Rollercoaster of College: Culture Shock Phase

This post comes from a guest blogger: Sarah Tetley, Assistant Director of Housing and Residential Life at Webster University

Your student’s transition in college is like a roller coaster … how to help them on the ride of their life … part two Culture Shock Phase

In the Sept. 2 parent blog post, you were introduced to the concept of the W-Curve. The W-Curve is a model that tracts students transition to college. We first discussed the Honeymoon Phase, which happens around the beginning of the school year. The next phase they reach is called the Culture Shock Phase, which begins to surface 6-8 weeks into their transition.

Eventually the newness and the excitement of college life wears thin and the students find themselves in a reality check. They no longer have the comforts of home, and they have to make some big adjustments with new people (having a roommate, sharing a bathroom, having lots of neighbors, etc). This process can be fun but also draining on students who are trying to adjust socially as well as academically.

Zeller and Mosier (1993) “The unfamiliar territory of the college classroom also creates dissonance. … Lecture classes, unclear guidelines for note taking and studying, and unfamiliar … faculty work together to produce potential difficulties … Routine tasks that were taken for granted become problematic chares. Where to go shopping, get a haircut, or receive medical attention can create feelings of frustration.”

"Homesickness may begin to be an issue, and some students will try to keep a tight grip on their homes (going home on weekends, Text-ing friends from home constantly, hanging up lots of pictures of friends, family, significant others, etc.) Students are also going through a process of becoming self-reliant, establishing a unique identity, and accepting the responsibilities for their own actions."

"The college freshman has many personal issues to deal with in addition to adjusting to college academic expectations; reworking relationships with parents, creating new social circles, dealing with separation and its resultant anxiety and dealing with conflicting values. Attempting to synthesize these personal challenges into some formal structure requires a great investment of energy. It is important to understand that this is a period of great potentially positive change but it is also a period of more intense person conflict and anxiety.”

How you can help them with this part of their transition:

1) Give them / send them care packages, letters, etc. supporting them on their decision to go to college. Reaffirm that they are making a great choice in continuing their education.

2) Go visit their campus with them. Have them show you around the great place they are investing themselves in. This joins both of their lives, their lives at home and at school.

3) Ask about their involvements and friends at school. This lets them know that there are a lot of ways to connect with new friends and new experiences without losing their connection to home!

Snail Mail

We know you all want to send cookies and care packages (or bills and junk mail) to your child at school. So that you can make sure it gets to them, we want to make sure you've got the right address. So here goes:

If your child lives in West Hall, East Hall, or Maria Hall, address mail as follows:

Resident Name
240 Edgar Road
Room #____ (East/West/Maria)
St. Louis, MO 63119

Please Note: Be sure to write Room # NOT Apartment #, as this causes sorting conflicts with Webster Village Apartments mail.


If your child lives in the Webster Village Apartments, address mail as follows:

Resident Name

Building 1: 150 Edgar Road Apt. 1__
Building 2: 158 Edgar Road Apt. 2__
Building 3: 200 Edgar Road Apt. 3__
Building 4: 212 Edgar Road Apt. 4__
Building 5: 227 Edgar Road Apt. 5__
Building 6: 163 Edgar Road Apt. 6__

St. Louis, MO 63119

Parents Weekend / Fallfest

Register today for Webster University's first-ever Parents Weekend, part of our Fallfest celebrations. Here's quick run-down of the events open to parents:

FRIDAY, September 26
4-6 pm Registration & Campus Tours
4:30-6:30 pm Alumni Authors Meet & Greet
5-7pm May Gallery Exhibit & Reception
6:30-8:00 pm Parents Cocktail Reception
8-11pm Harmony Concert - Artist: Ben Lee!

SATURDAY, September 27
10:00 am & 2:00 pm Varsity Volleyball Games
12:30 pm Pep Rally & Tailgate
1-2 pm Flag Football Game
3-5 pm FALLFEST 2008 Jazz Reception
5 pm Taste of Webster
8-11 pm Trivia Challenge

For more information about the events listed above, and to register, go to the following website:
https://www.alumniconnections.com/olc/pub/WBS/events/event_order.cgi?tmpl=events&event=2161017

Hope to see you there!

Happenings in Housing / Monday Messenger

The Housing and Residential Life office sends out a weekly email to all Webster University residents. This weekly email is full of important updates, campus events, and more. If you would like to receive this email so that you're getting the same information as your son/daughter, just let us know. We'll gladly add you to the email list!

If your child is a resident in West, East, or Maria Halls, sign up for the Happenings in Housing email by submitting your name and email address to Sarah Tetley at sarahtetley29@webster.edu.

If your child is a resident in the Webster Village Apartments, sign up for the Monday Messenger by submitting your name and email address to Katie McComb at mccombka@webster.edu.

Roommates--Friend or Foe

Now that your son/daughter has had a few weeks to settle in to their home away from home, he/she is probably learning a LOT about living with a roommate. He/she may have signed up to live with a best friend from high school or he/she may have been assigned someone based on the personal data sheets that accompanied the housing application. Whatever the situation, it's better for the student to communicate early and often if there are any problems. If you start hearing complaints about roommate issues from your student, suggest the following tips to help them work through any problems and live harmoniously:

• Fill out a roommate agreement form. These are available from the housing office or from the RA. This will help set apartment standards regarding guests, cleanliness, possessions, noise, and more. That way, if a disagreement arises, there is a written form stating what was previously agreed upon.
• Don't be afraid to be assertive regarding basic rights and needs.*
• Do not let little annoyances bother you. Especially things that your roommate cannot change (e.g. an accent).*
• If your roommate really starts to get on your nerves, just leave the room for a little while to avoid a fight. When you return, you can confront her or perhaps you will not even remember what was bothering you in the first place.*
  
• Remember that you have a right to be treated with respect, as does your roommate.*
  
• Be tolerant.*
• Compromise. There has to be a little give and take.*
• Learn from each other. Be open-minded to your roommate’s point-of-view and listen to his/her side.*
• If the problems go beyond all these suggestions, schedule a mediation with your RA. Sometimes it helps to have an unbiased third party to help talk things out.

With a little communication and compromise, hopefully your son/daughter can have a great roommate experience. Some students start college with the idea that their roommate will be their best friend. It does not always work out that way, but we want to make sure that they can at least be good roommates, not enemies.

*Cited from http://www.bsu.edu/students/cpsc/library/roommate/

The Rollercoaster of College

This post comes from a guest blogger: Sarah Tetley, Assistant Director of Housing and Residential Life at Webster University

Your student’s transition in college is like a roller coaster...how to help them on the ride of their life.

It’s August and classes have begun. For all new students this can be a very nervous and exciting experience. Transitioning into any new culture comes with its ups and downs. Most students go through what is called a “W-curve” during their first year of college transition. Over the course of the year I’d like to introduce you to the concept and give you a few pointers about how to help your student through each part of the W-curve.

The first stage of the W-Curve is considered the honeymoon phase, and usually begins before the student arrives on campus. It can begin as soon as the decision is made to attend a particular university. It continues to build as the student attends orientation programs, gets their housing assignments, and begins planning for school to start. They experience mixed feelings of excitement, nervousness, and anticipation. Students do feel a sense of nostalgia about leaving their home, friends, significant others, but the fun and excitement of their college experience is a strong force.


Zeller and Mosier (1993) “As students arrive on campus, there generally is a strong sense of welcoming from the campus community. Other new students quickly become friends, returning students become mentors, and staff and faculty are available to assist them through a variety of first week programs. The initial sense of freedom new students feel often is exhilarating. For traditional aged students, moving away from parental oversight and taking responsibility for one’s own lifestyle creates a strong positive feeling.”


Students can typically ride this high for several weeks after they start college. There are levels of homesickness and nostalgia for their family and high school friends, however they are also encompassed with that “honeymoon” feeling that will take them through.

How you can help them with this part of their transition:

1) Celebrate with them! Be excited right a long side them while they embark on their new experience. Seeing you excited and happy for them will let them know they are supported!

2) Ask them about how they are getting involved. On campus there are a lot of ways to get involved and get them connected. Getting involved early will help them keep that “honeymoon” level of excitement longer.

3) Take note of all the things they are excited about, as when they get to the next stage, they may need to be reminded how excited they were when they arrived!