The Daily Pennsylvanian Guide to NSO

Campus is abuzz with students arriving — or returning — to their homes at Penn. To mark the beginning of this fall semester, The Daily Pennsylvanian put together a series of the most interesting stories surrounding New Student Orientation. 

For bright-eyed incoming students, this isn't just a guide to the program you're about to be thrust into for six days; it's also a peek into the day-to-day realities at Penn. For all other returning students or alumni, this is a chance to reminisce about your own NSO and observe how the program's been changed since you first stepped onto campus as Baby Quakers. 

Most students on campus are familiar with the quirks of NSO, though few will know that it's a half-century long tradition. Here, the DP looks into the path that NSO took to become the six-day, jam-packed affair that it is today. 

The rise of President Donald Trump has put several Penn alumni in government. Here's an introductory guide to who they are and how they spent their college years at Penn. 

Most new students already have an itinerary packed with events. 44 of these 157 events are listed on mandatory. But are there really consequences if students don't go to them? Upperclassmen tell all. 

With 89 majors available at Penn, many students change their majors once they arrive to campus. Chances are, they'll opt for finance, economics and biology, which are three of the most popular majors at Penn.

Freshman year is daunting for most students, but particularly for those coming to Penn from abroad. In this article, older international students give incoming students some advice on how to navigate their first year away from home. 

At Penn, some professors assign homework over the summer. What's surprising is that not all students think it's a bad idea. 

Close to 3,000 undergraduate students are involved with on-campus Greek life, and a sizable percentage of incoming freshmen will join them in the spring. In this piece, upperclassmen discuss the perks and the drawbacks of going Greek, covering everything from the pressures of the rush process to the "heteronormative masculinity" of frat life.

For the first time this year, first-generation, low-income students will attend a orientation program just for them. Check out what else has changed  — and what hasn't  — in this year's NSO.

Undergraduates aren't the only ones who have events before school starts. Hundreds of incoming graduate students also have a range of events lined up including, believe it or not, a gnome scavenger hunt.

With thousands of new students arriving on campus this week, Penn Student Government is looking to revamp its recruitment strategy. Their priorities include increasing transparency and accessibility of their recruitment process.

NSO is exciting, but classes loom large on the horizon. For any newcomers, here is a quick guide on where to stake out a spot once mid-terms roll around.