Future content: Tour etiquette & tips; tour locations; commonly asked questions; handling large groups; link to interesting facts in Knowledge Base.

As EA members the main task we do is provide weekly Friday tours of the CoE before dropping the families off at their chosen department. These tours are meant to be casual and informative about the college and last about 25-35 minutes. Make sure the guests know that they can interrupt to ask questions about engineering or UC in general! We are giving the families a brief tour of the CoE not their respective department, however you may feel free to answer these questions if you feel comfortable. This is a time for you to shine and show off the College of Engineering at UC and the families enjoy getting information straight from the student's mouth, not an admissions officer. Families and perspective students really enjoy hearing about your Co-op experience, not matter how boring it seemed to you.

Student Organizations
It is very important to point out the many student organizations located in the CoE. Many organizations are department specific and many of these are also professional student chapters. When walking along the sixth floor in Baldwin point out the organizational offices (most organizations have or share an office) and briefly discuss what each organization is and what they do for the College of Engineering and its students (Tribunal, SWE, Theta Tau, NSBE, EA, EWB, etc).

A few of the organizations offer study sessions for underclassmen, these are good ways to get help and begin to work on the student's networking skills. Many new friendships are formed in these sessions and they also help get students into the effective study environment that dorms and other housing situations may not offer.
Students can join most of the organizations from their first quarter on campus and they can join organizations outside of their major. Organizations can help make adjusting to college easier for some students and in many cases organizations allow students to begin networking with their professors in some organizations.

The Ohio-Link Program
The University of Cincinnati is a partner in the Ohio-Link Program. This program connects the libraries of many universities in Ohio to help students obtain needed resources. Students can search for a book(s) or topic and a list of the universities that provide the material as well as the availability is created. Students can then have that text delivered the library of their choice on UC's campus. More information about the Ohio-Link can be found on the UC's libraries website.

Handling Large Groups
For our tours we divide the families up by which department they are visiting and combine like majors. These usually ends up with groups of 2-4 students (3-10 people total). If you are the leader, speak up so everyone can hear you because they won't always ask you to repeat yourself. In addition your group should have a battle plan on what you want to get accomplished before dropping your families off. The best thing when handling a large group is to keep things moving in a comfortable pace to where you can answer questions and make it to all the main locations before running out of time. However, you should always try to answer their questions before making sure you make it to a location (we are here to answer their questions, not to only show them around the engineering complex so you can skip a location). Being under a short time frame can also make things difficult, but have a mini-agenda so you can get the most important details in.

Not everyone is comfortable with talking in front of groups, so you won't be expected or placed as a tour leader on your first tour. We will let you hang in the back and answer more personal questions from the parents. This the perfect time to learn more about the CoE from a veteran. Obtaining more information about your college helps make giving tour easier regardless if you are fearful of talking in front of people. It is all about being prepared, so if you have questions ask an upperclassmen, go to the Rowe Center (Admission's Office), or go to that department's website. As soon as you feel comfortable you are free to lead a tour when you want.

Frequently Asked Questions
Many times, families will not ask questions and all the talking points will be used, so feel free to discuss any experiences you have had in the following areas:
~ where you lived as a freshman and what options people have
~ how housing works for coop - both in town and out of town

• Living and working in town
• Your housing situations can be very different given your type of housing so here's some quick information:
• On-campus housing: You will sign a coop housing contract which means UC has to hold you a room in your current residency hall, but the exact same room or with the same roommates. As far as most of us know you can still live in the dorms while you're on coop too.
• Off-campus: Here's were it can get tricky, in most cases your lease will state you will have to get a sublet if you travel out of town or be required to pay your monthly fees. Some landlords will specify that they don't want coop students taking leases from them.
• Living and working out of town
• This totally comes down to what your employer offers in the employment deal. Some companies will completely set you up for free, pay part, or offer no housing deals. If the location is fairly far from Cincinnati they may be willing to assist in looking, but not paying for your housing. Some employers will also provide you with a travel stipend to use.
  

~ what kind of computer do I have to get

• Your major has a lot to do with this criteria, for most majors outside of the electrical or computer areas you can pretty much use what every computer (desktop or laptop) you choose. UC CoE does have an account set up with a few computer companies that provides the student with a small discount on specified computers. Just remember the CoE's computer labs are open 24/7 and they have all the computer programs you'll need while in school.

~ what courses to you recommend taking college credit for

• Some of this comes down to what program you're heading into. Students come in with credit in Calculus, Chemistry, English, and others. The admissions office and department faculty are the best at answering these questions unless you have experience, but we mostly turn the family to the departments. This subject can be difficult to answer because some majors welcome credit and some don't always like the student to use it, but to retake the class to be fresh (and get a good grade) depending on when the credit was obtained.

~ how many hours do you spend studying each day/week

• Everyone's study habits are different and so spend many hours daily and some don't. The biggest factor students face when entering college is the amount of free time they now have. The idea for students is that they need to be doing work daily to stay up to date with their classes. Slacking off in high school is a lot different and the if you slack off in college (especially in engineering) can hurt you very quickly and make your life very stressful and difficult. Many professors will tell you that college is your new 40 a week job and this sounds liek a lot, but some people find this approach easy to adjust to and get the most benefit from. This approach doesn't mean you're studying 40 hours a week, but that you manage your time and focus on what is important during the week. Don't be like a DAAP student and slack off all quarter and then stay up for a week straight to get your work done. Doing a little at a time ultimately pays off in the long run.

~ do I have to coop in the Cincinnati area

• No, the best and most important aspect of UC's CoE coop program is that it is completely designed for the student and what they want. Sometimes a better job is farther away from UC or your home.

~ how does the coop interview process work and what skills are needed

• The interview process is fairly simple. You'll have the opportunity to rank as many companies as you'd like, then your Professional Practice advisior will send your resume out to those companies. The companies will contact you and arrange an interview time and place. If the company is far away they may hold a phone interview or fly you out to their office.
• In your freshman year you'll take an intro to professional practice class taught by your major's adivsior. They'll go over things like: how to interview, how to write a resume, how to handle working in the professional environment, and anything else you may wonder about. In addition, they will other you the chance to do mock interviews as many times as you would like. This is a great way to work on your skills if you don't feel comfortable in interviews.

~ what kind of pay and incentives can I look forward to on coop

• Each major has its own set of average coop pays per year. Another thing to consider is that smaller companies might not pay the same as larger firms. There may be a smaller pay, but benefits that may equal things out (housing or transportation). Either way the company will be paying you an engineering wage based on your and/or their experience with coop or the job field. Typically you'll earn enough to live comfortably and have money for the the next school quarter(s).
• The best way to see what the averages is to the Professional Development office in Swift and talk with your major's advisor.
• Incentives all come down to the company and the location. Asking previous coop students is a great way to gauge the incentives of a company.

~ how difficult is the ACCEND program and do I lose anything while taking part in the program
~ do I have to have a meal plan and can upper classmen get a meal plan

• You don't have to have meal plan, but its sometimes nice to have the option available. We mostly associate meal plans with freshmen, but upper classmen can get a meal plan as well. UC has many meal plan options that allow any student to choose a plan that suites them given their schedule or cooking experience.

~ how safe is campus and the surrounding areas
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Locations of Note
The main locations to take families in the CoE are: ERC 6th Floor Lab, CoE Library, Baldwin Lobby on the 6th floor, 5th floor Baldwin computer labs, and any of the Baldwin classrooms and seminar rooms. As we break from the "Tour Talk" each group will head to one of these locations separately. The order at which you pass these locations is up to the tour leader. At each of these locations its good to give a brief description of the room and any important information about it. At so of the larger locations, you can pause briefly and discuss different topics (housing, meal plans, Co-op, or anything else they might ask) to keep from an awkward silence.

Additional locations to visit may include: North stairwell and 544/644 Auditorium.

Additional Useful UC/CoE Notes