Campus & community, Campus news

Make way for Move-In Day

By Public Affairs

Move-In750

If you’re thinking of driving to work or classes at UC Berkeley on Monday, Aug. 14, getting around and parking is going to be, well… a bear. A big, congested Golden Bear.

But you can help make the day better for yourself and others on campus.

New students and their helpers will descend on campus on Aug. 14. (UC Berkeley photo by Elena Zhukova)

That Monday is Move-In Day for some 7,000 incoming undergraduates, who — all within a 12-hour time frame — will be arriving at the residence halls, often in cars and with loved ones in tow, to find their rooms and roommates, unload their belongings and then explore campus.

Since the new, required, weeklong Golden Bear Orientation starts Aug. 15, all incoming students who will be living in the residence halls need to settle into campus housing earlier than usual. Summer Sessions students will have vacated the residence halls just days before, on Friday, Aug. 11.

To ease traffic congestion on Monday, campus leadership is asking department chairs and managers to:

  • Review their business for that day and offer staff members alternatives to traveling to campus, such as telecommuting or taking a vacation day;
  • Consider holding planning meetings, retreats and other activities off site that day.

Parking on campus will be extremely limited, in most cases. Between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m., many campus parking lots will be reserved for incoming students who obtained a Cal move-in permit. Faculty and staff members who plan to work on site are being urged to:

  • Bike, walk or take public transit, if possible;
  • If driving to campus, factor in additional traffic congestion and commuting time (for example, 30 extra minutes each way) and be prepared to choose alternate parking facilities and campus lots , or public pay lots.

Large orange bins filled with belongings also will be on the move. (UC Berkeley photo by Hulda Nelson)

Permit holders should review their parking options for this day ahead of time and plan for a longer commute to and from campus. Many lots will be closed to permit holders on Aug. 14 and reserved for those moving in.

Immediately following Move-In Day, all incoming undergraduates will start Golden Bear Orientation, which runs from Aug. 15 to 22. Throughout campus and the surrounding area, groups of new undergraduates and their orientation leaders will be seen on their way to and from tours, field trips, training sessions, academic programming and several events attended by all 10,000 incoming students.

The New Student Services staff has prepared a list of questions and answers to assist members of the campus community with questions about Golden Bear Orientation. The staff members also are available to answer additional questions at nss@berkeley.edu .