From Jan. 25-26, First-Year Experience (FYE) facilitated a weekend retreat at the Warren Conference Center. The retreat, a product of a collaboration between the Office of Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programing (UAAP) and FYE, provided students with an opportunity to leave campus, connect with each other and prepare for their second semester at MIT.

“As first year students, they are immersed into a curriculum that starts as soon as they put their bags down,” said Area Director Lauren Piontkoski. Piontkoski and Katie Julian (UAAP) co-facilitated the retreat. “This opportunity to combine various first-year student experiences under one roof served as a way to reflect and engage on similar transitional moments in their first semester.”

MIT student leaders Judy Rodriguez, Miriam Zachau-Walker and Cher Huang attended and facilitated small group conversations with the participants. From letters to their future selves to sharing their “highs and lows” at MIT so far, the students in attendance reported that they felt more connected to each other and MIT as a whole by the end of the conference.

Julie Rothhaar, the Assistant Dean of First-Year Experience believes the retreat will be held again in the future and said that it inspired new initiatives for the spring semester.

First-Year Experience (FYE) holds Hot Chocolate & High Fives event!

To show support for first-year students as they took their first round of exams at MIT, First-Year Experience held their “Hot Chocolate & High Fives” event on December 17th and December 19th. With a free hot chocolate station with marshmallows, FYE representatives asked students how their exams went and offered tips and ideas on how they can learn from the fall semester and be better prepared for their exams in the spring.

Check out more photos here at the FYE website!

First-Year Experience invites you to register for the Winter Retreat at the Warren Conference Center from January 25 to January 26, 2013. Students, staff and faculty will come together to discuss the MIT Culture as well as reflect on the students’ first year at MIT so far.

Click here to learn more about the Winter Retreat!

The Freshman Housing Lottery is Open!

The lottery lasts from June 1 to June 15.

Just a reminder to incoming MIT students:

We are here to help you! One student asked how to find and watch the i³ videos and our department was able to send them to this tumblr. Please feel free to ask us questions, request resources, or let us know what you need to know before starting at MIT in the fall!

Visit MIT’s First-Year Experience website to learn more!

As your first year wraps up, don’t forget to be prepared for your second!

The Spring FYE Newsletter explains the housing selection process and tells you your options, important dates and deadlines, and where to go if you need more help.

Resources available across campus.

FYE’s November newsletter highlights each of the MIT Libraries, where to find them, what to find in them, and why they serve as helpful study spaces with finals approaching.

Tips to achieve success!

In FYE’s October Newsletter, resources and support systems are detailed to help guide students who may be stressed or in need of some help. This newsletter includes a piece written by Director of Fitness and Member Services of Recreational Sports, Stephanie Kloos, as well as tips and advice on how to handle the pressures of your first year at MIT.

Incoming first-year students swim over to the New England Aquarium for a night of fun.

New to MIT? Do you know about FYE?

First-Year Experience is a program developed to help first-year students navigate their first year of college. FYE’s August 2011 Welcome Newsletter addresses housing questions, where to eat, switching dorms, and other relevant and important topics.