The view from my office at the Admissions Center is of construction crews building the Florida Polytechnic University campus. I am able to watch the Florida Poly campus rising from the ground up. It’s an exciting time to be admitting Florida Poly’s inaugural class for Fall 2014. The enthusiasm is shared by students we admit and their families, as deposits are pouring in and seats filling up fast.
Half the freshman seats are taken, so it is a good idea for students not to wait. Get that deposit in, and guarantee your place now. Although the deadline for admitted students to send in their $200 deposit is May 1, 2014, it is a good idea to be proactive, go online to BetheNext.com, and make the payment now. Why? At the pace that students are sending in their deposits, all the seats likely will be filled by the May 1 final deadline. There is no guarantee that we will have the space for everyone admitted who wants to come to Florida Poly, Florida’s newest university and the only one dedicated to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Besides guaranteeing your seat in our inaugural class, there are other significant advantages to making your deposit now. Once we have your deposit, Florida Poly staff can get to work putting together your financial aid package. Scholarship money is distributed on a first-come, first-served basis to students. Any additional scholarship funds will be spent first on the students who’ve told us that they’re committed and coming to Florida Poly full time for Fall 2014.
Getting your deposit in also means that you can apply for student housing, which is under construction on campus. With the first student housing having up to 219 beds, we may not be able to accommodate everyone who wants to live on campus. The inaugural class will be a total of 500 students, which include freshmen, transfers and graduate students. Those who reserve housing now are first in line for on-campus residences. The on-campus housing is sure to be popular, too, as each fully furnished room has a full-sized bed. The common living areas in each suite will have large-screen TVs. And there’s a downstairs fitness facility and games room!
School starts in August. But the staff at the Admissions Center already is making connections with accepted students who’ve committed to Florida Poly. We’re hearing from parents and students with questions about moving on campus and becoming part of the Florida Poly community. I look forward to welcoming each and every student in our inaugural class.
As I look out the Admissions Center’s tall glass windows, I see bulldozers, cranes and crews hard at work. But I also can imagine that first week on campus, with our brand-new class of students making their way across our brand-new campus. Each student and faculty member will be a new face, but there will be no strangers on the Florida Poly campus. Each one of you will be welcomed and making history, as we together distinguish Florida Poly as the jobs university, preparing students for promising STEM careers. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else!
