that I hear is, 'Where are all the parties on campus?' I usually try to answer that with activities that are sponsored by campus, such as BSU's Late Nite." He also said that the biggest misconception about college is that it is the time to get crazy and party, but that he tells the students to make smart decisions while they are here.
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