The Hitchhiker's Guide to TAMS

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy TAMS is a guide maintained by Ambassadors and was created by two former Ambassadors execs, Megan Hoenig and Sydney Jones. The guide contains information on most things a new student should know transitioning to TAMS though readers should note that the guide may be, and has frequently been, out-of-date. Originally, this guide was distributed via Facebook as a PDF but has been adapted for the TAMS Wiki.

Introduction

Dear incoming Juniors,

Congratulations once again on your acceptance into this wonderful establishment. The 2019-2020 Ambassador Execs and other seniors have put together a “little” guide to help you transition into the unique environment that is TAMS. Some parts of this guide are completely our own, but a lot of it was written by previous Ambassadors Execs and your grand, grand, grand, grand... seniors, Megan Hoenig & Sydney Jones. This really is the best guide to succeeding at TAMS. It is a collection of years of wisdom and advice from past TAMS students in addition to us, your seniors who were in your shoes a year ago.

We understand that the guide is just a ​tad​ bit long, so the the ​table of contents has the section titles linked to the sections that you are interested in​. This way you don’t have to scroll through all 33 pages of this guide! Also, the ​page numbers at the bottom of each page are linked to the Table of Contents at the very beginning of this guide​.

Happy reading & Good luck in the coming year!

Summer

Summer Orientation

Summer O is a weekend of fun, making friends, and learning more about life at TAMS. This is also when you will be taking the math and chemistry placement tests. Wondering what to bring? Just what you would bring to a sleepover (pillow, sleeping bag/comforter/sheets) plus toiletries and maybe a few notes for the tests (THAT DOES NOT MEAN BRING A CALCULUS CRAM TEXTBOOK). You’ll receive an itinerary of everything you’ll be doing at Summer O, but just as an overview:

Friday - You’ll arrive Friday around noon and check in with the orientation leaders (OLs) to get your room key and information. There will also be picture taking. Roommates for Summer O are paired by last name. You’ll only be together for 1 night, so it’s not so bad. After you get situated, they’ll tell you guys what you’re going to do for the rest of the weekend and split you guys up into small groups with a couple OLs/Ambassabuddies each. In the small groups, you’ll get to know each other through some ice breakers and then head to Roommate Rumble. These small groups are a great way to make friends before school starts especially since they will be the same groups for Fall O. At Roommate Rumble guys and girls will be split up; you’ll have some time to talk to a few people and try to find a roommate for the upcoming year. Also try to talk to as many people as you can! Don’t worry if you don’t hit it off with anyone right away. Some people found their roommate after Summer O, and ended up the best of roommates. When you do find your roommate (either at Roommate Rumble or outside of TAMS), you’ll both submit a roommate request form online. At night, you’ll experience a wing meeting (we have these every Wednesday at TAMS), and this meeting lasted from 11:00 to 11:45 pm which is pretty typical of a normal wing meeting. Try to get a good night's sleep too because your Saturday will be quite busy.

Also, there will be placement tests Friday evening​. The chemistry and pre-cal tests are mandatory, but if you want to test into a higher math class you’ll have to test for those later in the day. ​However, this year there will not be a CS placement test.​ Don’t stress out too much about these tests. These tests are designed to place you in a class that will allow you to be the most successful. (If you get placed in Honors Chem, you can always choose to switch to Gen Chem).

On Saturday, you guys will do some activities to show you what life at TAMS is like as well as get your textbooks and summer assignments.

The summer orientation schedules vary from year to year and keep in mind that there will be plenty of time in between to socialize and chill. Be sure to get contact information with people that you meet (Facebooks, numbers, Instagrams, Snapchats, etc.) and talk to your seniors!

One of your super grand seniors, Amit Banerjee wrote a blogpost recounting his experiences as an OL, so if you’re interested, go check out his blog post! (https://brandedbyamit.blogspot.com/2015/06/tams-summer-o_16.html).

During the Summer

Some of you might have applied for summer research, but most of you will hopefully be enjoying your last summer before TAMS. In a few months, you won’t be living with your family anymore, so spend time with them while you can! If you haven’t already, join the 2022 TAMS Facebook group and add your future classmates. Summer is a great opportunity to get a head start in getting to know people. Feel free to post and comment on the TAMS Facebook page!

You’ll also have some summer homework to do. It’s not that bad, just a bit of note-taking for Biology and Chem and a light summer reading assignment. It’s not for a grade, just for your own benefit.

We highly recommend having a Facebook account​, so if you don’t​​have one already, summer is a great time to get one and figure it all out. It’s a great way to keep in touch with both your old and new friends. During the school year, Facebook can help you with your classes – letting you know what your homework is and whether or not class is canceled.

Most professors will communicate through Canvas (canvas.unt.edu - bookmark it!), but some will use Blackboard (learn.unt.edu) because UNT is trying to switch over to Canvas from Blackboard. Your username is your EUID that you should get through paper mail. Typically, it is your three initials (2, if you don’t have a middle name) with four numbers (ex abc1234 or ab1234). You will get lots of information (like how to apply for housing) so try your best to keep it all together. Also, you will be receiving an ID number (This should be 8 digits long), different than your EUID which you will basically only use to log into things. Try your best to memorize both your EUID and ID numbers or at least save it somewhere (screenshot and favorite it for easy access) because you will use them frequently. There will be lots of other things that you will have to do over the Internet, so if you can’t quite figure it out, either call the department in charge or ask another student (benefit of Facebook).

Over the summer, about mid-July, you will get your roommate assignment. Contact your roommate and try to get to know them – maybe have lunch together if y’all live close. At the bare minimum, figure out who is going to bring what appliances. Usually one roommate brings the fridge, one brings the microwave depending on who already has what and maybe how far they live from TAMS- people that live farther away will usually have more stuff to bring/take back on move in/move out days, so keep that in mind. Once the rooms and roommates are decided, you will be assigned to two senior mentors that will cover your wing. We’ll talk in detail about this later in dorm life, but they will reach out to you and maybe make a wing Facebook group to bring everybody closer. Finally, the roommate assignment will say your room number and what type of room (community, suite, or private) you will get. You can look up your room and the location on the TAMS website under Student Life and then Dorm Info. You can also look up the staff, get to know them, and learn their names. This is under Student Life then Student Life Staff.

Another important thing online is your schedule, which you can find on my.unt.edu. You log in with the same EUID/password combination from your Canvas account. From there, click on the Student Center/Register button on the left side. Below the big picture of your schedule is a button called “Weekly Schedule.” You can then edit it at the bottom where you can click checkboxes to see your instructor or class title. Be sure to adjust your time frame to see all of your classes, but we’ll explain your schedule later.

The only other pertinent thing over the summer is packing and getting your dorm room ready. I highly recommend buying all the things that you will need over the course of the summer, rather than at the very end. This helps to ensure that you can 1) get better prices, 2) avoid hot sellers from going out of stock, and 3) minimize stress especially if you’re ordering online. Also, bring only the necessities for move-in day; you can bring the rest on a closed weekend. Here is a basic list of what all you need, but what you bring totally depends on the person.

What to Pack

Packing for TAMS

Dorm Room

• Twin XL sheet sets
• Bed Bug protector
• Comforter
• Pillows & Pillowcases
• Extension cord/Surge protector with no/off switch
• Clothing hangers
• Hamper
• Detergent & Dryer sheets
• Fridge & Microwave (split between roommates)
• Water kettle
• Desk lamp
• Bath towels
• Dish soap & Hand soap
• Broom
• Paper towels/Napkins
• Eating utensils (Disposable are great)
• Microwavable Bowls & Plates
• Mugs
• Water bottle
• Air Freshener

Optional:

• Memory foam bed topper (actually a must)
• Backrest pillow
• Rug
• Desk Chair (MC provides one but it's trash)
• Extra seating (beanbag chair/saucer chair)
• Tiny table (for eating with friends)
• Full-length mirror
• Floor lamp
• Rice Cooker
• Organization Boxes
• White board and Expo markers (useful during finals)
• Sleeping mask & earbuds

Clothes & Accessories

• Casual & nice shirts
• Jeans, shorts, leggings
• Formal clothing (girls you will need a lot of dresses for different TAMS events)
• PJs
• Workout clothing
• Close-toed shoes
• Shower shoes
• Hates, belts, sunglasses, jewelry, ect.
• Rain gear

Bathroom Necessities

• Shower caddy (NEED for community and suite rooms)
• Shampoo, conditioner, body wash & lotion
• Razor
• Toothbrush, toothpaste, floss
• Deodorant
• Glass cleaner, contact solution, eye drops
• Medicine: Advil, allergy med, cold/flu
• Band-aids

For suites and privates

• Toilet paper
• Bathroom Mat
• Plunger & toilet bowl brush
• Cleaning supplies (Lysol, bleach, etc.)

Optional

• Makeup
• Fair products
• Hairdryer, curler, straightener
• Skincare products

Electronics

• Laptop/Desktop
• Chargers

Optional:

• Printer
• Ethernet cable (24 hour internet!!)
• Headphones
• Speakers

School Supplies

• Pencils, pens, highlighters
• Erasers & whiteout
• Tape, glue
• Calculator (scientific calculator for Gen Chem)
• Notebook & notebook paper
• 8.5x11 Minilla folders
• Stapler (need!)
• Sticky notes & Index cards
• Backpack (duh)

Misc.

• Food (homemade, instant food, snacks, fruits)
• Bottled water and drinks
• Instant Coffee and creamer and sugar
• Duffle bags (for closed weekends)
• Bike or skateboard (optional)

School

Schedule/Classes

Math

Pre-Calculus

Calculus I

Calculus II & Above