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Show •':*%- o" r i e n t a t i o * n A6 MONDAY • AUGUST 20 - 2007 i s s u e Insider tips fbif 77ie ABC's and 1, 2, 3s of back to school • • * " • - •I- --'t Merinda Pearce - - T f • ' • • ' & - • • : * rippin News writer lated expenses on their own." So with all the money •t. News Writer we put into the bookstoje At the beginning of every they should be just fir^e, semester at UVSC you hear right? Not really. The bookstudent after student com- store is required to hafe plaining about the bookstore every text book and a sufripping off poor college stu- ficient amount of those jfext dents and laughing all the books, the new ones, thq,pld way to the bank,right?Not ones, and everything irrlbeso fast. After investigat- tween. The bookstore rfjust ing what's really going on have an adequate stocj of with the bookstore and the every book that will be^ised buying and selling of books for the upcoming semester. it appears things aren't Whether they sell them or always what they seem. not they have to have them. "Professors decide what Any student that has atbooks will be used after tended at least one semester their department approves at UVSC knows all about them," Louise stated. The the hassle of getting your bookstore doesn't decide books for the upcoming grind of school. Whether when the books will not be you get them online, Beat used anymore or whether the Bookstore, or the book- or not it's time for an upstore itself, it's just money dated version. The profesthat most college students sors make that decision. "The work it takes to don't have. We figure we are write a textbook, with a paying so much for school specific criteria, for a spealready why is the school cific clientele, isn't easy and ripping us off for more takes a lot of time and effort money now? It should be from specialists," Louise a package deal right, books Bridge mentioned. It's not should be taken care of with as if these teachers are maktuition, shouldn't they? Louise Bridge is the di- ing a killing off royalties rector of the UVSC book- for the book but they do get store and has been for six compensated for the time years, and after seeing a bit and effort they put into it. So think of all the monbehind the scenes, she has ey the bookstore spends quite the job on her hands. to have their shelves fully The bookstore is owned by stocked, which they are rethe college but it is indepenquired to do. Then consider dently operated and funded. all the money they invested They generate all their own on books they don't sell, but money and take care of all reErik Fredriekson S o you've decided to attend UVSC, welcome. In almost everything in life, from jobs to schools, to social groups there are usually two points of view: outsiders and insiders. UVSC is no different; there are certain things that longtime students know that new students do not. In order to help the transition in becoming comfortable with UVSC, here are a few insider tips. TEXTBOOKS j Some people will say to go straight to the sjchool bookstore and buy your textbooks for all of jjour classes right away. In some cases this may be a good idea; those who do go early will get first choice at the used books. However, most lower-division classes (aka general education classes, all of your basic prerequisite classes) do not use the entire textbook. Most professors only1 use a few chapters from the -. textbook. However, this is a general rule. Math classes, typically use the majority of the book; however, if going to the math lab regularly is on the agenda, the math books can be checked out from there. It is always a good idea to buy the textbook for a class that is going to be more difficult to understand the information. \ Keep in mind that the bookstore is not always the best deal for textbooks. There are plenty of ^ places to buy textbooks online, it may take a little longer to get here, but the money you save is worth it. Half.com and CheapestTextbooks. com are two great online resources for textbooks. Having the ISBN is very helpful in accurately finding airy given textbook online. j Now, for those stuqents who are supporting tjiemselves and spendijig hundreds of dollars on textbooks, this kind of an approach will not work if they want to buy food, there is an alternative option: the library. The UVSC library Has a reserve desk, which Has most of the required textbooks available to be qhecked out. The main drawback is, that it has to stay in the library and can cnly be checked it out for t vo hours at a time. Another option is to photo copy the pages that you need. It may take some time, but if it is only a chapter here, and there it is totally worth it. PARKING This may be a major issue for some UVSC students because driving is their main mode of transportation. Parking permits for Fall 2007 are $50 for the semester and $ 100 for the year. To avoid lines, purchase them early. For those students whose first class does not start until at least 10 a.m. the best suggestion is to just get a free parking pass because the best parking spot will be found in the back of the lot; save the money and walk. Besides the free parking lot is also conveniently located directly across the street from the testing center. Also, for those days that you may be running late and do not want to shuttle to the school from the free parking lot, there are $2 day passes available from parking services. For the students who have classes before 10 a.m. and wish to take an Institute class, their parking permits are free for the semester when registered for an Institute class. Also, parking is generally closer. There is also another alternative mode of transportation offered to UVSC students, the UTA bus system. Bus passes are available to UVSC students for $5. The passes are good for one year, and with fares increasing every six months, it is a great deal. For information about the Orem Institute of Religion, call (801)764-3000. For bus pass information see Campus Connection. Additional information about Parking Services can be obtained at www.uvsc.edu/parking DINING SERVICES For some students, most meals will be eaten at school, so knowing where the best food is available will come in handy. There are meal plans available for purchase so tHat a certain amount of money will be loaded onto the UVSC ID card, which can be used to purchase food from all over UVSC, except vending machines. Discounts are available when meal plans are purchased. There are several restaurants in Centre Court. Keep in mind that fresh food can be purchased upstairs in the Valley View Room. The food there is relatively inexpensive. There are kiosks situated throughout UVSC. The main one is in the LA building where food from Centre Court restaurants and the Valley View Room is available for purchase. One of the best little meals is a cup of fresh soup and a roll which range from $2.08 to $2.49. For more information contact Dining Services at 863-8664. ACADEMIC ADVISING TUTOR LABS The peer tutoring labs are some of the most helpful places at UVSC. There are a few things a new student should know about using these labs. First of all, for the Peer Tutoring Lab, check the schedule for when the "TA" for your class will be there. Have a list of questions or a topic. Keeping it specific really helps make the tutoring session go faster. The Writing Lab will not edit papers. Do not make an appointment and expect the Writing Lab tutors to edit it, they will not. They will proof read for organization and wording. They will also help with citations and other bibliography questions. Having a pre-edited paper with specific questions prepared will help with the session. Also keep in mind that the writing lab requires an appointments which, usually last between 20 to 40 minutes. For more information about the Peer Tutoring Center or the Writing Lab, please call 863-8310. All new students need to see their academic adviser as soon as possible. Paula Tibbets, the director of Career and Academic Counseling says that there are a few things that need to be done in preparation for a student's first visit. First, the school application has been received and processed by UVSC; it usually takes about two days. The next step for new students is to go to WebStart on U Vlink and go through the tutorial session, which gives all information about coming to UVSC; this will take about 30 minutes. Third, make sure all ACT and all testing scores are received by UVSC. (This can be checked on the UVlink.) If the math ACT score is lower than 19, the student needs to take the math test in the testing center. Tibbets says that one of the most overlooked things by new students is reading the welcome packet, acceptance letter and the acceptance e-mail. These acceptance letters have a lot of important information for new students. For transfer students, make sure transcripts have been received and processed by UVSC. This process takes at least one month. The best tip is to get in early to the academic advisers; the lines can get long close to the start of the new school year. don't have a choice'.Tii tlie matter because they have to have the books for us: Lots of students. these days williget their,.books online or from Beat the Bookstore. Louise Bridge had this to say about that, "It's another option and we're all about, options. Their has always been an alternative." Students have been posting notes all ovef school forever trying to sell books that the bookstore wouldn't buy back. That being said the only books the bookstore doesn't buy back are books they don't need. Either they already have too many or the book -won't be used after that. Say you buy a used book for $75. You use that book for an entire semester and then at the end of the semester the bookstore buys it back for $50. If you think about it $25 isn't a bad rental price for 4 months of schooling. The convenience of the bookstore is what draws most students to get their supplies there. You walk in and get everything you need in one stop. Unfortunately it seems money makes the world turn and the bookstore has to make money in order to exist. Blaming the high cost of textbooks on the bookstore just wouldn't be fair because 23,2007 Hall oi Flags & P£ Concoonc For Questions Contact: ,,.*. Career Services & Went Employment *••• r s r v ^ ' i DOWNEAST home&clothing v'9 vn WELCOME BACK T O SCHOOL ... with a special offer from DownEast Home & Clothing Outlets! Take 20% off one clothing or home item at any DownEast location.* Offer good through 9/30/07. •Offer not valid online or with any other odor. 79 North State HIGH StreetSTYLE. LOW PRICE. 2255 North University Parkway, #25 Orem Provo |