Orientation has several components for Spring 2022. It will consist of a series of modules for students to complete at their own pace and a required virtual or in-person meeting for all new students. We recognize the important role of families and are providing a Family Orientation experience. The virtual experience for Families will have no additional costs while the in-person experience will have a cost of 25 dollars. More information about Orientation will be communicated via e-mail to admitted students and on this website as they become available. Thank you for your patience as we work to provide you with an informative and engaging orientation experience.
Student fee information:
No, there is no upfront student cost to registering for and attending Orientation. New students are assessed a New Student Transition fee that you will see on your first semester student bill.
Family member/guest fee information:
For Spring 2022, there will be an additional $25 fee per guest to attend the in-person Orientation session. Guest registration is limited to one person. There is no additional fee to add a guest to the virtual program at this time.
Modules can be completed at your own pace after they have been released. You must complete Modules 1-4 prior to your scheduled Orientation session and all nine modules must be completed before the start of classes. We recommend that you pace yourself when completing the modules and give yourself adequate time to digest the information presented in each module as you are responsible for the information in each module.
The modules will remain open through the first month of classes so you can log back in and reference them up until that time.
Yes, VCU requires all new students to complete Orientation. Completion of the online modules is tracked and attendance will be taken at the two mandatory virtual meetings for first-year students and the one meeting for transfer and adult learner students. . If you are a readmitted student, you must complete Orientation if you have not done so within the last two years. If you attended/completed Orientation in 2018, 2019, or Summer 2020 you do not need to complete online Orientation.
Research supports that if you complete Orientation, you are more likely to achieve success in college and graduate. This is true for both incoming first-year students and transfer students. VCU is committed to helping students succeed in and out of the classroom so we require your participation in Orientation. Over the past three years, 95% of students who completed Orientation have been retained to their second year of study at VCU.
More importantly, this is your time to connect with an academic advisor, learn the specifics of your academic major, register for your classes, get familiar with campus resources, ask questions and make new friends. Even if you already know people on campus, Orientation will give you a comprehensive overview of the resources and services available to you as a new student.
Once you have paid your tuition deposit and it has been processed (usually within 2-3 business days), you can register online. You may also need to complete placement tests and the VCU Registration Survey, please check the appropriate Accepted Student Checklist to ensure you have completed all the required steps prior to registering for orientation.
To make changes to your orientation registration or to add a family member or guest, you can log back into your orientation account up to one week prior to your scheduled orientation. If it is within one week of your orientation, please email newrams@vcu.edu with your full name and V-number and we will do our best to assist you.
All first-year students are required to take the math placement test before attending for Orientation. Transfer students who are not transferring in a college-level math or statistics course must also complete math placement. It enables the math department to have a general idea of how many sections of each type of math to open for class registration and helps your academic advisor have a good idea of which math courses to consider when helping you build your schedule.
Students are still required to take the test if they are bringing in credit from AP or dual enrollment classes. Many students who bring in AP credit or transfer credit from community colleges do not have official scores or grades when they are advised for classes. As a result, students have had to “guess” how they will do, which has often resulted in students being placed in courses that are too advanced. This test has proven to be a good predictor of what their scores will be so that students don’t have to request to be put into a different class if they didn’t get the scores or grades they anticipated through AP testing or dual enrollment courses.
If a student scores low on the math placement test but brings in AP credit or credit for courses through dual enrollment, the credits received through those means will be evaluated and the student will be able to go into a higher-level course than the one suggested by the math placement test.
A first-year student is someone who has not attended classes on another college campus. For orientation purposes, high school students who have dual enrollment credit are considered first-year students.
A transfer student has attended another four-year or community college prior to coming to VCU.
All new students will have the opportunity to meet with an academic advisor before the start of the semester. For Spring 2022, there will be some limited advising appointments available for the in-person Orientation date in December for students to meet with advisors while they are on campus. Students who plan to attend Orientation virtually or in January will meet with an advisor either virtually or in-person prior to your scheduled Orientation to finalize your schedule.
Transfer students can begin scheduling advising meetings on Dec. 1, 2021. You should complete the Transfer Student Intake Survey prior to scheduling your appointment. If you are attending the Orientation on Dec. 15 (for students with majors in Humanities and Sciences and Business only) there will be available advising appointments before or during the scheduled in-person Orientation.
First-year students' schedules will be created by your advisor for your first semester based upon your responses to the VCU Advising Registration Survey. You will be assigned to your advisor on Dec. 22, 2021 and you are encouraged to schedule an appointment with them when the university reopens in January if you have questions or if you need to make changes to your schedule prior to attending orientation.
If you would like to change your major prior to the start of orientation, then please email Undergraduate Admissions at ugrad@vcu.edu and include your full name, V number, current major and the major you wish to change in to. If your new major is within the same college or school (e.g. within the College of Humanities and Sciences, etc.) then this will not impact your orientation or advising. Students wishing to change into a new college (e.g., from College of Humanities and Sciences into College of Business) will need to wait to hear from Admissions to ensure that you meet the requirements for the requested major.
If your major change is approved or you have recently changed your major, your orientation account will update with your new major and you will be notified via email if you need to change your session.
If you need special accommodations please indicate this when filling out your registration questionnaire. A staff member from our team will reach out to you if we have any further questions about your request. You may also email us at newrams@vcu.edu, please be sure to include your full name and V number.
For more information on accommodations during the *academic year*, please reach out to the Student Accessibility and Educational Opportunity (SAEO) office.
VCU is excited to offer tailored content for veterans and current service members in our online Orientation. This content is designed to give you more information about how to utilize your military benefits and will help you learn how to connect to other service members and their families.
There will also be virtual and in-person opportunities to connect with Military Student Services and learn about your military benefits as part of Orientation.
If you are unsure whether or not you are eligible for Military Benefits, please review the information on the Military Benefits Orientation page.
Parents and family members are encouraged to register and attend Orientation with their students. You can register a parent or family member when you complete your own registration.
For Spring 2022, students can only register ONE guest for the in-person program. There is a $25 fee for adding a guest for the in-person program, which covers the cost to attend and includes a meal, parking, materials, staffing and space costs. For the students attending the virtual option, there is no additional fee to add a guest. All registered guests will all have the opportunity to complete the same modules that students do online and will also see tailored content designed to address their needs including information on-campus resources, family involvement, academic expectations, and changing relationships.
The on-campus housing application for Spring 2022 is now open. You can fill out the application online. To start your application and learn more, visit https://housing.vcu.edu/application/.
Students have the option to request roommates when submitting their application. Roommate requests must be mutual – both students must request and accept one another in order to be assigned. To find a roommate, you can fill out a special form as part of the Housing application under the Roommate page.
For more details and FAQs on all things on-campus Housing, Check out the bottom of the Housing application website.
In order to receive an on-campus housing assignment, students must be registered for orientation. For more details on when housing assignments begin and how applications are processed, visit https://housing.vcu.edu/application/.
VCU’s Off-Campus Housing office is a one-stop-shop for searching local area listings, finding roommates and starting the leasing process. You can begin your search online, but if you would like more assistance, you can schedule an appointment with the Off-Campus Housing staff.
Students can submit their photo online for their VCUCard. Students will receive information on how to submit their photo online once they have registered for Orientation. Information is provided in both the Orientation confirmation email and within the Ram Ready modules. You can visit the VCUCard website to learn more about photo requirements and specifications and how you will receive your VCUCard before the start of classes.
You should complete all of the items on the accepted student checklist before the start of classes.
VCU classes will begin on Tuesday, Jan. 18 2022 for the spring semester. Similar to the Fall semester, courses will be held in a range of modalities, including online, hybrid and in-person. The Spring 2022 Schedule of Classes is now available and is searchable by course modality (how the course will be taught: in-person, online, or a combination) for more than 8,000 course sections. You can also review the updated Academic Calendar for Spring 2022 for more details. Please check https://together.vcu.edu/ for the most updated information and announcements as they become available.