FAQ

Our orientation website is the best place to get information about all things orientation! We also share lots of fun and informative content on our Instagram page @ucispop. We highly recommend you keep up with us there.

We also send important information over email to students’ UCI email addresses. Please be sure to keep up with your UCI email regularly over the summer. This way you won’t miss an email from us, and it is a great habit to continue into the school year.

If you have any questions regarding orientation, please email orientation@uci.edu from your UCI email or call (949) 824-5182 with your student ID ready. Please note, if you call on the day of in-person orientation, you will not get a response until the next business day at the earliest.

Once your Reservation Window is open, log into your SPOP Dashboard. After selecting “Get Started,” fill out the requested information in each section. Select “Continue” in the bottom right hand corner to move onto the next section. You are required to fill out your gender and two emergency contacts before you can select a SPOP. 

After selecting your SPOP and confirming your selection, you will have a confirmed SPOP reservation! You can always log back into your SPOP Dashboard to review your confirmation.

You do not need to do anything to sign up for online orientation. All incoming students will automatically be invited to access these modules during the summer. At this time, you will get an email to your UCI email address inviting you to join your assigned Canvas Group. Please be aware that you must first accept the invitation to your group in the email notification before you will be able to access the online orientation modules on Canvas.

There is no specific date by which you need to complete these modules. It can be helpful to complete Online Orientation prior to attending your in-person orientation. You will also continue to have access to these modules throughout your time at UCI, so you can refer back to these resources whenever you need them.

We expect all students to stay overnight on-campus during SPOP since it is a great way to meet new people! All students will have a room assignment and access to their room throughout SPOP, regardless of if they choose to not stay overnight on-campus. Because of this, there is no discount to the orientation fee if you choose to not use your overnight accommodations on-campus.

Room assignments for SPOP do not reflect your housing assignment for the school year. All students attending SPOP will be assigned to a double or triple room with one or two roommate(s). Students will be sharing a bathroom with about 10 other students. If you have any extenuating circumstances that require you to stay in a single room, please note this in the “Accommodation” section of your SPOP Dashboard. 

SPOP is all about meeting new people and making connections. Because of that, we do not accept roommate requests for SPOP.

Please note, your room assignment for SPOP is completely separate and unrelated to your academic-year housing assignment, if you will be living on-campus. Students who plan on living off-campus during the school year will also be assigned a room for SPOP and be expected to stay overnight on-campus.

Students attending SPOP will be assigned to a double or triple room shared with one or two people of the same gender. You will be sharing a bathroom with 8-10 other students of the same gender. A group of rooms that share a bathroom is called a suite. Each hall, which houses about 45 students, is mixed gender.

When you make your SPOP reservation, you will be asked to select your gender. If you select any gender other than male or female, you will be prompted to rank your rooming preferences (shared room in a male suite, single room in a gender neutral suite, etc.), and we will accommodate your preference based on the rooms available for your particular SPOP. You will be able to make changes to your rooming preferences up to 9 days before your SPOP.

Roommates are assigned randomly, and we do not accept roommate requests. SPOP is your first opportunity to meet new people and make lasting connections at UCI. Having a random roommate allows you to meet more new people you may not have otherwise gotten the chance to know!

If you are concerned about affording the orientation fee, you may qualify for a discounted SPOP rate. We work with the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarship to identify students who will automatically qualify for this discounted SPOP fee. These students will be notified by email through their UCI email address. If you do not receive this email, you did not automatically qualify for this discount. Those who did not automatically qualify for this discount can apply for a discount. This discount is not guaranteed; however, we will work with you to relieve the financial burden of the SPOP fee as much as we can.

Also, since the SPOP Fee is added to students’ ZotAccounts in the fall, any financial aid you receive may be applied to the SPOP fee.

The entire duration of SPOP is mandatory for incoming first-year students. There is so much information to cover during SPOP and arriving on-time and staying until check-out ensures you do not miss any of it.

However, we understand that some students attending SPOP may have limited travel options to and from campus, and they may need to leave early or arrive late to make their flight, drive many hours; etc. SPOP check-in begins at 7:30 AM, and we can accommodate late check-in until 9:45 AM on Day 1 of SPOP. If you cannot arrive before 9:45 AM on Day 1 of SPOP, please choose another SPOP to attend. Students arriving after this time would be missing academic advising, which is mandatory to complete before signing up for fall quarter courses. If you will be arriving between 8:30 AM and 9:45 AM, please follow the late check-in instructions included in your SPOP reminder email one week prior to your program.

Students leaving early will need to get approval to check-out of SPOP early. If you need to leave early, please submit an exception request form with the “Early Check-Out” reason selected. Your request will have to be approved in order for you to check-out early. Please submit this as soon as possible, as this allows us to process your request sooner. You will be required to provide travel documentation if you are leaving early due to travel accommodations.

The most important thing to do if you need to arrive late or leave early is communicate with our office! We understand that things can happen last minute, and we ask that you send an email to orientation@uci.edu to keep us updated or if you have any questions or concerns about this.

Our recommended SPOP packing list includes:

• Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, refillable water bottle, comfortable clothing and shoes, and a light jacket
  • Please be prepared to travel to and from buildings across campus and spend time outside!
• A change of clothes for sleeping and Day 2 of SPOP
  • On-campus housing provided during SPOP does not have air conditioning, so please keep that in mind when packing.
• A laptop
  • This is needed for academic advising and course enrollment. The computer lab space on campus is very limited, and we want to save this space for students who do not have a laptop to bring. A tablet or phone will not suffice for course enrollment.
• Toiletries and personal hygiene items, including shower shoes
  • Students will have access to the communal showers in their halls.
• A notebook and pen if you would like to take notes
• A phone charger or portable charger – we do not have any to provide
• Any medications you may need

Towels and linens, including sheets, a blanket, and pillow, are provided, and you do not need to bring your own. However, you are welcome to bring your own if you prefer. There is no discount for not using the linens provided for you.

We ask that students attending SPOP bring a laptop with them for the academic advising and course enrollment portion of SPOP. Computer lab space on campus is very limited, and we do not have the capacity to accommodate all students in a computer lab. If you have a laptop to bring, we ask that you please do so, so we can save the computer lab space on campus for the students who do not have a laptop to bring. A phone or tablet will not suffice for course enrollment. If you do not have a laptop to bring, you will be able to use computer lab space for course enrollment.

Overnight accommodations are only provided to students for the one night of SPOP – no exceptions. If you will be in the area before or after SPOP, you are responsible for finding your own accommodations. We recommend checking this list of local hotels that may offer discounted rates for UCI visitors.

When you are making your SPOP reservation, you will be prompted to select and describe any accommodations our office needs to know about to make your orientation experience as comfortable as possible. Please submit these accommodations as far in advance as possible so our team can adequately prepare to make these accommodations.

Prior to your SPOP, you will be contact by someone from our team to confirm we can accommodate your request and further discuss the logistics of your accommodations if needed.

Only some Academic Units will accept day-of change of majors at SPOP. The following schools accept changes of major day-of during SPOP:

• Arts – Arts Undecided and Drama Only
• Biological Sciences
• Education
• Humanities
• Undergraduate/Undeclared

If the school you want to switch into is not listed above, you will not be able to begin the change of major process at SPOP, and we recommend that you ask your academic advisor questions about this process during academic advising/course enrollment.

We work with the Academic Units to make sure the course enrollment process for Fall Quarter is as fair as possible for all incoming students, no matter what SPOP you attend. When possible, Academic Units will hold seats in certain classes and release them throughout the summer, and some classes are reserved for first-year students, so there are more spaces available. Many courses are offered on multiple days and times, so even if one class time is full, there are other opportunities to take that class.

There are many different requirements that students need to meet during their time at UCI, and academic advisors are there to help students during course enrollment. Even if the class a student wants to take is no longer available, advisors can help students find a class that will help satisfy some requirement.

There are several reasons why a SPOP might not be available to you. If a SPOP has reached capacity, you will not be able to make a reservation at that SPOP. If you want to attend a SPOP that has reached capacity, you can join the waitlist for that program. If a space becomes available for you, you will have the opportunity to switch into that program.

Students can only attend a SPOP where their academic advisors provide academic advising and course enrollment support. Not all Academic Units are at every SPOP. If you are part of an Academic Unit that will not be at all SPOPs, you will only be able to make a reservation at a SPOP where they will be present. You will not be able to join the waitlist for a program where your Academic Unit will not be present.

Yes, you can join the waitlist for any full program at which your Academic Unit is present! Log onto your SPOP Dashboard, select View Waitlists, and select each program you want to join the waitlist for. When spots become available, they will be offered to students on the waitlist in order.

If a spot opens up for you, you will get an email to your UCI email address with instructions on completing your reservation. You have to accept your new SPOP reservation in order for your reservation switch to be confirmed. You will not automatically be placed in the new SPOP date if a spot becomes available for you. You will have 48 hours from the time you are notified about the spot opening from the waitlist to accept your new reservation before it is offered to the next person in the waitlist. This process cannot be undone, so please be sure to check your UCI email regularly.

The waitlist is automatically managed, meaning that we are unable to change the order of the waitlist or share information pertaining to the waitlist.

The last waitlist spots for a program will be offered 9 days before the program begins. If you have not been offered a spot off the waitlist within 9 days of that program, you will not be offered a spot.

Yes, you can switch into any open SPOP that you are eligible to attend. You can do this by logging into your SPOP Dashboard and selecting “View Open SPOPs.”  Please note that you must confirm the change before you have officially moved SPOPs. 

You will know you have successfully confirmed your new SPOP reservation by checking your SPOP Dashboard!

If you cannot attend any in-person orientation date due to prior travel arrangements, you can submit an exception request form to request to be excused from the in-person portion of orientation. This form will be available when your Reservation Window opens. When you are making your SPOP reservation, please select “I cannot attend any of these dates” on the SPOP selection page. You will then be prompted to complete an exception request form. You will be required to provide documentation of your travel plans in order for our team to process your request.

Simply submitting a request does not excuse you from attending in-person orientation. Your request must be approved in order for you to be excused from in-person orientation. After you submit a request, it could take up to 5 business days for our team to reply to your request via your UCI email. Anyone excused from in-person orientation will still be required to complete online orientation and pay the online orientation fee, which will be added to your Fall ZotBill.

Students who are excused from in-person orientation will receive academic advising virtually over the summer. Upon being excused, your academic advisors will be notified and will reach out to you via UCI email to coordinate this virtual appointment.

We want all students to attend in-person orientation, especially out-of-state students so they can explore campus before moving to Irvine! We understand that it can be difficult for out-of-state students to travel to UCI just to attend SPOP. If you cannot attend SPOP due to being an out-of-state student, please submit an exception request form and select “Out-of-State Student” as the reason. This form will be available when your Reservation Window opens. We will approve any exception request from out-of-state students who are not able to attend SPOP by confirming your address on file.

Simply submitting a request does not excuse you from attending in-person orientation. Your request must be approved in order for you to be excused from in-person orientation. After you submit a request, it could take up to 5 business days for our team to reply to your request via your UCI email. Anyone excused from in-person orientation will still be required to complete online orientation and pay the online orientation fee, which will be added to your Fall ZotBill.

Students who are excused from in-person orientation will receive academic advising virtually over the summer. Upon being excused, your academic advisors will be notified and will reach out to you via UCI email to coordinate this virtual appointment.

Once your Reservation Window is open, please submit an exception request form with “Other” as the reason. Please provide as many details as possible so our team can process your request.

Please note, we do not approve exception requests for students who cannot attend SPOP due to work or class. SPOP is mandatory for all incoming first-year students, and we do expect you to work with employers or professors to be able to attend SPOP.

You cannot attend in-person orientation if you participate in CSSA. CSSA covers very similar information as in-person orientation and helps orient new students to life at UCI. If you are identified as a CSSA participant at the time your reservation window opens, you will not be able to make an in-person SPOP reservation. If you had previously made a SPOP reservation and later signed up for CSSA, your SPOP reservation will be canceled. Your academic advisor will reach out to you to coordinate academic advising and course enrollment.

All incoming first-year students are still required to complete both online and in-person orientation, including students participating in any Freshman Summer Success Program (FSSP).

If you are participating in Summer Bridge, you are required to attend SPOP 6 on Friday, August 1 – Saturday, August 2*. Summer Bridge applications will still be open when reservation windows first open, so all SPOPs will be listed for you to attend when you make your SPOP reservation. Once we get a list of confirmed Summer Bridge participants, we will automatically move your SPOP reservation to SPOP 6 if you are not already signed up for SPOP 6. We will not book your SPOP 6 reservation for you if you have not already made a reservation.

* The exception to this is if you are also participating in CAMP’s CAMP Summer Science Academy (CSSA). If you are attending CSSA, you cannot participate in SPOP.

All incoming first-year students are still required to complete both online and in-person orientation, including students participating in any Freshman Summer Success Program (FSSP).

If you are participating in FSSP Explore or Math in the Summer (MITS), you are encouraged to attend SPOP 6 on Friday, August 1 – Saturday, August 2*.

If you are participating in FSSP Explore or MITS, SPOP 6 will be the only SPOP program you will be able to make a reservation for during your SPOP reservation process.

Summer Bridge applications will still be open when reservation windows first open, so all SPOPs will be listed for you to attend when you make your SPOP reservation. Once we get a list of confirmed Summer Bridge participants, we will automatically move your SPOP reservation to SPOP 6 if you are not already signed up for SPOP 6. We will not book your SPOP 6 reservation for you if you have not already made a reservation.

If you are participating in FSSP International, you are highly encouraged to attend ISPOP on Wednesday, September 17 – Thursday, September 18.

* The exception to this is if you are also participating in CAMP’s CAMP Summer Science Academy (CSSA). If you are attending CSSA, you cannot participate in SPOP.

If you are a CHC student, you must attend either SPOP 1 or SPOP 2*. There will be programming for CHC students at SPOP 1 or SPOP 2 only, and your priority course enrollment status is honored by attending one of the first two SPOPs.

As a CHC student, you will get the first access to the SPOP reservation system. We do this so you get the first chance to make a reservation at SPOP 1 or SPOP 2!

*There are exceptions to this if you are in CHC and CSSA or CHC and FSSP. If you are a CHC student who is attending CSSA, you cannot participate in SPOP. If you are a CHC student who is participating in a Freshman Summer Success Program (FSSP), you must attend SPOP 6.

The following student groups have priority course registration status. Additionally, Campuswide Honors Collegium (CHC) students have priority course registration status, and their SPOP requirements are addressed in the question above. We receive a list of students from the respective departments, and we send an email communication to remind these students of how to accommodate their priority enrollment status at SPOP:

• Student Athletes
• Students who are parents
• Students registered with Disability Services Center
• Military-Connected Students
• Foster Care-Connected Students

Course enrollment for Fall Quarter takes place during your SPOP reservation. Because of that, students in a priority registration group are highly encouraged to SPOP 1 or SPOP 2. However, students in a priority registration group are not required or guaranteed to attend SPOP 1 or SPOP 2. If SPOP 1 or SPOP 2 are full by the time you make a reservation, you will have to make a reservation for a different SPOP date.

Students in a priority registration group get the first access to the SPOP reservation system! Please be sure to check your Reservation Window to ensure you make a reservation as soon as possible.

The first thing you should do is make a reservation for a SPOP date you can attend. There are so many other opportunities and events at SPOP outside of course enrollment that we want to make sure you experience.

The next step is to submit an exception request form as soon as possible, selecting “Priority Registration” as the reason. Please note, you will still be required to attend the SPOP for which you made a reservation. Completing the exception request form will allow us to connect you with your academic advisors to be advised virtually before you attend SPOP in-person. The only way we accommodate “early” course enrollment is virtually before you attend SPOP in-person.

International first-year students are required to attend an in-person orientation. International students are welcome to make a reservation for any SPOP 1-10 or ISPOP; you cannot make a reservation for both a SPOP and ISPOP.

We highly recommend that international students attend ISPOP, since this program is designed specifically in collaboration with the International Center for incoming international students!

If you are a domestic student who wants to attend ISPOP, you must submit an exception request form with the “Wants to Attend ISPOP” reasoning. If you have spent a significant amount of living/attending school in the US, you may not find ISPOP very beneficial. ISPOP is meant for students who are new to living/attending school in the U.S. If you want to attend ISPOP because of the dates but would not find it beneficial, please submit an “Out of State Student” exception instead.

If you have specific questions about the housing process or timeline, please contact UCI Housing.

You will be getting information about your on-campus housing assignment from UCI Housing. This email will say your move-in date and time is on Wednesday, September 17, which is Day 1 of ISPOP.

On Day 1 of ISPOP, after you check-in with the orientation team to confirm your attendance at ISPOP, you will then check-in with UCI Housing to get your room key. The morning of ISPOP is dedicated to move-in time for you to bring all your belongings to your room.

No, if you are attending ISPOP as a commuter and will not be living on-campus, you are not provided with overnight accommodations and do not stay overnight on-campus. At the end of Day 1 of ISPOP, students living off-campus will leave campus and return to their off-campus residence. These students will check back into ISPOP on the morning of Day 2 of ISPOP.

ISPOP is still a 2-day experience for all attendees; however, it is not an overnight orientation for students who will be living off-campus.

For students who will not be moving into on-campus housing and not staying overnight on campus:

• Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, refillable water bottle, comfortable clothing and shoes, and a light jacket
  • Please be prepared to travel to and from buildings across campus and spend time outside!
• A notebook and pen if you would like to take notes
• A phone charger or portable charger – we do not have any to provide
• Any medications you may need

For students who will be moving into their housing assignment during ISPOP, you will have your belongings with you since you will be moving in. We recommend having the things mentioned above, in addition to the list below ready to access during ISPOP:

• A change of clothes for sleeping and Day 2 of ISPOP
• Bedding so you can sleep comfortably your first night at UCI!
• Toiletries and personal hygiene items, including shower shoes

mini-TSPOP and TSPOP are the two in-person orientation programs offered to incoming transfer students and their families. They are both optional, but we highly recommend transfer students attend an in-person program!

mini-TSPOP is a one-day in-person orientation program for both transfer students and their families. This program is for transfer students who want to spend some time on campus, meet current and new transfer students, learn about the transfer student experience, and only have one day to spend on campus. If transfer students choose to have any family members make a reservation and attend mini-TSPOP with them, they will be attending all the same sessions and workshops as their students.

TSPOP is a 2-day, 1-night overnight orientation program for transfer students. This program is for transfer students who want an overnight orientation experience to spend more time on campus, meet new and current students, and learn about the transfer student experience. If you sign up for TSPOP, you are expected to stay overnight on campus. If you are not interested staying overnight on-campus, we recommend that you attend mini-TSPOP instead of TSPOP. If you make a reservation and want a family member to attend the parent and family supporter portion of orientation, they can make a reservation to attend the Parent and Family Orientation Program (POP) on Day 2 of TSPOP.

Yes, all transfer students are required to complete online orientation, regardless of their attendance at an in-person orientation program. Online orientation includes material that is required for all students to review, and this material will not necessarily be reviewed at in-person orientation. Attending an optional in-person orientation does not satisfy or replace the online orientation requirement.

For mini-TSPOP, we recommend that you bring:

• Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, refillable water bottle, comfortable clothing and shoes, light jacket
• A notebook and pen if you would like to take notes
• A phone charger or portable charger – we do not have any to provide
• Any medications you may need

For TSPOP, we recommend bringing:

• Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, refillable water bottle, comfortable clothing and shoes, light jacket
  • Please be prepared to travel to and from buildings across campus and spend time outside!
• A change of clothes for sleeping and day 2 of TSPOP
  • On-campus housing provided during SPOP does not have air conditioning, so please keep that in mind when packing.
• Toiletries and personal hygiene items, including shower shoes
  • Students will have access to the communal showers in their halls.
• A notebook and pen if you would like to take notes
• A phone charger or portable charger – we do not have any to provide
• Any medications you may need

Towels and linens, including sheets, a blanket, and pillow, are provided, and you do not need to bring your own. However, you are welcome to bring your own if you prefer. There is no discount for not using the linens provided for you.

While it is optional to attend either of these in-person orientation programs, we do ask that all attendees stay for the entire duration of mini-TSPOP and TSPOP. These in-person programs usually reach capacity and have a long waitlist, so please only make a reservation if you plan to stay for the entire program.

TSPOP is an overnight orientation program, and we expect all students at TSPOP to stay overnight on-campus. If you do not want to stay overnight on-campus, we recommend that you attend mini-TSPOP instead.

You can cancel your reservation by first going to your TSPOP Dashboard. Select “Cancel my Reservation” and confirm the cancellation. Since this is not a mandatory program, you do not need to request a cancellation or get your cancellation approved. However, you must make your cancellation at least 9 days before the program begins. After that point, we finalize our attendee list and count on your attendance. If there is an extreme circumstance that prevents you from attending, please contact us at orientation@uci.edu about a cancellation. No-shows will still be charged for their in-person orientation fee, since we expected and paid for your attendance.

If you are able to attend a different in-person program, you could switch into another open program! You can do this by logging into your SPOP Dashboard and selecting the “Orientation Selection” page. From here, you can review what programs are available and confirm a new reservation.

It is completely optional for any parents or family supporters to attend any Parent and Family Orientation Program (POP). However, any parents or family supporters who want to attend POP must make and pay for a reservation in advance.

Anyone a student considers to be a parent or family supporter is welcome to make a reservation! The content of the program contains information particularly useful for parents or a parental figure. There is not any separate programming or activities for young family members who attend, so if you plan on bringing a younger child, they will be attending the same sessions as you at POP.

If you plan on bringing a child young enough to not need a reservation, they will not be getting their own seat, so please either plan on having them in a stroller or sitting on your lap.

If you are attending POP, there will be some parts of your day that are for parents and family supporters only. However, there are opportunities for you to attend workshops and lunch with your student.

If you are attending mini-TSPOP with your transfer student, you will be with your student for the entire duration of mini-TSPOP.

Day 1 of SPOP and TSPOP is for students only. You are welcome to join your student as they wait to check-in, but once they are checked-in, they will be going to their welcome session, which is for students only. The UCI campus is open to the general public, so if you want to stay and explore campus, buy UCI gear at the bookstore, or visit an office during their business hours, you are welcome to do so.

The POP reservation system & process are entirely separate from the student reservation system & process. Making a student reservation does not include a POP reservation for their guests.

You will not be able to make a POP reservation until your student’s Reservation Window opens. Please check in with your student about their Reservation Window.

Once your student has made their own SPOP reservation, they will land on a confirmation page. On this confirmation page, find the section labeled “Parent & Family Supporter Orientation Program.” Click on the link after “Make your POP reservation here” to go to CampusGroups, which is the platform for our POP reservation system.

The first step to making a POP reservation is logging into CampusGroups. Students need to log into CampusGroups with their UCInetID and associated password. Please do not make a Guest Account on CampusGroups with your parent/family member’s information. They will not have access to make a reservation with a guest account. 

Once you are logged into CampusGroups, you should land on a page that lists all of the POP dates. If you logged in and are then taken to the CampusGroups homepage, you can find the POP date page by clicking on “Events” on the top left of the page, then filtering your search by selecting “Orientation” under Event Tags. You will then be shown the list of all the POP dates.

Parents/family members do not have to attend the POP during their student’s SPOP; they are welcome to sign up for any of the POP dates. Please make sure you select the correct POP date for which to make the reservation.

Once you are on the Event Page for the POP date, select how many guests (up to three per student) will be attending from the drop down, then click “Register.” After that, please enter the information for each guest. Please note, the first & last name entered will be the name printed on their name tag at POP, and the email address entered will be used to contact your guests with important POP information. 

Once every guests’ information has been entered, you will be taken to the payment page. The POP reservation process does require payment at the time of making the reservation – this is different from the student reservation process. You will need credit card information to enter to pay the fee for each reservation. After completing the payment for POP, you will have successfully completed the POP reservation process! Your student will be receiving the confirmation email to their UCI email, since it is automatically sent to the account’s email address.

If you are unsure if you successfully signed up for POP, please email orientation@uci.edu and we can verify your reservation for you.

When you are making your POP reservation, you will be asked if you have any accommodations our team should be aware of to make your POP experience as comfortable as possible. Please fill out this question with any details you would like to include. If you missed this question when making your reservation, please email orientation@uci.edu with any accommodations you need. Please let us know as soon as possible of any accommodations you need so our team has plenty of time to meet your needs.

Prior to your POP reservation, you will be contacted by someone from our team to confirm we can accommodate your request and further discuss the logistics of your accommodations if needed.

No, we do not provide any overnight accommodations for any POP attendees. If you are attending POP and need to make overnight accommodations in the area, we recommend checking this list of local hotels that may offer discounted rates for UCI visitors.

We recommend that POP attendees bring:

• Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, refillable water bottle, comfortable clothing and shoes, light jacket
  • Please be prepared to travel to and from buildings across campus and spend time outside!
• A notebook and pen if you would like to take notes
• A phone charger or portable charger – we do not have any to provide
• Any medications you may need

We expect all POP attendees to stay for the entire duration of the program, even though it is optional to attend. POPs tend to reach capacity and have a waitlist, so if you leave early, you have taken a spot from someone who would have wanted to stay the entire time. If you do need to leave early, please note that your student will not be able to leave early unless they got an approved exception request to leave early.

Yes! You do not need to attend the same orientation session as your student. When you make a POP reservation, you will have the option to select which POP date you would like to attend. You will not automatically be signed up for the same SPOP as your student, so make sure you sign up for the correct date you want to attend.

You will need to have your student log into CampusGroups, select “Events” from the navigation menu, and your POP reservation should be listed on the left side of the page under “Events I’m Attending.” Click on the POP reservation to go to the event page. Select “Registration” on the top of the page. From there, select “Request A Refund” to start the cancellation process. It will take several business days for the request to be processed. Your student will get an email confirmation that your POP reservation has been canceled and your refund is on the way.

If you already made a POP reservation and want to switch to a different POP date, you will have to follow the above steps to cancel your reservation, and then complete the reservation process again for the POP you want to attend. We cannot “transfer” your initial POP reservation payment to your new POP date, so you will have to cancel your first reservation and get a refund and then make your new reservation.

All cancellations must be at least 72 hours before your POP reservation in order to process your refund. Any cancellations made within 72 hours of your POP reservation will not be refunded. 

Yes, you can join the waitlist for any full POP program! When you are on the CampusGroups page listing all of the POP dates, select the full program you want to attend. Click “Join Waitlist” after choosing how many reservations you want to add to the waitlist. At this time, you will not be prompted to make the POP reservation payment. 

When spots open up, they will be offered to parents/families on the waitlist. If a spot opens up for you, your student will get an email to their UCI email letting them know that a spot in that POP has opened up for you. You have to accept your new POP reservation in order for your reservation switch to be confirmed. This includes making the POP reservation fee payment online. You will not automatically be placed in the new POP date if a spot becomes available for you. You will have 48 hours from the time you are notified about the spot opening from the waitlist to accept your new reservation before it is offered to the next person in the waitlist.

All POP confirmation emails are sent to students’ UCI email addresses. This is because students are logged into their CampusGroups account when making the POP reservation, and the confirmation email is sent automatically. After that, all email communications regarding POP will be sent to the attendee emails entered in the POP reservation process. Please be sure to communicate with your student to check the confirmation, and please be sure to enter your email address correctly when making your POP reservation.

We cannot guarantee that we will be able to accommodate all day-of reservations. While we do occasionally accept day-of reservations, we cannot guarantee that day-of reservations at any POP will be available. Please be sure to make your POP reservation as soon as possible if you want to attend.