UWM’s Open House has plenty of booths and information for everyone.
The University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee annual Open House on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 26-27, showcases the entire university, and is a great way to see all that UWM has to offer.
Open House hours are 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturday. No advance registration is required, though students can pre-register to save time the day of the event by visiting openhouseprereg.uwm.edu. Check-in and registration take place on the ground level of the Union both days.
Participants can take part in hands-on displays, meet faculty, speak with advisors from every UWM school and college, tour campus and individual buildings and ride a trolley bus through the UWM neighborhood and along Lake Michigan.
Prospective students and their families also can learn about student life, housing opportunities, the enrollment process and the all-important topics of financial aid and scholarships. Current UWM students and advisors will be on hand throughout the Open House.
Support services and organizations that provide networking and advice for new UWM students also will be represented. UWM’s Student Success Center, African American Student Academic Services, Roberto Hernandez Center, American Indian Student Services and Southeast Asian-American Student Services will offer displays featuring student activities and successful alumni, as well as other exhibits. For example, the American Indian Student Services booth will have information on the 35th annual UWM Autumn Pow Wow, Honoring Family, set for Nov. 3.
Students involved in the McNair Scholars program will be sharing some of their research in the Ballroom area. The Ronald E. McNair Post-baccalaureate Achievement Program is a federally funded initiative to prepare low-income, first-generation and underrepresented students for graduate-level study while they are in their undergraduate years. It is named for the African American astronaut who died in the space shuttle Challenger explosion. UWM’s McNair program is one of the longest running in the country.
Open House gives visitors a chance to pick up information,
attend presentations and pick up information about
the university.
Forgive Avorgbedor, a senior in the College of Nursing, is a McNair Scholar who will present her research during Open House. Working with mentor and Associate Professor Teresa Johnson, she conducted research on women who have experienced the loss of an infant before or soon after birth, and their interactions with caregivers. Avorgbedor is a native of Ghana. Her research was inspired by her observation that Milwaukee and Ghana face similar infant mortality rates.
In addition to meeting student scholars like Ovorgbedor, visitors to the Open House will have the opportunity to find out more about learning and research at UWM, and get hands-on experiences at some of the booths.
“The UWM Open House is our largest and most impressive outreach program of the year, and the only one of its kind in the state of Wisconsin,” says Janis Ford, executive director of the Department of Admissions and Recruitment. “It also is the recruitment program that has the most impact on a student’s decision to attend the university. There is no other program offered that allows college-bound students and their families the opportunity to explore UWM in such a comprehensive, interactive and fun way.
“In any given year,” Ford adds, “more than half of all the students who attend the Open House, and are eligible to enroll, ultimately make UWM their destination campus.”
The grand total for attendance during the history of the Open House now is 56,540. Guest totals for 2011 numbered 3,620 visitors.
This event is free and open to the public.
For more information, go to www.openhouse.uwm.edu or call 414.229-2222