Arrival Survival 2015 Checklist: 5,460 Pounds of Ice, 554 Pizzas

About 7,800 new and returning students will move into Pitt’s Oakland residence halls Aug. 24 through Fri., Aug. 28. That’s no small undertaking for a large urban campus with limited parking. 

But fear not, preparations have been in the making since last year’s Arrival Survival and student orientation week. Two Arrival Survival Student Coordinators will oversee this year’s massive operation: Mackenzie Brown, a junior majoring in applied developmental psychology, and Lauren Woolwine, a sophomore majoring in anthropology. 

They have arranged for 710 student volunteers to help families with move-in, provide directions, and other tasks. Seventy-seven Pitt staff and faculty members will get into the volunteer act, too, staffing registration tables in the residence halls.

New students move in Aug. 24-26, while upperclassmen move-in days have been set for Aug. 27-28. Several roads will be blocked to enable students and their families to be as close to residence halls as possible.

The New Student Orientation, set for Aug. 24-30, runs concurrently with move-in. There is a vast array of planned activities on and off campus to introduce newcomers to Pitt, Oakland, and Pittsburgh. A schedule is available online at fye.pitt.edu