Senior audio producer Mae Lackey chats with UT students and alumni about their orientation experiences.

Reported and edited by Mae Lackey with additional editing by Aislyn Gaddis. Music by Nullhertz.

*upbeat music and different students saying “orientation”*

Mae Lackey: Coming to college is a big step for most people. Whether it’s your first year, or you’re transferring from another university, it’s not easy to adjust to a new environment and schedule. For this reason, the University of Texas requires students to participate in “new student orientation”. Orientation provides students with academic and campus resources. Orientation also provides students with the opportunity to meet friends and explore campus life. 

UT Juniors Karthik Ambati and Fabian Corona met at orientation. They both consider each other their first friend at UT, and they’ve been friends for two years now. Karthik and Fabian both said that coming to orientation was nerve-racking. Here’s Fabian.

Fabian Corona: The first day of orientation.. It was overwhelming, to be honest. There was a lot thrown at you. A lot of expectations of things you already should’ve done, things you already should know, and I was just like “I didn’t get the memo” and, like, I’m trying to play catch-up and it was a lot.

Mae: Fabian and Karthik met on the first day of orientation at an event called “speed-friending”.

Fabian: So there was like, 2-3 tables set up, and everyone was sitting in a place. Pretty much, like, there was an announcer who was asking a question, and you basically have to talk to the person in front of you about that question. And then, you’re, pretty much like the person in front of you rotates, so you’re always in front of a different person. 

Karthik Ambati: So at first, initially, I didn’t know anyone. And, I’m not gonna lie, it takes me a little bit to come out of my shell sometimes to people. So, I really was just only talking to my friend Kat for a little bit, just because she was the only person I knew there, like before UT and everything. But then a bunch of other people showed up, including Fabian, and we all got talking.

Fabian: The memories are trickling back. I remember seeing a certain somebody, and saying to Karthik “That person is cute! Who are they?”

Mae: Fabian and Karthik met up with a few other friends later that night to play card games. After that, their friendship blossomed. They’ve supported each other through some important ups and downs.

Fabian: Out of everyone I’ve, like, met throughout that first semester alone, Karthik has always been a constant. And, I don’t think he knows it, maybe I did tell him this story, which was like one week in November where my mental health was ass. I stayed in my dorm for like a week straight. I didn’t get up, I didn’t eat, I didn’t do anything. It was bad. And then Karthik came in, like randomly, because I think he was texting me and I wasn’t answering for some time. And he was like “that’s weird’ (probably) and, like, rushed to my room. He was like “get up, we’re going out, we’re gonna go eat”. He didn’t know what was going on, but he knew that I hadn’t been, like, present. And, to be honest, I don’t think anyone else would’ve done that to be honest.

Karthik: I don’t think we would’ve crossed paths if it weren’t for orientation on the first day. I’m really glad I did. Fabian’s been- Fabian is, like, my oldest friend at UT that I’ve met, so. Like, the first person that I didn’t know outside of UT that I met that I actually stuck with. 

I’m glad I didn’t just stay in my shell, and just kinda hole up there. 

Mae: Fabian and Karthik said they wouldn’t have met without orientation, considering they are in different majors at UT. They’re thankful for the experience, and they plan on being friends for a long time.

Karthik: Next semester he’s actually roommates with my girlfriend, so I’m still gonna be seeing him a lot.

Fabian: And guess who gave him that girlfriend??

*Fabian and Karthik laugh*

*upbeat music*

Mae: Sean Thomas worked as an Orientation Advisor in the summer of 2020 during the height of COVID-19.  Then in the summer of 2021, he worked as a Leadership Team Member for orientation. In both positions, he provided guidance to students throughout orientation. Sean said it wasn’t a hard choice for him to become an OA.

Sean Thomas: My first memory of anything at UT was walking out of Brazos garage, and walking up to Jester, and being, y’know, for orientation it’s 8 in the morning and being really tired, and scared and nervous, and excited at the same time and just being greeted by the line of OA’s, y’know screaming and cheering and being like “welcome!!” and all that.

I’ve always been somebody that really, really loves trying to, like, boost somebody else, be nurturing, be very warm, welcoming, and so when I saw a bunch of students here at this place, this new place I’m going to trying to do that for me as I’m walking in, it felt very comforting. And, I literally knew after orientation, like I was like, I need to be an orientation advisor.

Mae: Similarly to  Fabian and Karthik, Sean met one of his closest friends when he attended orientation as a freshman. At the time, a comedy show would take place during orientation. In between skits, music played.

Sean: At the time, I was a 17-year-old white boy addicted to The Office, like most are. And so, they played The Office theme song. And it’s dark, but I was like bouncing off the walls, loving making friends, so I jumped up and I was dancing around. Before the comedy show they had done this uh, they had asked for volunteers to come up and have a dance contest, so I had basically went up and I did it and most people saw my face. 

So, because of that, I think they kind of heard my voice when I was dancing – even in the dark – to The Office theme song and I saw somebody on the other side of the theater was also, like dancing, and I was like “meet me outside!” I was like “I wanna be friends!” So, I waited after the show, and they did not meet me outside.

Mae: Sean then attended Camp Texas, a camping trip organized by Texas Exes, UT’s alumni organization. There, he says, he volunteered for an activity where a tissue box full of ping pong balls was strapped on his back, and he “twerked” the ping pong balls out. 

Sean: After volunteering at Camp Texas for that activity, I was in line at lunch getting a drink, and somebody came up to me and said “hey, were you at the first orientation session?” and I was like “yeah, did you go to the Longhorn Comedy Show?” and she was like “yeah, were you that guy?” and I was like yeah, no way! And they had recognized me from those two things. And, long story short, that person ended up becoming a really supportive friend for me throughout really hard times at UT. And they still live in Austin, and we hang out every few weeks now, and so, yeah.

Mae: Sean has his fair share of funny stories from working orientation, too. During the summer of 2020, orientation was conducted completely online. It wasn’t easy adjusting to working over zoom, and memes and jokes were aplenty amongst OA’s and students alike.  During a “pet show-and-tell” activity, Sean watched a kid decorate a watermelon and hold it up as his pet. He said that it is one of his favorite memories from the time.

Most of all, Sean loved working orientation. He loved it so much that he influenced quite a few of the students he advised to not only become orientation advisors themselves, but also Leadership Team Members. 

Sean: All of that stuff, obviously, it means, like, everything to me. Because that’s what I wanted to do, I wanted to give people this love that I found at orientation to them, and to feel like I really did that for some students was everything.

*upbeat music*

Mae: Orientation can be daunting, but it’s designed to be an opportunity to learn more about UT and meet other students. Through dance battles and speed-friending, it has proven itself over and over.

Mae: This episode was a production of The Daily Texan audio department. Reported and edited by me, Mae Lackey. Music by Nullhertz. Thank you for listening!