UCLA Freshman Orientation: A Comprehensive Guide for New Bruins

Welcome, new Bruins! Embarking on your college journey at UCLA is an exciting and transformative experience. To ensure a smooth transition from high school to university life, this guide provides essential information, important dates, and helpful resources tailored for incoming first-year students.

Preparing for UCLA: Key Requirements and Deadlines

Before setting foot on campus, several crucial steps must be completed. Pay close attention to the following requirements and deadlines to avoid any complications.

Immunization Requirements

Prior to submitting your Statement of Intent to Register (SIR), carefully review the University of California’s immunization policy. Ensuring compliance with these requirements early on will prevent potential delays in your enrollment process. Make sure to check your spam/junk folders for responses regarding your submission. This will ensure that the correction will be seen by all the UC campuses you have applied to. If you have submitted your SIR to UCLA, log in to MyUCLA.

Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR)

All incoming first-year students must demonstrate proficiency in critical reading and analytical writing in English by fulfilling the Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR). There are several ways to satisfy this requirement:

Standardized Tests: Achieve a minimum score on one of the following standardized tests:
- 30 or better on ACT English Language Arts
- 63 or better on ACT English and ACT Reading sections (The English Language Arts score represents your overall performance on the English, Reading, and Writing sections of the exam)
- 680 or higher on the College Board SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section
- 3 or higher on the College Board Advanced Placement Examination in English Language or English Literature or Advance Placement Seminar examination or the Advanced Placement Research Examination
- 5 or higher on the International Baccalaureate Higher Level Examination in English (Language A or A1 only)
- 6 or higher on the International Standard Level Examination in English (Language A or A1 only)
College Coursework: Complete a UC-transferable college course in English composition with a grade of C or better before enrolling at UCLA. Once enrolled at UCLA, you must complete the ELWR writing requirement by taking UCLA composition courses only.
Informed Placement Process (IPP): Admitted students who have not satisfied ELWR by June 1 are required to complete the Informed Placement Process (IPP) at UCLA. The IPP was previously known as the Analytical Writing Placement Exam. In order to have a placement for fall enrollment, you will need to complete the IPP at least 2 weeks prior to your New Student Orientation. There is a $167 fee for the IPP, but please note that this amount may change without prior notice. Students will be billed after they take it unless they have a fee waiver. About 2-3 weeks after you complete the IPP, you can log in to MyUCLA to see if you satisfied the ELWR using your UCLA Logon ID. Please go to your Degree Progress/Audit Report and look under "Entry Level Writing/ESL Requirement" to see which English Composition course you will start with. If you don't see a result, your New Student Advisor can advise you when you attend your New Student Orientation. Results of the IPP won’t affect your admission to UCLA.

Math Placement Test (MPT)

Determine if you need to take the online Math Placement Test (MPT) if you plan to enroll in one of the following classes:

Math 1 Pre-Calculus
Math 3A Calculus (for Life Science Students)
Math 31A Differential and Integral Calculus (for Physical Sciences Students)
Math 31AL Differential and Integral Calculus Laboratory (for Physical Sciences Students)

Students should take the MDT by July 1 if any of these are true:

They do not have AP credit for Math 31A
They do not have transferred course credit from a community college or 4-year institution for Math 1, Math 3A, Math 31A, or Math 31AL. High school course credit cannot be used to waive these courses.
They are waiting for results from AP Calculus AB or BC exam

Check your Degree Progress/Audit Report on MyUCLA to confirm credit for AP test results or transferred courses. It must be completed July 1 so that your placement is available when you register for classes during New Student Session. There is a $20 non-refundable charge since the test is operated by a third party - ALEKS Placement, Preparation and Learning (ALEKS PPL). View the Undergraduate Mathematics Help Guide for frequently asked questions about the MPT.

Chemistry Diagnostic Exam

If you plan to enroll in Chemistry 14A, Chemistry 14AE, Chemistry 20A or Chemistry 20AH, you are required to take the Chemistry Diagnostic Exam prior to enrolling in the course itself. The exam is available online beginning May 1 and must be completed before July 1 so that your placement recommendation is available when you register for classes during New Student Orientation.

Submitting Transcripts and Test Scores

Be sure to send us test scores (AP and IB). If you have taken UCLA-transferable college courses in high school, submit your official transcripts for this work as soon as possible.

New Student Orientation: Your Gateway to UCLA

New Student Orientation is mandatory for all new undergraduate students. During orientation, you will become acclimated to both the academic and social life at UCLA. You’ll connect with other new students, learn about the campus and many of the services available to Bruins, meet with academic advisors, enroll in your first college classes, and much more.

Read also: Navigating Tech Breadth at UCLA

Orientation Sessions

There are 12 different orientation sessions for first-year students, including two sessions dedicated to out-of-state and international students.

What to Expect at Orientation

UCLA new student orientation is an event held during the summertime for newly admitted students to help them prepare for their first quarter at UCLA. During orientation, new Bruins learn more about the university, campus and how to enroll in classes. UCLA orientations are offered by the New Student and Transition Programs (NSTP) department for first-year, transfer and international students, as well as parents and families. Students must register for orientation by July 1; failure to register will cause an account hold that restricts registration. Orientation sessions offer students a chance to meet other new Bruins on campus, learn more about services at UCLA and more. The UCLA new student orientation sessions are offered for students only. The sessions are advised by New Student Advisors (NSAs) who guide new students throughout the orientation sessions. NSAs are also current undergraduate students themselves. For international students planning on attending orientations, click here for further instructions about which orientation session to register for. First-year UCLA new student orientation sessions are two days. The UCLA Undergraduate Education New Student and Transition Programs webpage notes that the first-year orientation sessions include information on majors, courses, graduation and fall quarter enrollment. The orientations also offer workshops for student services like housing and financial aid, as well as presentations on post-grad opportunities, like professional or graduate schools and further career information. The first day is centered around getting to know the university, and the second day on planning for a student’s academic schedule. There are 12 first-year student orientation sessions available, two of which are for international and out-of-state students. Sessions begin with session 101 on July 10 and 11 and are scheduled throughout the following months until session 112 on Sept. 11 and 12. Sessions 111 and 112 have spaces reserved for residents outside of California.

New Student Advisors (NSAs)

You will be led by your New Student Advisor and your group should consist of around 9 students total if you’re a freshman and around 6 if you’re a transfer. Generally, other students in your group will be in the same or similar majors, but this can vary. New Student Advisors (NSA) are current or recently graduated students who are trained extensively both to advise you with academics and be your peer mentor. You will be receiving guidance and instructions from your NSA throughout the orientation session and they will make time to meet with you individually to plan out your academics and answer more of your personal questions as well. NSAs and students are assigned to each other, and you’ll know who yours is once you check in on day 1

What to Bring to Orientation

ID (driver’s license, passport, etc)
Laptop / tablet (If you don’t have one you can bring, we’ve got computer labs available for use during course planning day)
Chargers and Portable Power Banks for your phone and laptop
Copy of all prior college transcripts and exam scores (AP/IB/etc.), or access to them online (Helpful for planning classes. Doesn’t have to be official, physical copies.)
Access to your MyUCLA (I know it’s autosaved on your phone/laptop, but you should actually know the username and password)
Water bottle / light snacks (Meals are provided throughout orientation, but the schedule dictates when we eat and dining halls close by 8pm! Get those late night hönger snacks in line before it’s too late…!)
Prescription/Over the counter medication, glasses/contacts, menstruation/hygiene products
Comfortable clothes / shoes / sunscreen / hat / sunglasses (Yes, there will be a lot of walking…and a lot of sun… you’ve been warned!)
Reasonable expectations and a good attitude 🙂
List of all and any questions/concerns that you would like addressed (It can be a little hard coming up with questions on the spot, but you definitely have at least a few you need answers for! Prepare some in advance and there will be opportunities to ask several departments such as Financial Aid, study abroad, etc)
Hand soap (You will most likely be staying in a suite with a shared bathroom between two rooms. It’s got toilet paper, but no hand soap.)
Warm outerwear / light blanket (Yes, this is California, but it can get surprisingly chilly into the evening time! Make sure to bring at least one thing you can wear to stay warm. Blankets are provided in the rooms, but many students have expressed regret at not bringing an additional blanket for more warmth.)
Money (Probably. Two of the meals are purchased with a $8 voucher. In case your lunch costs over $8, you should carry a bit.)
PLANNER: You are given a free planner for the academic year at the end of orientation.

Navigating Orientation

There’s a lot of scheduled events at orientation to keep track of, but you will receive a session schedule booklet during check in with details about all the different events and activities. Your New Student Advisor will also be reminding you about where and when to meet throughout the session. Having google maps on your phone would be handy; most locations/buildings are available to search directions for! If MyUCLA says you have a “Hold” on your account, please let your New Student Advisor or the Orientation staff know that you have a hold! It is likely to block you from enrolling, but the office can attempt to “delay” your hold so that its restrictions are postponed to after our enrollment period at orientation and you can deal with it later. If you have a food sensitivity/allergy, the student should let the orientation staff know ahead of their orientation session of what dietary restrictions they have so that the staff can accommodate properly on the day of.

Orientation Schedule and Activities

Everyone receives a copy of the first year schedule. Refer to the schedule pictures to know where and when to eat. You can eat at Covel, Feast, and Rendevous (I think?). There are other cafes and off-campus options, but you pay out of pocket for those.

Read also: Understanding UCLA Counselors

Bruin Card

Stand in that long line to get to your room and put down all your stuff. Head straight out, take a right, and go down the stairs (just follow all the other people). Collect your Bruin Card/get your picture taken for it. You’ll need to know your UC ID.

Academic Planning and Enrollment

A significant part of orientation focuses on academic planning and enrollment for the fall quarter. Here's what you need to know:

Degree Audit Report (DARS)

The UCLA Degree Audit evaluates your progress toward meeting graduation requirements in your major. It’s a critical tool for selecting classes and plotting your academic course. It will be explained in-depth at New Student Orientation. After that, you can create your own audit by logging in to MyUCLA with your UCLA Logon ID.

How to Access and Run Your DARS:

Access your MyUCLA account.
Press Run Audit and you should see the page above
Check “Run Selected Program” to start a new DARS(You can also click “View” next to a previously run audit if the information is recent enough!
For School/College, use the dropdown menu to select your school. Most majors are a part of the College of Letters and Science
6. Once you select all the above options, A red “Add Required” will pop up with “Major” next to it.
Once you’ve selected your major, DAR will give you the option of adding a 2nd major, a minor, or a specialization. If you have one, plan to have one, or just want to see what would be required if you did add something, go ahead and add it in the same way (In the example, I added a Sociology major with a minor!).
Click “Run Audit” button on the very bottom and allow the page to process!

Understanding Your DARS:

Articulation Status: Expand it and see if your IGETC (if you know you completed it). If it says it’s still pending, check again in the middle of the next quarter to see if it was just taking time. If it’s not there, talk to your academic counselor asap!
Advanced Standing Credit: Check to see whether you’re receiving credit/units from qualifying exam results + transferable college courses you’ve taken elsewhere!
PREPARATION FOR THE MAJOR / MAJOR REQUIREMENTS: This is the other important portion of the DARS. Every class you need to fulfill a major’s preparation / requirements will be displayed (In the above DARS example, the student is a Political Science major. Yours will show the appropriate major).

Troubleshooting Your DARS:

My DARS isn’t showing the correct major/minor: Go back to the beginning of this article and run a new audit with the correct inputs for the major/minor you’re in!
My DARS is showing a red x and says that my IGETC hasn’t been completed?: At this time, most transfers will see this on their DARS, so don’t worry. If you’re certain that you’ve completed your IGETC/UC Reciprocity (Intersegmental General Education Transfer Contract), you should be fine. My theory is that the system is just overloaded with thousands of transfers and will sort itself out accordingly with records by fall quarter. Make sure to check your DARS in the middle of the quarter just to confirm though!
My DARS isn’t showing credit for a AP/IB exam or the courses I took at another community college under Advanced Standing Credit…:
1. Check to see if you/your school actually sent in the proper exam results + transcripts. If you haven’t, go ahead and send it in officially to UCLA Admission! Check your DARS again later in the quarter to confirm that it’s been received properly.
2. If you’re sure you’ve sent results/transcripts in, check with UCLA Admission to confirm. Otherwise, your exam results may have not counted for anything or your college course(s) may not have been transferable to UCLA.
My college counselor said that credit from an exam I took / a class I took should count for a certain requirement, but it’s not showing as fulfilling anything?: Check with your counselor / departmental counselor again. If you’ve already spoken to them and they approved it, they may have forgotten to translate it as such OR they may need you to fill out a petition with them to have it count! If this is a college course, be prepared to have that class’ syllabus handy. Another scenario may be major dependent. For example, the Sociology department will accept a passing AP stats score or a college stats course as fulfilling one major preparation requirement. However, the Political Science department does not accept AP stats and requires the stats course to have included a certain coding component.
I have other specific questions personal to me about my DARS! Meet with your departmental counselor or college counselor to get things sorted.

Using Your DARS for Academic Planning:

It’s good practice to run your DARS every once in a while to make sure you’re on track with fulfilling your requirements. I personally plan a visit to my departmental counselor at the end of each quarter so we can go over my DARS together, ask questions, and figure out what I should prioritize when enrolling for the upcoming quarter!

Class Enrollment Strategy

You will be enrolling in 3 lower division courses at orientation. Your schedule will generally be 1 major prep course + 2 GEs or 2 major prep courses + 1 GE. Note: At least 1/3 of the courses you select must be outside of your major. Another option is to explore a different potential major/minor by taking one of its required prep courses!You should be choosing plenty of alternatives / back up classes (At least 3 backup courses for each of the three classes.. ex) if Class 1 and 2 work, but 3 doesn’t, what’s my plan? A, B, or C)None of the 3 courses in your schedule should share a final exam dateYour classes need to be “Open”, shown with a green padlock. We’re not enrolling in classes that have a waitlist or are closed during orientation. (Exception: Ask about Cluster courses or Fiat Lux if full)Your classes should have at least or around 15 minutes or more in between them. This is to compensate for walking distance, securing a good seat, and packing/unpacking.

Additional Resources and Opportunities

College Scholars Program

The College Scholars Program is offered through the UCLA College.

UC Immunization Policy

The UC Immunization Policy requires all incoming students to provide proof of vaccination.

New Parent & Family Orientations

UCLA New Parent & Family Orientations are one-day sessions designed to welcome families to the UCLA community and address the concerns family members have relative to their student’s upcoming university experience. Your session will feature presentations from UCLA staff, faculty, and students on academics, available services and educational opportunities, the transitional experiences of students and how families can support them, and general campus life. Lunch and light refreshments are included. New Parent & Family Orientation components are held separately of your student’s orientation session but do coincide with the first day of each two-day First Year session - as well as a standalone Spanish session on Saturday, August 2. Family Orientation runs from 8:00 am to approximately 6:00 pm PDT.

Bruin Notes Blog

Welcome to Bruin Notes! This blog is dedicated to providing incoming UCLA students a practical guide to navigating essential resources and sharing some of my own personal experiences. We all know there are a lot of official resources out there (many of which I will link to!), but it may be a little more digestible in normal student speak!

UCSHIP Benefits

Take advantage of your UCSHIP’s benefits! Unless you’ve waived, you’re paying for them! Visit student health.UCLA.edu for all health service/insurance/coverage related information. Ashe Student Health Center is our on-campus general hospital/clinic. It’s connected to the right of Wooden gym and right across the plaza from the UCLA store. Check out what services they offer, you might be surprised! But if there’s an issue that requires more expertise/equipment than is available here (cardiologist, ultrasound, MRI, etc), they will refer you to a specialist. You typically must receive a referral before making an appointment with a specialist if you want coverage (~$25 specialist visit)Check even if you don’t have UCSHIP! Bruin pharmacy is on A-level of Ackerman Union (floor above UCLA store). They only accept UCSHIP. If you’re prescribed medication, unless otherwise specified, you only pay $5 out of pocket for each! U-See-LA is our on-campus optometry office! It’s on B-Level of Ackerman inside the UCLA Store. Plan in advance! Personally, both my appointments had to be scheduled around a month away due to availability. Similarly with your dental coverage, you can get these services at other offices for the same benefits if they accept what is offered by UCSHIP/Anthem Blue.

Addressing Common Concerns

Class Availability and Orientation Session Timing

Classes reserved for the purposes of orientation are generally distributed evenly between each session. There is no advantage in going to an earlier session for this reason.

Campus Tour

The campus tour was only 3.5 hours tops and ~6.5 miles of walking according to my pedometer (which might sound awful, but it’s spread out among 3 hours).

tags: #UCLA #freshman #orientation #guide