Freshman Edge: FAQ

While the Freshman Edge and International pathways are not limited, we estimate about 150 Freshman Edge participants and 125 International participants. Approximately 87 students will be awarded a Summer Bridge scholarship.

Students who plan on attending Freshman Edge even if a Summer Bridge Scholarship is not awarded should also enroll in Freshman Edge. This will save their space in the program and give them the best chances at a space in their desired course. Summer Bridge Scholarship applicants will be notified of their acceptance status on a rolling basis, beginning mid-May.

The University Studies course is 2 or 4-units, depending on which enrollment pathway you choose. Your grade will be recorded to your UC Irvine transcript with units applied toward graduation.  If you choose to take the course for a Letter Grade, your grade will be added into your UC GPA. If you choose to take the course as Pass/No Pass, you receive course credit if you earn a grade of “C” or better. Review the University Credit policies prior to enrollment.

• You can submit your application in one of three ways:
  
  Electronically: Enroll online through the Online Enrollment Form. Visit our Enrollment page for more details.
  
  By Mail: Visit our Enrollment page, download and print a Freshman Edge enrollment form. You can mail your form to:
  
  UCI Summer Session
  Freshman Edge
  PO Box 6050
  Irvine, CA 92616
  
  In-Person: If you plan to make a visit to the campus, you may submit your paper enrollment form in person to our office (Building #231 on the UCI campus map). Our office is open 8am-5pm, Monday through Friday.

Students must complete their Summer Financial Aid steps prior to enrolling in Freshman Edge. Once these steps are complete, students should see their estimated financial aid in their account once they log into our Online Enrollment Form. Students will be instructed to pay the remaining balance online (if applicable). If students plan to enroll through the Paper Enrollment Form, students must submit payment for the non-refundable mandatory campus fee of $181 on their enrollment form to hold their space in the program and courses. Any Summer aid awarded by UCI Financial Aid will first be allocated toward the remainder of Summer Session course or materials fees. Students will receive an e-mail from our Summer Session team if they have an outstanding balance and will be provided instructions to complete their payment by a specific deadline. For more information, please visit our Financial Aid page.

*Please note that the 2018-2019 FAFSA that is required for summer aid is last year’s form and is different than the 2019-2020 FAFSA that you may have already completed for fall financial aid. Visit the UCI Financial Aid and Scholarships website for more information about applying for summer financial aid.

If you need an F-1 visa to study at UC Irvine, your I-20 documentation will be processed by the UCI International Center based on your “My Admissions” information. The start date of your I-20 can be changed for attendance in Freshman Edge once your Freshman Edge International Enrollment Form (coming spring 2019) and payment are received and processed by our office. Follow the instructions given in your UCI Admissions correspondence. It is the student’s responsibility to complete the necessary steps to obtain a visa with UC Irvine. Once you have secured your F‐1 student visa, we suggest you start looking for flights to the U.S. You should fly into Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) or John Wayne Airport, Orange County (SNA).

The Student Parent Orientation Program (SPOP) is a comprehensive 2-day, 1-night orientation for domestic and international freshmen that includes academic advising, class registration, information on important student resources and services, social activities, and many opportunities to make friends.

All Freshman Edge students should attend SPOP in addition to Freshman Edge. For information regarding SPOP in relation to Freshman Edge, please visit our SPOP page. Please note that registration for SPOP is SEPARATE from Freshman Edge enrollment and must be completed with payment in order to reserve your space in SPOP. Instructions of how to register for SPOP will be sent via e-mail in May from orientation@uci.edu.

Freshman students meet their academic counseling team and sign up for fall courses at the Student Parent Orientation Program (SPOP). See our What is SPOP? FAQ.

We strongly recommend that you choose a course from the course list your academic school has provided on the academics page of our website. This list was composed by your department’s academic advising team and includes the Summer Session courses that would be beneficial to you.

Our team at Summer Session is unable to provide academic advising, but would be pleased to help connect you to your academic department and relevant websites.

Freshman Edge is intended to give students an example of college life at UC Irvine and ease the transition to the campus environment. For this reason, it is recommended that students choose an on-campus course and take advantage of in person interaction with Instructors, T.A.s (teaching assistants), and Discussion Leaders. 

The recommended course list was composed by your department’s academic advising team and includes the Summer Session courses that would be beneficial to you. You may choose to enroll in a course that is not on the list at your own discretion. Your enrollment will be shared with your department’s academic advising team and you may be contacted if your course enrollment is deemed inappropriate. Some courses will have required pre-requisites. If your course has a pre-requisite that you do not currently meet, you will be contacted by Summer Session and prompted to choose an alternate course. Students are welcome to contact Summer Session with questions, we would be pleased to assist and connect you with your department’s academic advising team.

If you are enrolling in the Freshman Edge pathway, it is recommended that students enroll in one 4-unit course in addition to the required University Studies course. If you are enrolling in the Freshman Edge International pathway or Summer Bridge pathway, your courses have been pre-selected for you – it is not recommended that you enroll in more classes than the pre-selected course load. Summer Session terms are 6-weeks long, 5 weeks of instruction with final exams during week 6. In this accelerated format, enrollment in 6-8 units is considered a full course load (full-time student status).

Closer to the start of the program, you will be able to search for required course books and materials online through UCI EEE and The Hill, UC Irvine’s Bookstore. Instructions for searching for and purchasing course books will be sent to students by e-mail and included in the student “Welcome Guide.”

If you plan to bring a car to the campus, you will need a parking permit to park at UCI. Please note there are no suitable nearby shopping centers or other options for parking, and personnel in nearby shopping centers do routinely ticket cars. Parking permits will be available for purchase from the UCI Transportation & Distribution Services office. Please note, if you plan to purchase a residential parking permit, you will not be able to use the same permit to park on-campus.

Residential students live together in the Arroyo Vista Housing Community on campus. Arroyo Vista is a 10-15 minute walk from the campus and features double-occupancy rooms in smaller houses of 12-32 beds. Each house includes a full kitchen and access to laundry.

It is highly recommended that students live with the program to fully experience the campus and best take advantage of opportunities, including workshops and activities. Students may choose to commute to the campus. Students who receive a Summer Bridge Scholarship are required to live on campus during Freshman Edge.

Freshman Edge housing is completely separate from your academic year housing and requires a separate contract. The Freshman Edge Housing Contract only covers housing for the duration of the program – it will not cover housing during the period after the program ends and before the start of fall quarter. Please note that there is a separate housing contract (different from the Freshman Edge enrollment form) that must be completed in order to reserve your room for Freshman Edge.

Students who mark Yes for housing on their Freshman Edge enrollment form will be sent a housing contract by e-mail within our program confirmation.

To enroll in Freshman Edge with program housing, students will need to submit their Freshman Edge enrollment by the residential enrollment deadline. However, students interested in housing are strongly advised to enroll in Freshman Edge as soon as possible as housing spaces are offered on a first-come, first-served basis

If your parent or guardian is in Irvine for SPOP, you are welcome to drive with them to check in to your Freshman Edge housing in Arroyo Vista. Otherwise, shuttle buses will be available to transport students and their luggage from Mesa Court to Arroyo Vista (note students will have to carry their own luggage). The friendly Freshman Edge Mentors and Summer Session staff will be present to welcome you to Arroyo Vista and answer any questions you may have.

Freshman Edge housing is completely separate from your academic year housing and requires a separate contract. Freshman students may be assigned a different room on campus housing community for the academic year. Visit UCI Housing for more information on freshman housing.

Freshman Edge ends on mid-September, as does the housing contract.

Freshman Edge ends mid-September, while fall housing move-in will take place in late September, typically around the 22nd. During this break students typically choose to return home, though some students travel with new friends.

Freshman International students may have the option to submit a Contract Addendum, allowing international students to remain on campus during the break. At this time the campus is only able to offer this addendum to international students. Details regarding a Contract Addendum will be made available summer 2019.

During the program, commuter students will have several opportunities to meet other commuters as well as residential students. The University Studies Seminar will include all Freshman Edge students, residential and commuters alike. Our Freshman Edge mentors will also plan social events throughout the program for all program participants to meet and engage with one another, on campus or in the residential community.

All students will participate in a range of exciting co-curricular activities as part of the required course, University Studies 83/84. Residential students will also have housing and community activities with other Freshman Edge students and their resident advisors.

Students experience college life by participating in programmatic events available to students outside of the scheduled class time. This includes the exclusive INSIDE UCI series and Collegiate Life events. Additionally, the Freshman Edge mentors will host unique academic events on campus that will give students the opportunity to connect with peers. See the Events tab for details.

There are also several food courts on campus where students can grab a bite to eat or to relax and study.

Students can purchase a Summer Meal Plan from UCI Hospitality and Dining. The recommendation for all students who are living on campus is to purchase a Summer Meal Plan for on-campus dining at the commons. Depending on how many meals you anticipate eating on campus, you may choose from three meal plans during the summer. Visit the UCI Hospitality and Dining website to view and purchase a summer meal plan. Please note that 2019 Summer Meal Plan information may not be available until closer to the start of summer.

Please be aware that enrollment in Freshman Edge does not include medical or other types of insurance. Students may enroll in Voluntary Student Health Insurance Plan (USHIP). Students who will not be covered during the program by a major medical health insurance should strongly consider enrolling in Voluntary UC SHIP. See Step 8 of Enrollment for additional details. Health Insurance enrollment forms will be shared with students by e-mail alongside official welcome information.