Beginning Fall Anew

The start of the Fall semester brings with it a great deal of reflection and preparation. Here at Florida State, we have been thinking over what went well over the last year and what changes we want to bring to the community and our programming this year. You and your student are most likely having similar reflections or preparations. For your student, this is an exciting and significant—some might say stressful time as they prepare to either start or continue their collegiate journey at Florida State. You and your student may be anxious about what’s to come, and perhaps, a little unsure of what to expect—all while excited about this new adventure.

As you both are preparing for this new year, we want to share some helpful tips and tricks to help you in supporting your student; our primary goal is your student’s success and happiness. You may know your student best, but we know student development and what there may be to come. If we work together, we can create a great support network for your student that not only gets them started positively, but encourages thriving and success throughout their academic career.

Below you will find some helpful guidance in supporting your Nole in this coming year:

Expectations/Communication

• Be open to discussions and be willing to cover difficult topics like grades, alcohol usage, travel, budgeting, and evolving relationships. 
  • Remember, if your student knows where you stand on an issue, they can work to meet your expectations.
• Be sure to discuss your expectations and theirs and how those blend with those of Florida State. 
• Check out Common Challenges & Talking Points to help you have these conversations with your student. 
• Decide with your student what communication is going to look like this year between you and them. Just because you have become accustomed to how often you and your student spoke last year, does not mean that has to remain the same this year.
• Be sure to stay up to date on the academic calendar to know when more stressful times of the year for your student may be (mid-terms, finals, etc.)

Setting Goals

• We hope that your student has begun thinking through what they want to achieve and participate in this coming year. If they have not, you should begin talking with them about this so that you know how to best support them through their goals.
• Ask your student questions that help them set goals and achieve goals while also helping them to think through how much time they have to do so.
• Challenge yourself to remember that college is a time for your student to think through what they want out of their experience and not just a time to go to class and not be a whole student at Florida State.  

Remaining Engaged and Involved 

• Being involved on campus has huge benefits for students' academic and overall well-being in college. With over 700+ clubs and organizations on campus, there is something for every student at Florida State.
• Encourage your student to check out NoleCentral to learn about the ways to get involved; you should check it out too so that you can help direct them on what and where they could get involved.
• WelcomeFSU, a welcome initiative taking place each semester, is a great place for your student to connect with their peers and make new connections throughout the first week of school. To learn more about WelcomeFSU, check out the site here!
• If your student is interested in having a job on-campus, have them check out Nole Network to find what offices/departments are hiring.
• In New Student & Family Programs, we have two great opportunities for students to, not only get involved but also work on-campus.
  • Peer Navigators- Student leaders who teach Chart Your Course, one of the Engage 100 courses, and serve as a mentor and guide for their students. If your student is interested in mentoring new FSU students, developing your leadership skills, and gaining practical teaching experience, then the Peer Navigator role is a great opportunity for them! Applications will open in early October for students to apply. 
  • 2023 Orientation Leader- you may remember during orientation a group of students in striped polos that helped you and your student get better adjusted to Florida State. These are orientation leaders! To assist incoming students with their transition and achieve academic success, Florida State University selects 45 current undergraduate students to serve as Orientation Leaders each year. These students mentor new ‘Noles in academics, student involvement, FSU history and traditions, and community expectations. Orientation Leaders take on the responsibility of welcoming over 8,000 students and 10,000 family members annually into the FSU family and showing them what it means to be a Seminole. If you believe that your student would be interested in serving as an orientation leader, we would love for you to nominate them using the link here!

We are excited for a new academic year and hope that you and your student are as well!!